At Xcelus, we produce a number of screen recording training courses for our clients. Our clients also do a lot of self produced screen recording courses. Screen recording is a great way to show how software works or to provide training tips using a Subject Matter Expert’s knowledge. Prior to any using any screen recording software such as Camtasia or Adobe Captivate to create a training course, the following questions and suggestions should be addressed before you start recording your course:

1. Is there a recording outline or script of the steps that will be recorded prior to the start of the recording session?

For most training developers, nothing starts without a script. I am surprised though by how many screen recording projects are unplanned and look more like rambling mouse movements without any structure or purpose. Script everything and plan accordingly – learners want short concise training steps that are easy to follow and to understand.

Rehearse the script several times before recording.

2. What video player will be used to play the videos?

• What is the required screen resolution?
• Can the video player play videos full screen? (This should be mandatory for any screen recording course)

The video player should determine the screen resolution of the screen recording. If your web team only uses a small player size such as 640×480, then record at that resolution. If there is a full screen option on the video player, record at a higher resolution such as 1024×768. Remind your viewers at the beginning of the video to enter full screen mode.

Remember the higher the screen resolution, the larger the video file size. Recording at a 1920×1200 screen resolution will not equal a higher quality video. It just means that your will have a large video size and a crummy video when it is resized to a smaller video size if your audience’s computer cannot match the screen resolution.

3. What is the minimum screen resolution on the computer recording the session or running the software?

Preview the screen of the web pages/software in the following resolutions:

• 800×600
• 1024×768
• 1280×1024

Pick the smallest size in which the web page/software looks good. There are two  reasons for this:

1. Prevents a large viewing are with a lot of sise to side movements
2. Smaller video size to stream -keeps the IT department happy and the video will play better at a smaller size.

4. Plan for Software Pop-ups during the recording

• How many are expected during the presentation?
• When do they pop-up?
• Are they movable?

Plan accordingly and allow time to edit out any unusual movements to bring pop-up screens into the recording area. Most popups are designed to be in the center of the screen. Plan your recording area in the center of the screen rather than upper left corner.

5. Please turn off  all computer notifications of computer running the web pages/software for screen recording.

Email and instant messaging notifications should be turned off during the recording. They are disruptive and difficult to edit out.

6. Please use a clean/generic desktop background.

A desktop with a 100 icons or family photos should not be part of a training course.

7. Turn off/close all computer processes during the screen recording.

Computers running screen recording software perform better with fewer process running in the background

8. Remember to do a slower mouse/typing movements.

When watching screen recording videos, your audience will need to see and comprehend important mouse movements and typing. Subject Matter Experts need to go at a slower pace for improved audience understanding.

9. Audio – Audio is 50% of the production.

A well scripted and recorded video can be rendered useless by poor audio. Your audience will tune out after a few moments. Buy a good USB microphone if the screen recording narrator is also the SME doing the screen recording steps. If the screen recording is being recorded via WebEx, GoTo Meeting or Live Meeting, use a landline phone with a headset during the recording session.

10. Use a professional or ‘better than the SME” voice over talent if possible.

SMEs have great talent and knowledge about products and services, but that doesn’t mean they should be the voice of your training video. Spend a few hundred dollars to transcribe the SME audio and record it with a professional audio talent.  Good audio will allow your audience to focus on the visual content.

Remember the goal is to provide a great training experience when using screen recording software. Camtasia and Captivate are great rapid training development tools, but plan accordingly before you start.

More screen recording tips can be found at this blog entry:

http://www.xcelusstudios.com/toddcorbettblog/10-video-tips-for-using-screen-recording-software-like-camtasia-and-captivate/

Screen recording software is very popular for recording training and support videos.  Right out of the box you can easily produce videos by recording computer screen movements and your narration.  But, just because you can record screen movements and record audio on your computer microphone, doesn’t mean that your audience will be engaged with your content.  Here are some tips we suggest to our clients when producing videos with screen recording software like Camtasia and Captivate.

1. Plan your video – What are you recording and why is it important? You are obviously creating a video to demonstrate something on your computer, but before you start recording plan your video.  Identify each step of the process and write down the narration for each step.  The narration doesn’t have to be dry and boring, but make it relevant to what is important.
2. Introduction/Closing– Remember to do an introduction narration of what you will be demonstrating and a closing summary in your video.  Using the consistant title screens and closing screens can help you build brand identity.
3. Keep it short – If your video is longer than 3 minutes, break it into segments.  Your audience will be grateful that they can view only the information they need rather than watch a 15 minute video hoping and waiting you will show them what they want to see.
4. Use a good microphone – Do not use the $10 microphone you bought at Wal-Mart.  Sound is critical to screen recording videos.  Form my experience, if the sound is bad I will not endure through a video just to see it. Please invest in good quality microphone.  There are many quality USB microphones you can find for $99 – $299 that will really make a difference to your video.
5. Choose an appropriate screen size – Screen recording videos are very tricky if you have to resize the content to stream from a web page or YouTube.  The best rule is to record smaller than 1024×768.  That is an average laptop viewing area.  Screen recording at a larger viewing area will create a huge video file that will look horrible when compressed to a smaller size.  Record at the smallest size possible.
6. Narration Pace – Speak clearly, slowly and follow your script.  Do not ramble on or feel like you have to say something all the time.  Show the process and provide clear narration.
7. Rehearse, Rehearse and Rehearse – Do several dry runs to test your script and timing.  Create a demo for feedback from your coworkers.  Use the feedback to make changes to your script.
8. Keep your Screen Clean – Turn off all reminders and popup screens.  Look at your browser’s toolbars and turn them off.  Sometimes toolbars and bookmarks reveal too much information about you!
9. Record in a quiet location – Try not to record your narration in a pod. Reserve a conference room away from the normal office traffic. Remind your coworkers that you are recording and to be respectfully quiet.
10. Start your Applications Before you Record – Some applications take some time start.  There is nothing more boring than watching an application take 20 seconds of your recording time booting up.  If it isn’t critical to your instruction on how to launch and application, have the applications ready to go and use the alt tab keys to cycle through the applications.  Make sure when you switch to an application it is loaded in your screen recording area.

Building a library of training and support videos is important to any organization.  Screen recording software is affordable and easy to use.    Keep ahead of your competition by creating quality videos rather than good enough videos.