YouTube Squeezed to Expand Video Time

Competition in online video may have forced YouTube amend its time restriction on videos uploaded to their site ...

YouTube Lifts Time Limit for Some Videos

Best Online Videos

BtoB Magazine posts its choices for best online videos of 2010.

B2B Marketing and Video

As a specialist in B2B marketing, I'm glad to finally find some info on using video in the business-to-business sector ..

http://www.businessmarketinginstitute.com/tmn111610.html

David Coyne
B2B Copywriter

Video Scriptwriting for Point-of-Purchase Programs: New Opportunities

An expanding area in the video scriptwriting field is point-of-purchase programming (also known as digital signage). POP programs are displayed on large video monitors in retail establishments and professional offices. Programming can be educational, promotional or a combination of both. For example, my local Wal Mart has large monitors located over each cashier line, displaying video on products, sales and store promotions.

Because of the high noise level within a public space, most POP programming is delivered without audio. Instead, text appears on screen as a replacement for narration.

In some ways, scriptwriting for POP can be more challenging than traditional video scriptwriting. Without audio, you really need to think how to succinctly tell a story visually and with only a handful of words.

Before writing a POP video script, you should know the size of the display monitors and how far customers will be from the screens. The farther the monitor is, the larger the text has to be. But this also means less space for words. (You may be given a style guide from the client which provides the content creation guidelines to follow.)

I currently write health-oriented POP videos displayed in the waiting rooms of chiropractic offices. Since patients are closer to the screen than in most retail environments, I'm able to write about 10 to 12 words per screen. Anymore than this and it becomes difficult to read and obscures the visual content.

To get POP video scriptwriting assignments, search for video production companies that also provide point-of-purchase or digital signage programming.

Script Writing for Video Tutorials - Link

"How-To" videos are increasing in popularity for both B2B and B2C sectors. Here's an article with tips on creating scripts for this format.

http://tinyurl.com/2443xkw

How to Keep Your Video Script on Target

Before you actually dig into the writing of a video script, you should sum up the objective of the video in a single sentence. You should also have the client review it so you're both on the same page (no pun intended) as to what is the goal of the video.

Example: "This video will explain to XYZ Company's support staff about changes to the warranty coverage for the Elite series of widgets."

Write the objective on a piece of paper or index card, and post it near you computer when working on the script. After you've done product research, interviewed employees or customers, written down your ideas, it can all seem a bit overwhelming, and you can easily lose the main purpose of the video script. A script outline or treatment can help clarify key points but having something short and succinct like a single sentence objective can go a long way to keeping your script on track.

Just Say No to ALL CAPS

It used to be quite common for the audio section of a video script to have narration and dialogue in all capital letters. I recommend you always use upper and lower case. All caps are more difficult to read.

In fact, the Direct Marketing Association did some research on capital letters vs. upper and lower case and found the following:

"...Upper/Lower case scores at the 90 percentile for reading and
comprehension. All CAPS score at the 57 percentile."

Writing Your Video Script - The Basics

StoryGuide: Writing Your Video Script on Howcast

Video Scriptwriting and Camera Angles

In screenwriting, writers are discouraged from including camera angles in their scripts. However, in video scriptwriting for the corporate sector, you have the freedom to add angle descriptions. (Keep in mind the director is going to bring his or her own ideas on how to shoot the various scenes, so don't surprised to see changes in the finished video.)

One recommendation I'd like to make about writing camera angles is not too worry about including them in your early drafts. I find inserting technical instructions while trying to write the visual narrative and dialogue slows me down. Get the content right first.

Below are common camera angles and their abbreviations:

CU - Close Up
ECU - Extreme Close Up
MS - Medium Shot
LS - Long Shot

See the pictures below for how a subject is framed using these camera angles. (From the excellent book The Scriptwriter's Handbook by William Van Nostran.)

Association for Video Scriptwriters and A/V Production Personnel

Established in 1968, The Media Communications Association International (formerly the International Television Association) is key organization for people involved in audio-visual creative/production for the corporate sector. The membership fees are a little steep, but their website provides some articles and training resources related to the industry.

http://www.mca-i.org/en/cms/?1641#DigitalMedia

Free Video Scriptwriting Software

When I first started writing video scripts in the 1980s, I had to write using a primitive DOS word-processing program (remember DOS? Ugh!). It was a long, hard slog. But it was still better than using a typewriter.Nowadays, scriptwriting software abounds. But most programs are for screenwriting, which has a slightly different format than video.

For the last few days, I’ve been experimenting with the free scriptwriting program Celtx (http://www.celtx.com/).

While it’s also focused primarily on screenwriting, Celtx does have a good audio-visual module. I’m impressed with the amount of features, especially since the software is free. It contains the common formatting commands found in video, including scene heading (Ext/Int.), shot, character (or narrator), and parenthetical. Celtx creates the standard dual column (Video / Audio) format when you click on the “Typeset /PDF button” at the bottom of the screen.

As well, it also has a notes, storyboard and index card function. The Celtx website has short videos that show how the various modules operate. But I found this video tutorial from another site a better overview of the Celtx audio-visual module (as long as you don’t mind a short commercial before the tutorial starts) View it here:

http://tinyurl.com/2agwl4d