How to Create an Instructional Video That Solves Problems & Promote Your Brand?

Want to get your audience hooked onto the content you create? An instructional video can help to achieve that purpose – it simplifies a concept with the aid of visuals, and viewers are able to retain the information more effectively. Moreover, an instructional video is where you get to exercise creativity – put your own spin on the videos and explain a concept in a more interesting manner.

There are various types of instructional videos. Choosing the right one is almost as important as what you are trying to convey. This article is a guide to what an instructional video entails, tips on how to create them, and how they can be beneficial for you.

On This Page

• What Is An Instructional Video?
• What Makes a Good Instructional Video?
• What Is the Best Tool to Make an Instructional Video?
• 5 Instructional Video Ideas & Examples

What Is An Instructional Video?

People are far more inclined towards visual material, which have made instructional videos very popular. To put it in a nutshell, these are educational videos, which are designed to provide training, transfer knowledge, and explore concepts and ideas. Earlier, one of the major hurdles for creating an instructional video for marketing was the high production costs and complexity. Traditional presentations, instructions, and articles seemed, on the whole, to be safer and easier to deal with.

However, the scenario has changed drastically these days with smartphones that come with sophisticated cameras. Be it video tutorials about a delicious chocolate soufflé to fixing a leaky faucet, every kind of instructional video is available online. These videos are:

• Simple – rather than penning down a plethora of complicated instructions, it is much easier to show how it is done.
• Personal – they are self-explanatory, and incorporate a personal touch, which resonates with viewers.
• Entertaining – when these “how to videos” are made properly, they pique the viewer’s interest immediately in the first few seconds. Thus, you get them excited and engaged to go through the content you have created.
• People relate with the content more if it is visual – it helps them retain information clearly. Shooting an instructional video doesn’t involve expensive equipment, camera crew, or complex software. All you need is a smartphone and robust video editing platform, just like Vidnoz.

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What Makes a Good Instructional Video?

Find a quiet place to record

It is imperative that you find a quiet environment and background to ensure no one interrupts you. While recording how to videos, ensure that all notifications are tuned off. Talk to the viewers as if you are having a one-on-one conversation – it helps to connect more effectively. Look directly at the camera, so the audience knows you are talking to them. If you feel more comfortable with a script that is fine, but it is better to talk in a “go with the flow” fashion, in an instructional video. Adopt a friendly and conversational tone.

Keep video segments short

Viewers have short attention spans, so you don’t see a messy pile of videos on popular channels. An instructional video should be short, around 5 to 10 minutes. Shorter videos are more engaging, so if you have a long one, break it up in smaller chunks. Organize them in playlists so viewers can find them without any hassle.

Create enlightening thumbnails

Viewers often make the decision of watching videos based on thumbnails – they give a snapshot of what to expect after clicking Play. If you add some text on the thumbnail as an explainer of the video, it eases the navigation and piques interest. Don’t opt for auto-generated ones as they are usually random and not informative.

Record in a single shot

Don’t worry about making mistakes – go ahead and record your instructional video for sales completely. You can always edit the errors later on. Stick to one major concept or idea in a video; explain it and then present a real-life example in different contexts. Make sure you outline the key aspects by using on-screen texts or animations.

Use closed captions and transcripts

Many viewers prefer watching the video with the sound turned off, while others often skim through a text transcript to find the places that are relevant for them. Subtitles and transcripts allow viewers with different learning styles or even disabilities to watch the videos as per their convenience.

What Is the Best Tool to Make an Instructional Video?

As mentioned above, Vidnoz Flex is one of the best platforms for creating an instructional video. It is an advanced all-in-one video recording tool that lets users record, upload, edit, share, and analyze videos. It takes just a few minutes of your time to include text, add the right SEO tags, instructional signs, or scripts. Once you are done, it takes a single click to share the video via email, or on channels like YouTube and even social media networks like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

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Create videos in a jiffy

Use your smartphone camera to create the instructional video, or upload local files. Stylize your video with catchy messages and captions, and include a “call-to-action” with the built-in video editor. Interactive layouts and captivating video landing pages can be created as well. There are responsive download or buy buttons, polls, and user forms that encourage users to click on the video.

Share videos

There are incredible templates and video emails available, using which, one can share the videos immediately. After creating an instructional video, you can even upload it via a link to mainstreaming video platforms.

Measure your success rate

How can you ensure that the video has reached the right audience? Use the powerful analytics tool to monitor your video performance. Key video metrics are integrated, such as Total Plays, Unique Viewers, Watch Rate, Reactions, etc., to help you understand the target audience better.

A professionally created instructional video with the right text will help you stand out among the rest – that is exactly what you can expect from Vidnoz Flex.

5 Instructional Video Ideas & Examples

If you look online, there is bound to be an abundance of instructional videos. To make it simpler, we have categorized an instructional video into 5 different types – take a look:

Micro Videos

These are short videos that provide information, instruction, or explanation regarding a specific topic. As is evident from the term, these videos are short and typically last for a minute (could be lesser than that). It conveys a message in an easy, yet engaging manner, which appeals to an audience with short attention spans. Such videos could be about creating a fabulous hairdo just before a party, or whipping a snack quickly when guests arrive without warning.

Tutorial Videos

These are generally “how to videos”, which teaches viewers how to complete a specific task, by following a series of instructions. They engage the viewer while providing instructions via live-action demonstrations, voiceovers, animations, annotations, or screenshots and recordings. They can be anywhere between 2 and 10 minutes long and should be as polished and professional as possible. For instance, the video could be about how to operate a particular software, tips to use it properly, and so on.

Training Videos

Training videos are designed to improve skills. The difference from tutorial videos is that these commonly cover interpersonal topics, such as compliance and harassment training, or job-related topics (tutorials talk more about hard skills or processes). Training videos are often used in situations that lend themselves to live video, where the interpersonal connection helps boost the content retention. Educating employees about cybersecurity systems and processes, is a good example of this type of instructional video.

Screencasts

Screencasts are screen recordings that impart knowledge about performing a task. They are quick, informal, and generally intended for a smaller audience, as compared to tutorial videos. Screencasts allow an instructor to quickly grab information on their screen to answer a question or clear up a problematic concept. Such videos are often used to explain features of software applications.

Explainer Videos

This is one of the most popular types of instructional videos, and extremely useful. A wide variety of topics can be covered, via a short and engaging piece that explains a certain product or service. It is basically a visual illustration of how a product or service can prove to be beneficial. There are multiple styles of explainer videos that use motion graphics, live-action, illustrations, and so on. An excellent example of this kind of instructional video, is – “What is AI?”

Conclusion

Now that you have an idea about creating an instructional video, you should definitely get started. Vidnoz Flex is a premier video recording platform that helps deliver solutions tailored as per your requirements to the right audience. It has both free and paid versions (available at a nominal rate), which offer templates for sale pages, marketing, interactions, email, and practical editing options. Sharing is made easy – you can upload the video in a single click to major channels. Using Vidnoz Flex can drive up your success rate by almost 50%! So what are you waiting for? Sign up right away!