Using Dissolve in Your Video Script

A dissolve is a transition technique used in film and video. But unlike a cut, which is an instantaneous jump from one shot to another, a dissolve is slower -- the shot dissolves away as a new shot dissolves in.

But when would you use dissolve instead of cut?

Here’s an example. You’re hired to write a promotional video for a beachfront resort. The owner wants to show that his resort offers both fun activities and relaxation.

In your video script, you want to include a section to emphasize the relaxation aspects of the resort.

You might start with a shot of a guest reading a book while she’s comfortably stretched out on a chair. DISSOLVE TO: a man on an inflatable water mattress drifting lazily in the resort’s swimming pool. DISSOLVE TO: a young couple lying on beach towels as they soak up the sun.

A dissolve can impact both the tempo and mood of a video, almost on a subliminal level. By using this transition technique instead of a cut, the dissolve supports the relaxation-focused visuals.

Tips on Video Product Scriptwriting

Online Video: Testing Still Trumps Best Practices

One of the dangers of writing video scripts is getting too comfortable with a certain format. Specifically, using the same approach regardless of what industry you're writing for.

To create an effective video script (or any marketing, for that matter), you need to research your client's business sector. Differences in tone, response and format can be considerable from one niche to another.

Below is an excerpt from John Forde's copywriting newsletter. He discusses how he and his client (an information publishing company) use video for marketing and the results they're getting. It's quite surprising in many ways...


"For one, we've found so far that low production values
-- at least in our info-publishing market -- out pull
fancy fireworks.

Our best performing stuff is just text on screen, with
a voice reading it aloud in the background. And
otherwise, it's barely changed from the copy we used in
the print or online sales letter versions.

Short? Not even close.

The most astounding successes in our area, of the last
six months, have been videos that run for -- brace
yourself -- as long as 45 minutes to an hour.

I'm not making that up.

And when we try to edit it them down, do they pull even
better? Not at all. Response drops by 20% or more."

(from COPYWRITER'S ROUNDTABLE Issue #496, January 4, 2011)


Some of Forde's results seem counterintuitive to most online video marketing. So while every marketing channel has its own set of best practices, these should not be a substitute for testing different approaches.

Videos used in corporate content marketing strategies

The Content Marketing Institute provides some excellent examples on how to use video in your content marketing strategy.

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