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The production professional's guide to designing and recording an instructional course

Jan 25, 2024

There's no denying it: creating online courses takes an enormous amount of effort -- often becoming a frustratingly lengthy procedure, especially when you record a ton of instructional videos.

A way to help you simplify the course creation and design process? Storytelling

Elise London,  the resident expert in video who films all our internal and marketing classes The key to creating engaging virtual course is to use stories to organize and present information.

Identifying the story in the problem your course solves and structuring content using the technique of storytelling using hero's journey is a game changer. Here's everything you need to be able to do in order to plan, structure, and produce an effective online course that includes all the necessary tools.

Jump ahead:

Find the perfect subject for your online training

It's not necessary to come up with a brand new concept, straight from the box to create your online course.

Find a topic that is in demand. An in-depth understanding of the goals of your company and its target public will assist. Here's how:

Identify what's already resonating

Use data measurement tools like Google Analytics to find high-performing publications. Find an ebook that covers a specific topic that did particularly well? Consider expanding it into a detailed video course.

You can also survey your email list to unearth topics your audience wants for a virtual class on. Send the same survey out to social media (if you've got an engaged crowd on those platforms) as well as to the communities you're associated with.

The goal is to identify a course subject that the audience has an appetite for.

Do it deep and not wide.

"If you consider the kinds of questions that learners ask around their topic and the emotions that they have as they attempt to tackle your target concept could be a good way to position your video course as an answer to this.
 
 The concept"live streaming" can be vast, but it can be overwhelming for students to comprehend."   Elise London, Senior content production manager


The answer? Reexamine the emotions your audience is facing when it comes to a topic.

Do you ask yourself:

  • What difficulties are our readers encountering as they solve the problem?
  • How do we deal with overwhelming feelings? we can help them overcome?

When it comes to live streaming for instance, the answers could be anxious feelings as you set up their first live stream. A course on this topic will then include "How you can easily setup live streams so you aren't overwhelmed."

The best tip you can use for your course title

If you're thinking of names for your program, take into consideration how your audience feels regarding the particular issue you're solving and integrate it into your title.

The process of planning and structuring your online course

Elise advises you to use the hero's story to outline the online training course. It involves:

  • The challenge that target students face. Find these by answering the questions people ask about your course's topic.
  • Helping them overcome challenges and discovering solutions. This is where you break the topic into modules and videos that each answer an inquiry.
  • Then they will be able to experience the promised change. Provide more resources like checklists and templates that assist students in applying what they learn.

Learn how to identify the audience's questions and goals to structure and plan your course:

Find out what questions your target audience might have

Instead of thinking about it, try these steps:

  • Browse Reddit as well as Quora to compile a list of questions that are frequently asked.
  • Survey and make one-on-1 calls with learners to ask questions directly.
  • listen to calls from customers by sales and support representatives to answer common queries.
  • Check bestseller books' Index pages of bestseller books on Amazon for insights into the issues they answer on the topic of instruction.

If you've hosted webinars on the course topic it is also possible to examine questions that attendees have asked for information to help you conduct your own investigation.

Break the course topic into buckets

Woman recording herself with smartphone. Image reads, "Concept > modules > video lessons"

In the next step, consider your audience's challenges and questions for breaking your subject into narrative components that build on each other to create the next step in the learner's journey.

"Instead of saying that we're going to train you how to use Interactive Studio' (which is a broad and difficult to wrap my mind around) Instead, state "We're teaching you beginner, intermediate, and advanced capabilities. That way, the topics [for your virtual course] fit into one of those three buckets."   Elise London, Senior content production manager

Simply put "disparate ideas and put them into buckets so that, when you look at the course from a distance, everything seems more achievable."

Pro tip on course structure

Be sure to outline the course structure to meet students where they are on their learning journey. It's often easy to overshare and confuse students, thanks to the trap of knowledge (a cognitive bias that assumes the audience is as knowledgeable as you do). Remember to revise your course design for simplicity.

Video lessons to be planned

  1. Make sure you address your students' challenges related to the question a video lesson will solve.
  2. Respond to the questions with solutions to the problem that they're dealing with.
  3. The video should be summarized or provide other resources to assist them in their transform.

Script on-demand video lessons

pro tip

Script generator gif

Shooting your course video content

Tools you'll need

To get a good manufacturing tool kit and set up for a decent production setup, you'll need the following:

  •   Microphone camera (two at the minimum) and a 3 or 4-point lighting kit  
  • Learning Management System (LMS). The software will house the course's video which makes it easily accessible to students. Examples: Teachable, Podia, and Kajabi.
  • . A platform for video that is ad-free that lets you host, record edit and also incorporate interactivity into instructional videos. You can and then upload to your LMS.
  • Teleprompter. Display device that displays rolling text on the screen, making it simple for those on screen to take video.
  • Music pedal. It is a budget-friendly, foot-operated keyboard which allows you to change the direction of slides on the screen.

Building an ideal video production setup

Elise suggests:

1. Do not use fluorescent overhead lights.

These can cast harsh shadows over your face. Fluorescent lights also flicker sometimes, bringing about a greenish hue and impacting your video quality's consistency.

2. Record with no natural light

Natural light patterns change through the day, and should you happen to be filming for hours in a row and the quality of light in your video won't look uniform, Elise warns. Also, this could be a issue in the event that you want to change parts of your video from one to a different one.

3. Set your cameras at different angles

The second camera can't "just add spice to the editing (which helps even if you are using a script, and even if you manage to get everything perfect in one go) as well as to help break the monotony of viewers looking at the instructor's face."

"More importantly, a second camera is used to cover the cuts" Elise adds. "So should you decide that what you're saying does not have the potential to be rolled out in a single take, then the way that to cover that cut is to use B-roll, or simply cutting it into another camera."

4. Clean free of clutter background

Avoid bright colors like orange, magenta, and yellow, as these could create reflections in the color and can be distracting for viewers. Choose neutral backgrounds such as dark blue, grey or soft white. They look stunning on the camera and also feel comfortable on your eyes.

Recording your online video course

The recording process can be a little nerve-racking. If you dedicate enough time in planning and drafting your plan, recording shouldn't be hard.

5. Always use the telephone prompter

A teleprompter saves you from freezing up on screen as you try to remember which point you need to remember.

It makes recording simple and reduces edits, but "it will also allow you to maintain eye contact with your camera when you are looking into the teleprompter screen," adds Elise.

6. Use a music pedal to change between slides

"Instead of a keyboard, or clicker, which is visible in your hands, try using the music pedal in order to switch the slides you're playing. It's basically just the same as a USB Bluetooth keyboard with a left and a right. The speaker doesn't need to reach for the keyboard or the mouse to advance it."

Editing your on-demand videos

Try to cut down on the length of your edits and create a memorable watching experience by using these expert tips:

7. Refine your edits ruthlessly

8. Incorporate B-roll to increase engagement

One way to break boredom of talk-head video is switching between cameras at a regular pace.

You can also incorporate graphics, animations slides, slides, stock footage, or customized recordings to create an immersive learning experience.

9. Interactivity layer that is layered

  • Enjoy a build-your-own-learning path
  • Click on hotspots for video to explore more educational tools
  • Jump between sections relevant to these sections (useful for onboarding video in the company)

The result is that interactive videos boost viewer participation, resulting in better retention. Also, you can test your students' knowledge by making video quizzes using Interactive.

Ready to design your online course?

Making a course for video that you love by your viewers boils down to:

  • It is important to be specific in the problem that you are trying to fix
  • Building the information into a coherent narrative
  • The content should be organized so that it's easy to follow and digest

Also, don't forget to use with the right equipment, you can alleviate the strain the process of creating high-quality videos, guaranteeing an immersive learning experience.