Making a training film or a series of training videos is a difficult task. You're not only attempting to convey a lot of information in a short period, but you're also attempting to do so in a cost-effective manner that justifies the investment in video production.
Here are a few guidelines to help you with your video production
1. Choose whether your video production needs will be best served by using business personnel or paid actors. When teaching intricate procedures that must be performed in a specific manner, you may be better off using your seasoned firm workers than trying to explain something to an actor. Many businesses are concerned about what will happen if employees are shown in the film depart, especially if they leave under difficult circumstances. Paid actors are another wonderful option if you're worried about that potential, but they do come with additional costs.
2. Consider combining a paid actor spokesperson with staff showing optimal practices in your training films. Your spokesperson can introduce each part, explain what's going on, and bring all of your training films together, but it's up to your employees to perform the demos.
3. Wherever possible, try to blend segments and locales. Consider shooting multiple segments in the same place to save money. For example, if you're making a series of medical training movies, you might be able to reuse one setting for CPR, basic first aid, and defibrillator instruction. Not only will you save money on location fees, but you will also avoid the cost of moving a full cast and crew from one place to another.
4. All of your training videos should be recorded at the same time. Planning a large number of training films to shoot at once can be difficult logistically, but it will save you time and money compared to recording them one at a time. Not only can the production firm negotiate better prices with the cast and crew, but due to the volume of labour required, you may be able to get better bulk pricing as well.
5. Have ready-to-use scripts that are simple to understand. It should be considerably easier to write scripts if you can use current training handbook texts. Break up your training video demands into smaller chunks to make the work appear more reasonable. Concentrate on communicating the most important information to your employees. Make notes in your scripts about what resources you'll need for the segment, where you'll shoot it, and other key data. Because a production company will not be as familiar with your industry as you are, the more information you provide, the easier and less expensive pre-production and production will be.
6. Decide on whether or not you require assistance. If you need script consultation and want to add some humour or wit to the proceedings, make sure the production company can help. If high-end training videos are vital to your company's message, you may want to budget for a makeup artist, more expensive cinema equipment, and more time for lighting and rehearsals.
7. To save money, recycle as much as possible. Don't recreate the wheel if a single video demonstration works in multiple training videos; reuse it! You don't need 10 music tracks if you have ten training videos. Depending on the video, you might be okay with simply two or three different music being reused. To get the most value out of a bespoke motion graphic logo for your firm, divide the cost over several training videos.
8. Break down training videos into smaller, more readily digestible chunks. Consider dividing up the content into 3-5 smaller videos rather than having a single 15-minute training video. You won't pay any more, but your staff will have easier access to the material. You could even have the production business create two videos, one longer and one shorter, which would cost nothing more but provide you more flexibility in your training video presentations.
9. Send your finest and most experienced employee(s) to the shoot. Making sure someone from your firm oversees every shot on site is one of the most crucial and critical aspects of excellent training video production. Even if the video production company has a creative director on set, no one knows your business as you do. Because reshoots are expensive and wasteful, you want to make sure no mistakes are made during production. Technical issues like lighting, camera position, focus, and staying on schedule will be a priority for the production company's employees. The correctness of all demonstrations and best practices should be your primary concern.
10. Expect more information in the future and prepare properly. You will want to update and renew your training videos at some point in the future, hopefully not for years. You can save a lot of money in the future by filming new segments and cutting them into previously completed videos if you make sure you have a complete backup of all of the video files. Your training videos, if shot properly, should last for many years before needing to be fully redone. Small adjustments a few years down the road, on the other hand, can be quite inexpensive and give necessary updates as your methods develop.
