eLearning Video Production: How To Create A Course Effectively

Nowadays, it’s easy to create content from your smartphone. Just hit the record button and you’re all set to upload it to any video streaming platform. Sounds easy, doesn’t it! But have you ever considered what differentiates quality content from others? There’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes for eLearning video production, ranging from pre-production to final editing of the video. 

The Elearning industry thrives on videos. It’s a known fact that creative visuals along with impeccable teaching give a boost to the overall learning experience. Now that online learning is becoming the new normal, Elearning videos have to be more perfect than ever. In this case, content can only be the king if the video production is flawless.

In this post, we are going to cover Elearning video production in detail and what to do once you are done with your video. Let’s dig in.

Pre-requisites for a Video Production

Shooting an Elearning video is not a child’s play. There are things you need to keep in mind even before you have started the shoot. Building on that, let’s take a look at some prerequisites that will get you in the video production mode and make you ready for a killer shoot.

1.Have a Discussion With Your Videographer

Since your videographer is going to be the one operating the primary camera while shooting, you two need to be on the same page. Have a conversation before the shoot and discuss things like subject positioning, lighting, location, and any query you might have. It’s a good practice to visit the location suggested by reputable video production agencies with your videographer. This will help in creating a structure and determine how the events will unfold on the shoot day.

2. Exercise Location Courtesy

If you’re planning to shoot in a location you don’t own, make sure you ask for the owner’s permission well in advance. Even though you will be paying for it, always be kind and apologetic if your shoot is interfering with someone’s convenience. Be mindful of tripping hazards and blocking walkways with your videography gear. When your shoot day is over, clean up like your team was never there!

3. Have Your Makeup, Wardrobe and Props Ready

Although it goes without saying, high definition videos are the life of Elearning video production. This means that the video is going to highlight even the most minute imperfections. Therefore, keep all your beauty, grooming, and makeup items ready at an arm’s length. The same goes for wardrobe. Keep some alternative wrinkle-free and clean clothes ready in case a mishap occurs on what you are wearing. Along with that, keep the props you are planning to use ready to avoid wasting time on the shoot day.

Things to Keep In Mind For ELearning Video Production

Writing educational content is usually all about pouring and structuring your knowledge in words. But Elearning video production is all about using that written content as a script and bringing it to life. Whether you choose to incorporate photographs, music, animations, voiceovers, or raw videos depends on your educating strategy. 

But the one thing common for all approaches is that Elearning videos have to be high quality and flawless. On that note here are some things to keep in mind to create mind-blowing Elearning videos like a pro. Let’s dive into the details.

1. Information Structuring

If the learners can’t absorb the information from your videos, does it even make sense to produce them? Elearning Video production is all about imparting knowledge in a way learners can easily grasp. Structuring information into chunks can help reduce cognitive overload and enhance the learner’s understanding.

If the videos are long, consider breaking them down in the form of questions and quizzes. Learners can easily retain information if your video is segmented. Quizzes in between improve engagement and viewers can assess their knowledge.

2. Voice Over Script

A video filled with interactive features such as animations is an ideal type of educational multimedia. But it’s incomplete without a crystal clear voice-over narration that complements the graphics. The best way to add a voice-over is after you have completed recording the video. There are so many on-the-spot changes from your original script while shooting, it’s better to leave audio for the last. If multiple people are involved in the recording, ensure that everyone involved has a recent copy of the script.

3. Interactivity

Have you ever fallen asleep while watching a relentless and monotonous lecturing video? I most certainly have! And if your learners have the attention span of a goldfish, non-interactive videos will put them to sleep within seconds. I am sure you want to fill your audience with motivation to absorb all the knowledge you are important in your video. Making it interactive will achieve that goal to a great extent.

Just like little kids need play hours between study sessions, your learners need some refreshing breaks during learning. You can provide it to them in the form of quizzes and questionnaires. Adding some links to interesting facts related to the content goes a long way. Your audience can use them to fascinate themselves. It serves as a form of relevant entertainment that doesn’t take their focus off learning, yet stimulates their brain. Brain teasers are another way to exercise their cognitive abilities.

4. Before You Pack up, Back up!

“The file you have requested doesn’t exist.” This statement on its own is enough to send chills down anyone’s spine. Never ever risk your hard work mysteriously vanishing away. A little human error or a technology fail can sabotage hours of efforts in less than a fraction of a second. Therefore, back up all your files to multiple locations before having a sound sleep. That’s the only way to avoid a gut-wrenching and heartbreaking nightmare.

5. Creating a Storyboard

Education is the primary intention behind every Elearning video. But it’s crucial that your intent is visible throughout your video. That’s where creating a storyboard comes into the picture. This practice will help you to check out how various portions of your video look. Start by determining the objective of a video, and focus on it. Let your creative juices flow while you brainstorm and note down the ideas. At the same time, you need to filter out ideas that don’t seem relevant.

Describe the crucial elements of a video and follow it up by evaluating every scene. Roughly illustrate them and prepare to bring them to life. Keep revising your storyboard and alter it whenever required. In the end, review the storyboard for the last time and begin the production.

6. Maintaining High Audio Quality

Nothing is more annoying for a listener than a bunch of unwanted sounds. Therefore, while recording audio, a professional should consistently check the audio quality with the help of decent headphones. A great video is a combination of good audio and visuals.

If the environment you’re shooting and is a bit noisy, I would recommend a lavalier microphone. You can clip it to the speaker’s clothes. However, it picks sounds when clothes move. So, be mindful of that. A great option is to use a shotgun mic by plugging it directly into the camera.

Also, be mindful of the level of your audio. If it’s too low, editing after production might make it sound fuzzy. On the other hand, if the sound is too loud, there are more chances of distortions. A good way to monitor audio levels is to watch the placement of the microphone. For instance, if you’re using a shotgun mic, always point it to the mouth of the speaker.

7. Creating Ideal Lighting

The on-camera appearance of a subject plays a major role in determining the success of an Elearning video. For that, ensure your ideal lighting for each scene. The edges of the shadows should be soft and the lighting on the subject shouldn’t be way too bright.

A common professional lighting technique includes a backlight, fill light, and a key light. The placement of the key light is at the left of the subject and it’s generally the brightest one. The purpose of the fill light is to balance out the key light. The backlight separates the speaker from your backdrop and highlights the hair.

8. Compressing Videos According to Device

With the sharp rise in the number of mobile users, video makers have to ensure better accessibility. If the file size is large, viewers with a compromised internet connection can face a lot of problems. While there are plenty of tools out there for video compression, a good video hosting service usually takes care of video compression. Remember, it’s possible for a low size video to have a high quality.

9. Essential Tools 

While there are plenty of tools to carry out every process of Elearning video production, here are some essentials that will ease out the above-mentioned tasks for you.

• Camtasia

If you’re looking forward to creating long-form video content and adding overlays, Camtasia has to be your one-stop destination. Filled with interactive features, this platform allows you to directly upload videos on YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, and Screencast. The wide array of animation options and special effects available at the user’s disposal makes Camtasia an ideal option for video creators. 

• Filmora

There’s a reason behind the hype surrounding Filmora as a video editing tool. Well, there are plenty. But get the gist, you name it and Filmora has got it! Thanks to its split-screen effects, easy adding of voice-overs recording, sound mixing, subtitles, beautiful filters, and more, video creators have got a real winner here.

• QuizBean

QuizBean is a tool more specific to Elearning video production. You can easily embed videos into quizzes. Besides that, you can send them to your learners and track their progress. The sophisticated analytics system shows real-time metrics.

• VdoCipher

Elearning video production isn’t really complete without an impeccable video hosting platform. VdoCipher helps course businesses smoothly stream content on their own platform. Some other primary features include API & Plugin integration, Offline app playback, Custom Player, transcoding, Amazon AWS server + CDN integration. Thanks to DRM encryption and sophisticated watermarking technologies, businesses don’t have to worry about the piracy of videos.

We’ve compiled a comprehensive list of over 101 tools for online course creators, feel free to check out the list to find out tools you’d require in your Elearning video production journey.

Additional Tip: Don’t Forget to Record!

Even the most trained professionals are humans and they can make the silliest mistakes. Imagine having to repeat every bit of your hard work just because the expert forgot to turn the red light on. When you are about to start the production, the videographer should always verify whether the recording is on.

When the camera is recording, we can see a small red circle on the monitor. Another indication is the time code counting up. Even in between the production, the videographer should keep making sure that the recording is being carried out without any hassles.

Now that you’re done with your video, what next?

Now that you’re done with your video, it’s time to engulf it in a protective layer and save your content from piracy. Did you know that the movie industry incurs a $97.1 billion loss because of video piracy alone? 

The bottom line, you have spent a substantial amount of effort and time creating flawless content. You don’t deserve someone downloading it all for free! Secure video hosting with video DRM technology can help you prevent loss of revenue through piracy. Since the hosting also takes care of transcoding and encoding, you don’t have to fret over various video formats and compression.

Summing It Up!

In the era of multimedia, educators can easily become producers if they do it right. Audiovisual aids have transformed the way online learning works. Elearning video production has brought the necessary reformation in the role of teachers and educators. It enriches the way they impart knowledge and simplifies understanding for learners.

Now that you have a complete framework of steps, there is no reason why you should put off Elearning video production. So what are you waiting for? Create Elearning videos like a pro and protect your content with secure video hosting. The revenue will automatically come pouring in!