Timing is Everything
As a writer/producer with 23 years experience, I’ve witnessed a boatload of changes since my early days in the industry. (We’re talking the “1-inch tape recorder and Ikegami tube camera” era.) Delivery formats were different too: slide shows, 16mm films and VHS tapes. But the biggest area of change is in the way we communicate, especially with the introduction of the Internet.
The Web has revolutionized how we receive information. We expect – and demand –
instant messages, instant responses, instant feedback. As a result, we base all our information-gathering on our Web habits. That means, we want everything to be delivered in short bursts in the shortest amount of time – including video messages.
Used to be, we’d produce corporate videos or films that would engage (or entrap) the audience for 30 minutes or more. Back then, we thought that length was reasonable. Back then, we all must have had a lot more time to sit and watch videos.
We’ve come a long way, baby. Video messages, whether they appear on DVD, on the Internet, Intranet, CD, podcasts, iPhone, etc., have to be much shorter these days if you’re going to retain your audience. Typically, we recommend keeping videos under 10 minutes. (Believe it or not, 3-5 minutes is ideal.)
If you want to deliver a lot of content on video, consider “chapterizing” the information. This way, the content will be broken down into smaller, easily digestible segments. It’s easy to do on DVD or with multimedia or Web streaming programs.
New Video Rules:
- Shorter is better.
- Develop 3 key messages you want your audience to retain and build your program around those key messages.
- Make sure your script is lean, crisp, and packs a punch.
Timing is everything, so don’t let your audience tune out before they get your message.