The two places most training videos fall short are as a result of writing and editing. Your recording was good. And your lighting was okay too. It’s just that your script wasn’t focused and your cuts were sloppy; so much so that it takes you six weeks to even find the video on the Learning Management System (LMS) after you’ve finished producing it.
Modern video training has become an indispensable component of human resources and corporate employee development strategies. This Guide describes each step a Vidpros Editor follows from the point a Client gives him/her raw footage. We will tell the truth about where Do-It-Yourself is sufficient, and what the actual time-investment will look like for a Deliverable ranging from five to ten minutes. To get the bigger picture see our Training Video Production Pillar.
The training video production process consists of Pre-Production, Production, and Post-Production phases. Having a solid understanding of the fundamentals of video creation will help you create a good training video for your team using minimal amounts of money. Aiming at finding this equilibrium your video content is key in order to provide high level instant value to your new employee from day one.
For the first few pages of search results in response to this question there appear to be many Software Companies leading people to use their specific training video maker platforms. While tools do play a part in how well an editor works, the order or “sequence” of these tools matters more than the tool itself. If you have access to a free version of CapCut and an iPhone with a window behind it you will create better content than if you spend $1200.00 and use a high end system poorly.
Employee Training: What Counts as a Training Video (and the Four Types Teams Need First)
A training video is created to teach a team member how to perform a task, complete a process, or follow a company’s policies by providing them with the information they need to be able to perform that task once the video has been watched. Explainers are marketing videos about your company, product or service. Culture videos help set the tone for the company’s overall culture. These are not training videos.
There are Four types of training video that will cover most internal needs of most organizations:
- Screencasts/Software walkthroughs. A screen shot of what is being said over the computer while it performs the functions described. Used for new employee orientation to get familiar with the company’s SaaS tools, Software as a service, and/or sop’s. Screencasts are the most frequently used type of training video in most companies. Recording Software such as Wondershare DemoCreator and Camtasia provide an easy way to create these videos.
The short form rapid screencast videos are dependent upon the amount of space on a desktop screen recording or a basic screen capture set-up. They can be used as an excellent resource to train employees about daily company process and software usage.
- Talking head instructional video. An employee who has expertise on the subject matter provides instruction while on-camera. Often includes background shots. Talking head videos are great for compliance related issues, sales enablement, and leadership messages. Using a well-structured talking head or “clear-head” style video creates a personal connection with the viewer.
- Animated explain video. Animated motion graphics to describe abstract concepts. If you want to animate an explainer video Vyond Starter costs $699 per year (vyond pricing). A high end, creative animated training videos or stylized animation video type will help to make the complex ideas of the business easier to understand. The visually-based explainer videos will help explain complex concepts that cannot easily be filmed live.
- Role play/scenario based learning. Actors demonstrating different situations that could occur in the workplace. This is typically the most expensive method of creating training videos but also results in the highest retention rate of behavior change. When designing behavioral onboarding videos, incorporating realistic interactive elements helps high-growth companies protect core principles. These scenarios allow teams to walk through real-life sales strategies and customer objections safely.
Most organizations will benefit from beginning their training video program using screencasts and talking heads. The other Two methods of creating training videos require either a writer who knows how to write based on characters or an animator who understands instructional design. For more information about which type of corporate training video best suits your organization see corporate training video formats and use cases.
When to make a training video (vs document, vs live training, vs job-aid)
Video is not the correct choice for every project. In some instances we’ve talked our clients into not doing a project at all if a single page job aid would accomplish the same result at 1% of the price of developing a video.
You should develop a video whenever:
The content is procedural and visual. Clicking, sequencing, flow through Software applications, performing physical actions. No one uses Google to figure out where to click to enter an expense report into Concur so a 90 second screencast “filing an expense report” is much better than a six-page PDF that tells the user how to do this.
The ability to learn through on-demand, tailored instructional tutorial videos makes learning as easy as possible while working. This model also provides for your target audience to be able to learn a new skills at their own pace whenever they may have use of it.
You should develop a document when:
The content is a reference guide that users will return to: pricing rules, escalation contacts, approval limits. No one is going to scrub through a video to look up a phone number.
You should conduct live training when:
The content is unique and there is significant risk associated with misunderstanding the topic (new managers, harassment policy, customer data).
You should develop a job aid when:
The user is already working on a task and wants the solution quickly (10 seconds) – example, password reset.
If you cannot come up with a clear learning objective in one sentence then you don’t need to create a video yet.
Step 1: Define the learning objective and success measure
The learning objective and success measure are contained within the first sentence of every training video. The first sentence is structured as follows: “After viewing this video, the learner will be able to ___, given ___, with ___ accuracy.” This structure creates specificity. Helen Webb’s Coaching Site states: “Write the objective and success criterion together. Where the criterion describes ‘what good’ looks like (in observable terms), learning objectives and success criteria.”
Example of an expense report screencast: After viewing this video, a new hire will be able to submit a compliant expense report using Concur, given a stack of receipts and a company provided credit card statement, with zero rejection(s) from finance on their first submission.
This sentence guides the entire script. It dictates what to include in the script, what to exclude, and defines how to define success (the percentage of rejected reports prior to and after completion). Skillshub walks through more variations by domain (Skillshub on learning objectives).
Skip defining success criterion(s) and the script grows; stakeholders will challenge edits based upon no prior agreement regarding success measures.
Step 2: Choosing Your Format for Targeted How To Videos
Choose format that best matches content type, not personal preference. Use Screencast for all tasks performed within software. Record the screen, provide narration, use zoom-in effect during editing for the click target areas. Use Talking head format for policy information, leadership messages or conceptual content where the speaker has authority. A good structure: Hook in the first ten seconds of the video; three to five points in the body of the video; Close the video by stating the action again (structure of talking head videos).
Use Animated for organizational charts or abstract process diagrams since you do not have good footage. Do not overdo it. At some point, animated videos become too similar in design and appear template-like indicating “I do not need to view compliance content”. Scenario can be used for behavior changes where there is more emphasis placed on changing behaviors rather than providing information (e.g., sales conversation examples, customer service de-escalations, manager giving positive/negative feedback). Hardest format in-house to produce.
Hybrid format is commonly utilized. Talking head beginning, screencast middle, talking head ending. CapCut provides an easy way to remove backgrounds so you can place a presenter image over top of a screen recording without a green screen (using CapCut for training video).
Training videos can increase retention rates by up to 82%. Building out an interactive video format allows trainers to target different learning styles simultaneously. Designing content around these varied learning styles directly results in much higher knowledge retention scores.
When creating a Microlearning series with videos less than three minutes long per video, format consistency among the series is more important than choosing the ideal format for each individual video.
Step 3: Scriptwriting and Planning Your Voice Over Track
That’s usually the step that most internal teams miss, and where most outsourced production gets it wrong. A video can never be better than the script. The problem is that SMEs are generally not writers. They write internal wiki documentation; therefore, the video will sound like someone reading an internal wiki document.
My solution was to schedule a 30-minute SME interview by phone. Have the SME on the phone while you record the conversation. Also, have a script editor available. Instruct the SME to study your Learning Objective prior to the interview and be prepared to answer the following two questions. First question, What does the learner need to do? Second question, What is the most common way that learners make mistakes doing what you just described?
Record the entire conversation without creating a script first. Have the SME explain how to perform the task as if he/she were explaining how to teach another employee who has no experience performing that task. Then transcribe the audio file using software such as Descript or Otter. Next, send the transcription to your script editor. Ask him/her to edit the transcription down to approximately 90 – 180 seconds long. Use the same SME’s voice. Organize the edited script based on the Learning Objective. Include all analogies and war stories. Finally, return the edited script to the SME for one pass approval. Do not edit anything except for grammatical errors. Anything else you edit in this round will drop a viewer at minute 3.
As explained by the Biteable Team: “Be Concise: Say what you need to say in as few words as possible” (Biteable Training Video Guide). A 180 second talking head script is about 450 words. When you run out of budget, cut. Don’t Compress.
Using an appropriate and focused script will provide clarity to the essential key concepts and important key ideas that are being taught without allowing extraneous or unnecessary technical jargon to dilute those concepts. As such, using concise language provides for a deeper audience engagement with the subject matter.
Step 4: Plan the shot, set up your space, lighting, audio, framing
Creating professional training videos requires attention to detail with regards to proper lighting and a sturdy tripod; this will enable internal production staff to create great training videos each time.
Spend more money on Audio than Camera. Most smart phones shoot good enough 1080p. However, a poor microphone will render a video completely unwatchable. I spend my extra dollars on microphones. The Audio Technica ATR2100x cost me $99 and allows me to plug either directly into USB or XLR which is a requirement for producing high-quality broadcast voiceovers for most rooms (Recording Setup Walkthrough).
A Window is likely the best inexpensive Light Source available for you. Sit facing the window when shooting. If you cannot sit near a window, consider purchasing a LED Panel Kit ($40) for about 80% of the lighting you would get from a window.
When filming a Talking Head style shot: Eyes should be one third of the way down from the top of frame, Shoulders should be visible, Clean Wall background, Slightly Off-Angle from camera direction, Eye Level Camera Angle. When making Screencast videos: Make sure Screen Resolution is set to 1920 x 1080 prior to starting your recording session. Close all notifications prior to recording and make sure you are using a brand new Browser Profile so that you do not expose other tabs.
Audio Quality Improvement > Camera Quality Improvement. Moving Blanket Hanging on wall behind you = Better Sound Treatment than $300 Microphone Upgrade. Throw Rug on Hardwood Floor = Better Sound Treatment than $300 Microphone Upgrade. Closet Behind Camera Closed = Better Sound Treatment than $300 Microphone Upgrade
Step 5: Record (talking-head, screen recording, or both)
When recording, do so in segments. Even professional filmmakers will shoot many short pieces to create one large segment. When using a talking head format, each main section should be recorded individually. If you mess-up a line while recording, clap your hands once to signal to yourself to restart that part. On an audio waveform, you’ll see the clap clearly during the editing stage.
In addition to screen shots of a user going through a specific function or process, consider running through the entire process prior to filming to write down anything you want to say. This also gives you time to set up your screen shot display on a secondary monitor. Consider recording both the screen and audio independently, and then syncing them later as needed in the editing phase. When you upload your segments to the cloud, you’re protecting your files from being damaged or lost due to a hardware failure (Recording Workflow Tips).
At the very end of your recordings, capture ten seconds of pure silence (room tone) with your microphone on. In the editing phase, you will use these silent moments to “fill-in” areas of gaps between clips and to smooth out transitions.
Step 6: Edit, cuts, callouts, B-roll, captions, music
The editing phase is where all of the elements in creating a quality DIY Training Video either work well together or fail miserably. Eliminate every unnecessary pause, every “uh,” and every false start and edit further. While many first-time creators believe their editors were “too rough” when they edited out pauses and filler words, most training videos created by newbies are 30% longer than they should have been.
Learn how to create J-Cuts and L-Cuts – These are two techniques you can learn which allow you to cut the audio slightly before cutting the video, allowing for seamless flow. Using a J-Cut means that you are showing the viewer the video before hearing the audio. An L-Cut means that you are showing the viewer the video after hearing the audio. Both techniques give the appearance of fluidity rather than abrupt changes.
Mastering these micro-adjustments inside your video editing software transforms rough raw files into engaging videos. Relying on professional video editing tools allows you to edit videos without introducing distracting visual glitches.
In regards to screen captures of users interacting with applications, pan into the portion of the application where the activity is taking place. Avoid having the user’s cursor sit idle at the top left of the screen while viewing other parts of the interface. CapCut and Camtasia are capable of doing this. CapCut is free and has an easier learning curve.
B-Roll – Every 15-30 seconds cut to some type of B-Roll footage related to what is being said. There are many good free resources available such as Pexels, Pixabay and Coverr which offer high-quality footage without needing to purchase expensive stock footage.
Captions – Always Include Them
Captions can help increase engagement by giving users another way to consume information in addition to watching. Use auto-generated captions as a baseline. It typically only requires 10 minutes per minute of video to review generated captions.
Most training videos do not need background music added. However, if you decide to add music, ensure you obtain the necessary licensing agreements. Several AI-based music suggestion platforms have had issues regarding copyright infringement.
A fast two-minute color correction pass that improves skin tones and reduces shadows will greatly improve how healthy and credible-looking your speakers appear.
It’s possible that editing may be something you struggle with and therefore that is exactly what Vidpros’ editors are designed for. Send us your raw footage and script and we’ll provide you with a completed edit complete with captions ready for upload to your LMS. We’ve outlined our recommended best practices for creating training videos on our Craft Choices page.
Step 7: Caption, accessibility check, and accessibility delivery
Captions Are Not Optional
WCAG 2.1 AA and ADA Title III regulations both require that all educational employment training videos be fully captioned. Regardless of whether or not you plan on building captions into your video, build them in anyway since a significant percentage of users view content on mobile devices in transit or in open office environments.
Auto-captioning provides approximately 90% accuracy. Be prepared for a manual pass to correct the remaining errors. Proper nouns and homophones (“their”, “there”, “they’re”, etc.) cause most errors that impact readability. Manual caption corrections typically take five minutes per minute of video.
Audio descriptions are required whenever visual instruction is presented and cannot be replicated by just listening to the audio alone. If there is instructional value in showing diagrams or processes on-screen, rewrite the narration to provide auditory descriptions of what appears on-screen.
When using footage of actual employees, students or patients, you will need to comply with applicable data protection regulations within your respective industry. Employee talent releases are non-negotiable when recording employees on-camera.
Step 8: Publish (LMS, internal portal, intranet) and measure
The most important thing about where you choose to host your video content is how you plan to measure it.
If you’re looking to use an LMS (Cornerstone, Workday Learning, Docebo, LearnUpon) you’ll get completion tracking, quiz integration and auditing all wrapped into one place. This is perfect for compliance related video or when “Did they complete the course?” has legal implications.
An internal portal (SharePoint, Confluence, Notion) works well for reference type content. A public hosted option (private YouTube, Vimeo, Wistia) provides a smooth viewing experience and very clean reporting. Vimeo standard runs at $33/month (platform price); Uscreen starts at $49/month and LearnWorlds at $24/month annually (course platform price).
You want three key metrics. The first is completion rate (percentage of learners completed the full video). Anything under 60% should be viewed as a script issue; anything under 40% indicates a length issue. The second is a knowledge check pass rate (a 3-5 question quiz tied to the Step One objective that scores at least 80%). Your third metric will be some form of behavior (rejection rates, ticket escalations, etc.) and if you cannot move that number then the video is not doing its job, no matter how high the completion numbers are or how well the knowledge-checks scored.
Choosing a Professional Training Video Maker and Software Stack
There are many options available out there for creating training videos. Here is a quick scan across categories.
Screen record/edits together: Camtasia (paid), DemoCreator (has free version w/tools for annotations), CapCut (fastest to learn free version). Edit alone: DaVinci Resolve (Free, Professional), Adobe Premiere Pro ($22.99/mo.), Final Cut Pro ($299 one-time, Mac Only).
Create animated explainers: Vyond ($699/yr., Starter Tier), Animaker, Doodly. Host/LMS: Uscreen ($49/mo.), LearnWorlds ($24/mo. Annually) for LMS w/interactive vids on higher tiers and vimeo for private hosting. Interactive Vids: MindStamp, LearnWorlds (Higher Tiers), Hihaho, for Branching Scenarios or In-Vid Knowledge Checks.
For a detailed list with current prices see our Best Training Video Software Spoke, which we update on a quarterly basis.
Tips for making training videos effective (the production checklist)
Things that distinguish memorable from unwatchable:
- Keep each video to one topic. If your script calls for teaching two topics create two videos.
- Catch their hook within the first ten seconds of the video. Explain what is wrong and what viewers will be able to accomplish once they have watched the video.
- Limit each video to three minutes or less unless it requires more. 5-7 minutes is acceptable but requires continued attention.
- Show them the failure mode – not just the successful path. “What does wrong look like?” teaches.
- Create a series using a consistent cold open, lower thirds, and closing sequence.
- Re-record a yearly refresh of any video that includes product or policy detail. Any outdated screenshot creates a credibility tax.
- Play back every finished video on a mobile device without audio before releasing it.
See our page on Instructional Video Production for tips on producing quality at scale.
Standardizing Your Corporate Training Program Layout
Templates to use for training videos. You will save time using templates for elements of your training video where there’s no creative value – cold opens, lower thirds, outros, Captions, Slate Screens. A working set would be a template consisting of:
- Cold Open Template (a five second template with logo, Video Title & Speaker Name)
- Lower Third Template (for any speaker shown on screen)
- Title Card Template (one per Section)
- Standard Outro Template (with “Next Steps” copy)
- Caption Style Template (to ensure consistency throughout the library)
All three tools CapCut, Premiere and Resolve allow for reusable templates. Create all of these within one tool and try to maintain this. Changing mid way through creating your library is going to cost you some Credibility Tax whether or not you know it. Use Stock templates created by Canva, Biteable and Animoto as a starting point should you not have a Brand Kit. Remove sample text, replace Fonts used in the Sample Text with your Brands Fonts, Keep the Structure. Do not deliver a library full of templates that are nothing more than demos from your Marketing Site.
Scaling Employee Development: Sourcing Human Resources vs. Internal Building
Internal Teams typically estimate the time it will take to make an In-House Training Video wrongfully low on Time Costs & they incorrectly assume they are faster at editing than they actually are. It can be estimated that a First Timer Team could spend anywhere from 12 to 20 hours making one 5 minute Training Video using an internal production process: script(3), recording (2-4), editing (4-8), captions (1-2), publish (1-2), and review by stakeholders (2-4).
This would equate to having a Half-Time Producer.
First, Outsource the Editing Process. Record the SME Interview in house. You’ll get a higher quality product with less dollars spent on editing. Experienced Editors tend to be approximately 3 times as fast as First-Timer Editors and produce a cleaner product.
Full Production Outsourcing is warranted for executive messages, customer facing Brand Training Videos, and High-Stakes Compliance Training Videos. Full Production Outsourcing is also good when there is going to be greater than 8 to 10 videos per Quarter. Keep the Content Creation In-House when the Content is Transient or there is going to be fewer than 200 viewers of your content throughout its lifetime.
FAQ: Production Tips to Make Training Videos Effectives
How long should my training video be? Your training video should be less than three minutes for microlearning, and five to seven minutes for full skill-based modules. After seven minutes of viewing time, watch rates drop off dramatically.
Will I need a video editor on-staff? No. If you hire a capable video producer who knows how to edit using DaVinci Resolve or CapCut, they can produce a professional-looking training video in four to eight hours of editing per finished minute. When you start producing over ten videos per quarter, you’ll need to hire an editor.
What is the least expensive way to set up for making training videos? The lowest cost for setting up for creating training videos would be as follows:
- Smartphone
- ATR2100x microphone ($99)
- Window for natural light
- CapCut for editing ($0)
How do I engage employees with training videos? You want to hook employees within the first 10 seconds. You also want to provide a variety of visuals every 15-30 seconds. It helps to include a knowledge check at the end of each video. And remember to keep the length of the videos under seven minutes.
Are AI-generated voices suitable for use in training videos? They are fine for use in screencast-style videos (ElevenLabs is good enough). But use real voiceovers for executive messages. The tone of their voice is part of their authority.
Do I need to add captions to all my training videos? Yes. Always.
How do I know if my training videos are effective? You will determine effectiveness by measuring the completion rate of the training videos (you want this number to be greater than 70%). You also want to see what percentage of the trainees passed a knowledge check at the end of the video (greater than 80%), but most importantly, you will want to tie the completion of the course back to a measurable behavior tied to the learning objectives (this is the only measurement that really matters).
If your biggest hurdle is editing, send us your raw recording along with your script. We’ll take care of the rest. For a flat monthly fee, we’ll edit your training video; caption it; and deliver it to your LMS. Your first edit is on us. This allows you to evaluate our work prior to committing.
