My part of the Shameless Secrets/ 90 Day Reputation Challenge Strategyis creating videos.
My research yielded 2 PDFs of considerable size. The primary focus is making money from blogging, but the basic technique should be the same.
I found a PDF written by Patrick Schwerdtfeger on SlideShare.net. The chapters under Drive Traffic to your web site look interesting.
Patrick was a presenter at Marin Professionals last year. The Powerpoint slides of that presentation are also available on SlideShare.net. The presentation is called "Social Media Victories".
I have to admit I'm surprised to see a large PDF version of a book Patrick sales on SlideShare, but if it is there available for anyone to download, I figure it is safe to distribute.
Free Video Capture Software:
Jing by TechSmith -- http://www.techsmith.com/jing/
(TechSmith also produces one of the highest rated retail ScreenCast products as well)
SMRecorder by Apsolo -- http://www.video2down.com
HyperCam from Hyperionics Technology -- http://www.hyperionics.com/?AfID=CDN
CamStudio by CamStudio -- http://camstudio.org/
Create Better Screencasts with Video Capture Software
By Heath McKnight
Creating a video screencast, product or service presentation, or a video tutorial is an excellent way to visually get your message across to internet viewers, along with provide information and instruction on goods and services. The right video capture software is important, but there are other factors involved with creating a great screencast. Here a few tips:
Write a Script
This is very important, and will keep you focused and on track with your message and screencast. After producing several screencasts over the past few years, and watching even more, we’ve learned the quickest way to lose a viewer’s attention is a muddled message and too many “ums” and “ahs,” as the narrator tries to stay focused.
After writing the first draft, show it to a colleague familiar with what you’re doing and revise it. You need to catch the reader’s attention from the get-go. Make sure all facts are straight, especially if you’re doing a tutorial for a product or service you’re not 100% familiar with. Nothing can hurt your--or their--reputation faster.
Rehearse Your Delivery
Rehearsals aren’t just for actors! You don’t need to be James Earl Jones or Donald Sutherland to perform a quality voiceover (VO) narration, but if you’re reading the script for the first time, chances are it will sound flat and boring, which in turn will bore your audience. We suggest listening to the delivery of other screencasts or video tutorials.
We found the ones from TechSmith (Camtasia for Mac) and Telestream (ScreenFlow) to be the best, and really got our attention. Listen to how they present their topic, and how they give friendly and expert advice.
Know the Video Capture Software
The video capture software you choose should have all the features you need to help create a quality screencast, whether it has a built-in video editor or not. Learn the software to aid you in creating the highest quality video and audio recordings. Don’t just record the entire screen--learn how to isolate a specific region. If your mouse cursor is moving around, it can get lost on screen. Many of the apps can add a color or “halo” to the cursor.
Also, be wary of the quality levels; you don’t need to go with an uncompressed, lossless setting, which results in large file sizes, but you also don’t want to make the quality so low that it looks and sounds cheap. H.264 QuickTime at High or Best quality with audio set at 44.1 or 48 KHz (AAC) is ideal.
Video and Audio Editing
Some of the video capture software apps have built-in video editors, which are easy to use to trim up the clips, plus add music and graphics to make a more professional video. If one isn’t available, iMovie is a great, simple and powerful video editor. On the professional end, Final Cut Studio, Final Cut Express and Premiere Pro are excellent and offer even more editing options.
Sharing
Once the video is done, all of the video capture software apps provide great ways to export a high quality version of the screencast that can be uploaded to video sharing sites such as YouTube. You can also FTP it to your own site. Be careful with the sharing settings, as they can make videos that are so large, users won’t be able to load them quickly. On the other hand, it could end up too small and sound like a bad telephone call. Experiment to see what works best.
Summary
Hopefully these tips will help you create a high-quality and professional screencasts, video tutorials or presentations. It’s good to experiment with the software to get to know how it works, which will give you the best results.
Write a Script
This is very important, and will keep you focused and on track with your message and screencast. After producing several screencasts over the past few years, and watching even more, we’ve learned the quickest way to lose a viewer’s attention is a muddled message and too many “ums” and “ahs,” as the narrator tries to stay focused.
After writing the first draft, show it to a colleague familiar with what you’re doing and revise it. You need to catch the reader’s attention from the get-go. Make sure all facts are straight, especially if you’re doing a tutorial for a product or service you’re not 100% familiar with. Nothing can hurt your--or their--reputation faster.
Rehearse Your Delivery
Rehearsals aren’t just for actors! You don’t need to be James Earl Jones or Donald Sutherland to perform a quality voiceover (VO) narration, but if you’re reading the script for the first time, chances are it will sound flat and boring, which in turn will bore your audience. We suggest listening to the delivery of other screencasts or video tutorials.
We found the ones from TechSmith (Camtasia for Mac) and Telestream (ScreenFlow) to be the best, and really got our attention. Listen to how they present their topic, and how they give friendly and expert advice.
Know the Video Capture Software
The video capture software you choose should have all the features you need to help create a quality screencast, whether it has a built-in video editor or not. Learn the software to aid you in creating the highest quality video and audio recordings. Don’t just record the entire screen--learn how to isolate a specific region. If your mouse cursor is moving around, it can get lost on screen. Many of the apps can add a color or “halo” to the cursor.
Also, be wary of the quality levels; you don’t need to go with an uncompressed, lossless setting, which results in large file sizes, but you also don’t want to make the quality so low that it looks and sounds cheap. H.264 QuickTime at High or Best quality with audio set at 44.1 or 48 KHz (AAC) is ideal.
Video and Audio Editing
Some of the video capture software apps have built-in video editors, which are easy to use to trim up the clips, plus add music and graphics to make a more professional video. If one isn’t available, iMovie is a great, simple and powerful video editor. On the professional end, Final Cut Studio, Final Cut Express and Premiere Pro are excellent and offer even more editing options.
Sharing
Once the video is done, all of the video capture software apps provide great ways to export a high quality version of the screencast that can be uploaded to video sharing sites such as YouTube. You can also FTP it to your own site. Be careful with the sharing settings, as they can make videos that are so large, users won’t be able to load them quickly. On the other hand, it could end up too small and sound like a bad telephone call. Experiment to see what works best.
Summary
Hopefully these tips will help you create a high-quality and professional screencasts, video tutorials or presentations. It’s good to experiment with the software to get to know how it works, which will give you the best results.
-- Scott Veatch, Member Technical Staff
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