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If you’ve wanted to make a video on your educational topic, but were nervous about the end result, rest assured you are not alone. Videos can be intimidating both technically and conceptually. They don’t have to be daunting! With just a little prep work and YouTube-worthy skills, you’ll have an amazing educational video in no time!
1. Avoid Redundant Words
While your viewers must have enough information to comprehend the educational video’s contents, they are not entirely interested in hearing every point you want to make. The last thing you need is your viewer staring at a screen and thinking, “wait, what? Who said this?”. Instead of spelling everything out in simple English, try using more conversational dialogue, such as “The importance of grammar” or “The confusion surrounding the hell.”
Although this sounds overly dramatic, your viewers will have one less thing to think about while they watch your video and at least they’ll be entertained while they’re doing it.
2. Know your Audience
To create a Educational video that will have a greater chance of hitting the 10-second mark, you need to think about who you’re making your video for. If the subject matter is not age-appropriate or relevant to the intended audience, they may not find it as interesting, and they will most likely skip it altogether. Instead of focusing on what you think is best or what you believe works, focus on what would be most enjoyable and beneficial to them.
There are also many different options out there when it comes to educational films, so don’t stick to one genre. For example, an astronomy film may feel outdated to today’s viewers, whereas an animal film is nice and steady but has nothing new or exciting.
3. Keep it Concise
By now, wWe’vehed that you don’t want to bore your viewer, but there is such a thing as going overboard. Before your video hits the twenty-minute mark, you should start asking yourself whether or not what you’re saying has any significance. If it doesn’t, eliminate it using editors such as kizoa. If it does, keep it.
4. Stay on Topic
Just like in school, when you have to write a paper and meet a specific word count requirement (or risk losing points), videos are no different. The first point of consideration is whether or not your topic (the subject matter) is even relevant to the intended audience. If it’s not, cut it. If it is, expand on that and leave nothing out. With that being said, you may want to make sure that your video does not go past ten minutes and still feel relevant to the audience to avoid having a longer video on your hands later on down the line.
5. Use Humor
Humor is a powerful tool. It can be used to make you feel better when you’re down, it can be used to break the ice before important meetings, and it can be used in any educational video to make your viewer feel more at ease with an otherwise uncomfortable subject. If you can use humor, do so. The more relaxed and comfortable your viewer is while they’re watching your video, the better chance they will have of understanding its contents and being able to apply it in real-life situations afterward.
6. Focus on Storytelling
You may have the most amazing educational topic in the world, but that doesn’t mean that anyone will care about it unless you tell them how this topic affects everyday life. Your video is about people, not about the topic itself. Remember that your video is building an emotional connection between your audience and the subject matter at hand. If your video is all about how much you love science and how much it has changed your life, then it’s likely that viewers will never really care and be able to relate to you.
Instead, focus on how you came to find yourself in a career in science or how you were inspired by a specific moment in time and apply it towards a greater understanding of the subject matter that’s at hand.
7. Add an eye-catching thumbnail
This one is pretty self-explanatory. If you can’t capture your viewer’s attention in the first two seconds of watching your video, then it is unlikely that they will watch it at all. Even though this sounds pretty obvious, many people still overlook this simple fact and risk losing viewers who are only interested in content that jumps out and demands their attention. Even if something is interesting, it doesn’t mean that the title and thumbnail won’t attract more viewers than the content does.
8. Add a callout
This is by far the most important piece of advice. Adding a callout will not only capture your viewer’s attention, but it will also help to show that your video is relevant to their own experiences and interests. Instead of giving them an informative lecture on the theory of evolution, you can give them a specific example with practical application that they can relate to personally.
9. Use relevant background music
Like with the title and thumbnail, your music needs to be on point. Suppose you’ve chosen a song that has nothing to do with the subject matter at hand. In that case, your viewer will automatically assume that either A) you don’t know what you’re talking about or B) your Educational video has nothing valuable to offer. If you’re going for funky elevator music, then go for it! If not, there are many other options on tools like kizoa that will help connect your audience with the topic and get them involved.
10. Optimize your video for all devices
Although this one may seem like common sense, many people overlook it. This can lead to an overwhelming number of viewers who may not be able to view your video because of the device they’re using to watch it. If you want to reach a broader range of people, you need to make sure that you’re streaming your content on all available devices (instead of just focusing solely on mobile and desktop devices).
Suppose you follow these steps correctly and take the time to perfect every aspect of your video. In that case, you will undoubtedly have an eye-catching educational production that will showcase your subject matter while still providing an enjoyable experience for the viewer.
Also read: Phases of a Commercial Video Production
