Recording Video Content: 5 Simple Steps to Create Amazing Video Lessons

In 2021, we see a lot of buzz around making video content for all kinds of purposes and monetization. Of course, in this tech age video content is easy to make. A decent video can be produced with almost any camera or mobile device. So, we see videos everywhere. Any platform has a huge volume of videos because people do appreciate it much more now compared to audio or just text.

In fact, people absorb visual information much quicker and much more willingly. And this is why it’s widely used as the most effective way to lure people to marketing promotions, industry-focused training, and educational courses. This is where marketers and course builders can push creativity to the maximum. And achieve an excellent audience engagement.

Today, e-learning platforms provide great opportunities to online teachers for selling their video courses online and making revenue streams. The benefit of educational videos is quite obvious. Plus, video content can be monetized online in a myriad of ways. However, most of the time the success is tied up to the content’s uniqueness and mainstream appeal.

Read this blog post to learn about some turn-key solutions, hints, and tricks that should help you to create awesome video lessons!

#1. Decide What Format Your Video Lessons Should Be

When it comes down to educational videos (niche content), depth of information is the key. In this case, if you have the ability to produce unique and good quality content that can be adapted by e-learning platforms later – you all set. Learning videos come in the following formats:

• Recorded lectures
• Recorded interviews
• Screencasts (walkthroughs, tutorials, voiceover slides)
• Presentations of journal articles/books
• Demonstrations
• Video conferences

Decide what format you’d want to use for your upcoming e-learning course. And if you’d use different video formats in one course, that’s perfectly fine! For example, combine both screen and webcam sources. This approach is especially effective for demonstrational videos or for virtual classrooms.

#2. Review Your Budget To Choose Equipment For Your Video Recordings

Of course, you can buy a camera of any brand depending on what you can afford. Or you can spend some time reading hands-on reviews on video cameras of different manufacturers. They may also guide you and help to make the right decision.

Anyways, look at the quick list of handy equipment that produces awesome quality videos:

Camtasia recorder is utilized for screen recordings/editing. This recorder will let you record movements/actions that take place on the screen, import HDs directly from a camera (other sources), and customize them. Suitable for both – Windows or Mac platforms. Camtasia is also good because it will let you add your voice over recordings.

Wacom Bamboo tablet is utilized for painting, drawing, and makes an alternative to a mouse.

Video cameras

• Microsoft LifeCam Cinema webcam
• Kodak PlayTouch
• Sony Alpha a7S (light & portable)
• Canon C100 Mark II EOS Cinema camera
• Panasonic HC-V750 camcorder camera
• Nikon D5200
• Sony HD Video Recording HDRCX405 handycam camcorder

Microphones to record voice

• Samson C03U Multi-Pattern USB Studio condenser mic
• Blue Microphones Yeti USB mic
• Zoom H4N Digital multitrack recorder

If it’s going to be as simple as equations you could even use your smartphone. For example, rig up your phone to shoot a top-angle view of a presentation. Got a bigger setup? Do a whiteboard shoot too with it. Try live-action shoots and collect lots of footage real fast.

#3. Spend Enough Time On Content For The Upcoming Course

Yes, creating engaging content is a real skill that takes practice. The good news is that anyone can learn the skill of creating engaging material for e-learning courses. Below are suggestions that have been successful with other course builders:

Plan out all graphic content. Before starting to develop the actual video lesson, get all the graphic elements together that you’ll need for the lesson. For example, objectives, graphics, etc. Make educational content even more interesting by adding different animation effects, using different colors for text, and appealing template design. Some Infographics, images, and GIF files will turn your videos into something that looks more creative too.

Don’t just make something up as you go. Analyze the flow of the content and have someone else running the storyboard before you actually push this “record” button.  Take this person’s comments seriously. Then don’t be afraid to rework the flow of the content or make changes.

Content editing. This is the best way to ensure a flawless video. Break content down into digestible chunks of information. Don’t be in a hurry and don’t rush a video lesson.

Collect feedback through simple questions grouped together. Answers to simple questions can both collect feedback on comprehension and guide students to “more info” if they didn’t quite grasp the concept.

Create micro–lectures for introducing a concept. These can be developed into something bigger and used as reusable learning. Boil down the strategy or calculation to something that the students could view briefly in 3-5 minutes.

#4. A Strong Focus On Video Editing Is Important

Video lessons are a powerful asset utilized today to train or deliver either new or useful information. However, before such videos become an educational program, you’ll need to go through multiple stages of planning, content building, and recording. Finally, doing enough video editing for polishing the result.

Look at video editing as a chance to express your creative side and artistic abilities. This is fun! Want everything to be polished to the highest quality? Put extra effort into your editing process. The more experience you gain, the easier the editing process is going to be for you in the future. Don’t try to learn everything at once, build your knowledge with time and practice.

Some hints that should help to get started:

Have clarity. Find ways to match expectations. Have a clear idea regarding the outcome you want to get. Identify the most effective way to proceed. Decide on the right software, learn about features for having excellent final outcomes, manage workload effectively, etc.

Video editing software available online for free:

• Windows Movie Maker
• Adobe Premiere Pro
• Apple Final Cut Pro
• Apple iMovie
• Adobe Premiere Elements
• Filmora 9
• Screen Recorder Pro
• Clip Champ
• WeVideo
• Telestream ScreenFlow (compatible with Mac)

Develop a plan on how to proceed with step–by–step execution. Once you establish goals, organize the editing process itself. Achieve everything you’ve planned by executing step-by-step and making the editing process go smoother. Prior to the editing process, do some research and save relevant audio, video, images, any other files that you’ll need. Organize them in separate folders.

Try simple effects. Don’t think that only high-quality effects and templates will immediately turn your video lesson into something which is very appealing/engaging. Don’t mix too many effects altogether, or you’ll shift learners’ attention away.

Work on color effects. Not having clarity about the right color matching can lead to disaster. Don’t make everything look Matrix-green. But turn a simple edit into something that is more professional-looking.

Keep videos short and simple. It can get tricky when you’ll try to pack a lot of information in a short time. But remember that you’re not creating an action movie. Create a piece of content that will be understood by your students.

Convey the message with music. Music helps to tell stories and it’s a language that everybody understands. Engage your audience with music.

Set up an eye–catchy thumbnail. Whenever someone can’t figure out whether he/she wants to spend time watching a video or not, people look at the video’s thumbnail to get an idea and make up their mind. Encourage them to hit this “watch” button with a compelling thumbnail but have it clearly reflecting the topic.

Stick to the “321” rule.  Remember the time when you have worked so nicely but then suddenly your PC shuts down? Or is there some kind of technical error that comes up? Or you lose that file? And then you have to invest a huge amount of time to get back on track and redo everything you lost. So, stick to a “321 rule”! This means: have 3 copies of your work, keep it in at least 2 different places, where 1 should be kept off-site.

#5. Be Aware Of Common Mistakes Course Creators Make

A lot of people assume that they need to create a series of videos when they design a course. Why? Because that’s what everyone else is doing. People used to create and sell courses even before video streaming was a huge deal. But since you’re about to make a video course, use an approach that works according to your own strengths.

Here are common mistakes people make when they create video lessons:

Low contrast text. There are simple standards out there for the minimum contrast needed to make text readable, with lots of automated checkers. Messing this up makes life difficult for anybody without perfect eyesight, great lighting, and a good display. But it’s especially hard for people with limited eyesight.

Not solving a problem with well–written content. Content informs designs. So, produce a course that learners will care about without wasting learners’ time by polishing crappy content. If your content doesn’t help them accomplish whatever goal brought them to your course, odds are they’ll forget everything about a course.

Spelling and grammar mistakes. If you want to completely decimate your professional image, all you need to do is misspell a word or two. If you want to make a good impression, proofread content multiple times.

Providing too much detail. If you provide too much detailed information, you might end up with people losing interest and moving on to your competitors. Most potential learners want a well-structured overview of the information they need. So, keep messages short,  and easy to understand.

Creating videos that look “too busy”. The last thing your course needs is too many graphics, photos, GIFs, or videos that can be overwhelming to viewers. Try to keep your design simple and uncluttered.

Not understanding the importance of knowing your target audience. Creating video lessons also means figuring out how to attract the attention of students. Yes, your topic will naturally attract a certain type of learner. But don’t end up with a muddled course and stick to your target audience.

Conclusion

If you are a complete beginner, creating video courses may seem to be complicated at first. But it is actually very easy to do. Use the help of powerful software that you can find online for free.

Go to various sites on the Internet for the info and consult others who showed success. Or take online courses on popular e-learning platforms like Grinfer. With awesome courses on Grinfer, you get plenty of useful information on video recording/editing techniques. As well as get exclusive tutorials that will guide you step-by-step. With the right equipment, software, and experience, you can become a creator of best-selling courses!