Filming Your First E-Course

Online learning has become a pillar for niche industries online. What previously was unattainable or hard-to-find information can now be accessed through brands and online influencers’ online pieces of training. Video online learning has provided revenue streams for thought leaders and experts in nearly every industry and expertise.

Build it with Video

The bedrock of these online courses is pre-recorded video content. The most effective and cost-effective way to sell your knowledge is through online video. Pre-recorded video courses can be sold countless times and accessed by your customers at any time of the day or night. The downside is that you need to create this video content before you can reap the benefits.

For those new to video and looking to create an online course, this blog article is for you. We will cover the basics of what to plan and look for when making your video content for your next course.

Course overview video from the e-course we shot for The Lash Ritual.

Styling Your Course

The look and feel of your course should align with your brand, audience, and business goals for the project. Often the first step we do with our clients is to review different video examples with them. We do this to determine what style of content they like best and what style of video they dislike. Having video or photo examples of what you are striving for will be very helpful when communicating with your video producer on how to style your content.

With your e-course, you want to ensure you are using consistent branding throughout your course. All of your video elements, including the shot framing, the color of images, fonts, and music used in the videos, should reinforce your brand. In addition, these videos are touchpoints with your customers, so it is essential to strengthening who you are as a brand in Every video. You want your customers to come out of your course well informed on the course material and have a better idea of who your brand is.

Plan for the Delivery

Your biggest weapon for cost-cutting is creating a proper plan. Before grabbing a camera or writing any scripts, for that matter, you need to outline your course. The outline should list each chapter or section of your course and what the included video will cover. I highly recommend completing this step before moving on to scripting.

Scripting for Success

You may know the content backward and forward but ensuring a smooth delivery on camera is different. After your course outline is complete, spend the time to script out each section’s video.

By scripting your videos, you can use a teleprompter to ensure the quick and accurate delivery of all your e-course content. In addition, using a teleprompter will speed up the shoot day and allow you to capture more content.

Plan for the B-roll

When scripting each section, include notes via a two-column script or line-out notes for your video team. These notes should provide visual instructions to the reader of what footage will be paired with the narration. For example, if you are talking about how to train a dog to roll over, you will note “B-roll of a dog rolling over.” These notes may seem obvious to you, but including these notes will make it easier for your video team to shoot and edit your video.

Limit Your Shoot Days

All the prep in creating your course outline, video scripts, and using a teleprompter are an effort to limit your number of shoot days. The reason to restrict your shoot days is that, in video production, it is common for video teams to bill by the day, not by the hour. Therefore, every shoot day will increase the cost of your videos dramatically. But, on the other hand, this often means spending more money on a particular shoot day with more crew and equipment to increase the efficiency of your shoot. An example of this would be using a teleprompter so that you can work through your content quickly.

Hiring a Production Company

When looking for video producers to assist in creating your course, you want to look for someone that has a portfolio of past work that reflects the content of what you are trying to produce. So, for example, if you hire a video team that only shoots music videos, then don’t be surprised if your course comes out looking like a Rihanna video – although is that really a problem?

If you don’t know of any production companies in your area, I recommend reaching out to a few people you know for recommendations. Chances are you are only a few connections away from a business video producer with video content production being so pervasive in marketing.

You want to find a video team that isn’t only going to create a video for you but a video team that understands your vision and can help you achieve your course goals.

Why Consider Chocolate Bar Studios to Film Your Next E-Course

A saying we use at Chocolate Bar Studios is “We are more than just filmmakers.” We use this because we are a production company that wants to see our clients succeed. Therefore, our video production team will work with you to plan, script, and execute all the necessary videos for your e-course and then some. With tens if not hundreds of instructional videos under our belt, we know what it takes to create a successful video course for your business.

If you have any questions about creating videos for your online course or this blog article, reach out to one of our video producers today.