Today we’ve
been discussing 5 videos and coming up with a few suggestions on what
improvements could be made in each video. The discussions helped me understand what things should be used and what points should be avoided while
making a really good video. I think this information will be helpful when I
work on creating my own video.
While
watching those videos, we were asked to pay attention to some aspects:
- -
Was
our first impression regarding the video positive or negative?
- -
Was
the main concept of the video clear?
- -
What
questions does the video raise?
- -
What
can be improved to make the video better?
- -
What
was done well in the video?
- -
Were
there any things in the video that could have been shown in a better way?
- -
What
was the quality of the video and/or audio?
Now let’s
look at the results we’ve got.
Video 1: Brisbane Park Finder (a 48-hour governmental hackathon)
We agreed
that overall the video wasn’t the example to follow. Why?
Well, there were several
things that could be done in a better way.
1) It wasn’t a good idea to read the text.
The video will definitely be perceived better if the speaker just tells the
story without reading or looking at his notes.
2) The main concept wasn’t clear. The video can be improved by removing
all the technical stuff, jargon words and acronyms and making the message more
appealing to the audience with a diverse technical background.
3) The story wasn’t actually told. We
didn’t get an idea of the key aspects of the program. The video will be more
convincing and understandable if to show the program itself and support the
visuals with audio explanation of how it works.
4) The audio and the video were of a poor
quality. Any background noise can be easily eliminated if to record the
video in a quiet place – this will raise the overall quality of the video.
5) The video had no scenario and led to
nowhere. Since it’s unclear what the video leads to, it’ll be useful to
create a scenario showing the program and explaining how it can solve people’s
problem.
Summing
everything up, we’ve come up with the following recommendations:
- · Communicate the product idea first;
- · Clearly explain the problem;
- · Tell the views why the program is
interesting;
- · Always speak the language the
audience does;
- · Make sure the demo supports the
prototype in context;
- · Show the context of the program use.
Video 2: Google Docs in Plain English
The video
gave a positive impression. In fact, there were many good things in it:
1) It clearly
explained what Google Docs was and what it was for.
2) The
selected animations (paper images and a dental floss) were pretty simple which
helped people feel Google Docs was simple, easy and user-friendly.
3) Video
and audio were of a good quality, the text fully coincided with what was
displayed on the screen.
But
certainly there very suggestions on how to improve the video:
- · Tell the story first;
- · Clearly communicate the idea (name Google
Docs);
- · Mention a pain point (a security
issue) that was omitted in the original video;
- · Demonstrate some more applications
of Google Docs (by students, friends, etc.) instead of showing just one story
line – this will help reaching a wider audience.
Great idea:
the fact the prototype is of a low fidelity makes it easy to understand the
concept, and it appears easy and simple to use.
Video 3: Pegasus:
The Next Generation n Abstract Strategy Games
It was a
bit strange. After watching this video it was absolutely unclear what the product
was about. The only thing I’ve understood is that Pegasus is a game. That’s
all!!! Well, I got no idea what it was about, how it worked, what the rules of
the game were, who and why needed to invest in its development.
Of course
it’s clear that to make the video better, it’s advisable to tell people why the
game is needed, what its distinctive features are, how to play the game, and
why people need to spend money on its development.
After
watching this video, I got the following lesson that should be kept in mind
while making videos: when you create a
video, you must be careful with using the music as in some cases it can be more
distracting than useful, and it can easily disconnect the audience.
Video 4: FORM 1: An Affordable, Professional 3D
Printer
I was
pleased to watch this video (especially if to compare it with the first one).
It was a great example of how a top quality video should look like:
1) Only 30
seconds are needed to mention the problem, explain the concept of 3D printer,
specify its value for users, show why it’s better than alternatives, and tell
the audience how it works on simple and visual examples.
2) It’s
clear that the video addresses designers who use 3D printers for their work.
Video 5: Gauss Glasses
This was
one more great video shown to us during the class. The strongest points of the
video were as follows:
1) It was
professional and convincing.
2) It
communicated the idea well - it explained the value of glasses and provided
some interesting data that supported the arguments (this information made the
video more interesting to viewers).
3) It
showed the process of glasses production – a great idea helping people to
understand how glasses are built and engage the audience who’re engineers and
innovators interested in new technologies.
4) After
watching this video you have a strong desire to either buy it or at least try
it.
Conclusion
Thanks to
these videos, now all of us definitely have a clear idea of how to make a really good video and
what aspects to pay attention to. Of
course, there are a lot of things to keep in mind but the most important thing
is to be able to clearly explain the value of your product in simple terms.
