How to Create Video Manuals for Complex Scenarios

Do you want to create engaging documentation that simplifies your product and enhances user adoption? Are you looking for ways of product documentation that break down complex information, resulting in improved user satisfaction and reduced support requests?

Some products are too complex to be understood through blocks of text. No matter how simple or easy your instructions are, your customers may still find it difficult to follow. So, for industries such as technology, electronics, healthcare, and many others, video manuals are a boon.

Video manuals can break down complex information into small, digestible steps that are easy to follow, specifically because they are ‘visual’. Users can see the steps they must take and how, therefore, you can use them to simplify anything from complex workflows to systems, and even troubleshooting.

They empower your users with clarity and convenience, while enhancing retention and trust.

In this article, I will break down the entire process of creating video documentation for complex scenarios, starting with what complexity means in this case.

Here we go!

Understanding the Complexity

A complex scenario that is best explained by a video user guide can vary from building a multi-step process to simplifying technical jargon and even documenting for different types of end-users at the same time.

For example, a SaaS platform with end-users spread across the globe may need to provide them contextual guidance depending on the intended business outcomes, language preference, and the level of technical expertise. An in-app interactive video user guide that is available in multiple languages can prove to be an efficient and scalable customer training tool in such a case.

Troubleshooting is another complex scenario, which is typically a technical multi-step process and is a great use case for building a video user guide, be it for customers as well as for internal teams. SOP flows and compliance fit in the same category, where you can ensure follow-through and consistency by using video instructions rather than text, especially when they include technical jargon.

Now, let’s look at how you can create video documentation that drives results for any of the use cases.

How to Create Effective Video Documentation

The first step before we get into making the video is, of course, making a list of all the scenarios and instances you would like to generate a video user guide for. You may want to make only one video at first, but it is highly recommended to list a couple of scenarios, so you can then give each of them a standard structure and speed up your creation process.

Once this is done, here is how we create the video document:

Break down the process into digestible steps

Before you start recording your video, you need to get the fundamentals in place, without which your video will take no solid direction. These are:

• Defining the audience – Knowing who you are making the video for is the key to your video being successful. Get into details about demographics, roles, preferences, experience, skill levels, or anything else, depending on who your audience is.
• Identifying the problem – Get into the purpose of making this video; what problem are you trying to solve, what are your users’ pain points, preferences, and expectations? Or, are you making this video to solve a problem your users are likely to face?
• Determining the goal of the video – Get into the specifics of what you are trying to teach your audience with this video, any specific skills, behaviors, or knowledge? It can be more than one. This is crucial, as only when you know your goals can you measure their success and determine if adjustments are needed.

Once the fundamentals are clear, it sets the tone for the remainder of the process.

Choose the right format: screen recording or screen + live video

Depending on the fundamentals discussed above and the complexity of your product, you can pick a format that works best.

Screen recordings – For software tutorials and step-by-step training videos.

Screen recordings with live video – For adding a personal touch and interactive element to the tutorials and product demos. Great for marketing videos, as well as for explaining abstract concepts or highly technical products.

A dynamic knowledge base software, such as Document360, comes with both these options, as you may need to use both for different videos.

Script writing tips: clarity, brevity, and anticipating user questions

Pre-planning the script is crucial to creating a video that achieves its goal.

Although you may not always need a word-to-word script for a knowledge base video you are making for your teams, as natural speaking may work as well, you still need to cover all essential points and a logical flow of information. For customer-focused videos and any kind of video that is going online for public consumption, a script must be used.

An easy-to-understand, concise script is your best bet for maintaining engagement. It must sound natural, without complicated jargon and unnecessary details.

Step-by-step guide to recording

Setting up your environment

Choosing the right video creation tool is the first crucial step to start recording your video. If you are already using a knowledge management tool, see if it has the capability of recording high-quality videos that suit your purpose. If not, choose an advanced tool that is preferably AI-powered and offers recording both screencasts as well as screen recording with video.

Some tools even come with an already laid down set of instructions designed to simplify the video creation process by breaking it down into easy-to-follow steps. Document360’s Step-by-step guide is one example that helps you create interactive instructional guides without any external support.

Capturing the process clearly

Once you have the right tool, it is time to start recording. You may have to go through some usual steps here:

• Hitting the record/ capture/ start button
• Navigating through the screens, going through the steps you decided, so that all on-screen interactions are recorded. If you are recording a screen + video format, then the tool captures both the screen and the presenter via the camera.
• Hitting the stop/ pause button to stop the recording

Irrespective of the format and whether you want a professional camera to record your video, using a proper recording mic to ensure your voice is clear and free of noise is a non-negotiable.

Using annotations and highlights

Once you have recorded the video, in most cases, you would like to add annotations and highlights. Both of them have a unique function, and you can use them as per your requirement.

Annotations are useful in providing additional information to explain complex points.

Highlights help you call the user’s attention to certain important areas of the video.

Once you have used all of these in your video, you can apply the changes to save.

Empower your users with clarity and confidence. Create engaging video manuals that simplify complex workflows and boost product adoption.

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Editing for clarity and engagement

Once the video is ready, it is time to go through it and review everything – from clarity to accuracy and pace and tone to ensure it is engaging. You must also share it with the relevant teams and any subject matter experts so they can give their feedback.

Once you are ready with the feedback and your own notes on any changes that are required, you can start editing the video.

These edits can be done with tools such as blur, spotlight, crop, and trim, or you may want to re-record the video or parts of it. Once the video is published or added to an article, you may still want to do minor formatting to it, such as alignment and resizing.

Adding voiceovers, subtitles, and callouts

You can further edit the video in case you want to use voiceovers, subtitles, or callouts in your video.

Voiceovers are great to make a video more engaging, thereby improving user experience and understanding of the content. They also make a video feel more human, making the content more trustworthy. They are also an accessibility tool for cases where the users are visually challenged. Tools such as Document360 let you choose between original voice or AI voice, so you can save time and increase efficiency.

Subtitles help readers keep track of and reinforce the spoken words, thereby enhancing comprehension. Especially in cases where the language of the video isn’t the user’s first language, subtitles ensure global reach.

Callouts are a good choice for use cases such as complex diagrams or data, software training, or even to summarize key takeaways. They help you communicate without cluttering the screen.

Embed and Organize Videos in Your Knowledge Base

Once the video is completely ready, you can start embedding it into your knowledge base and start reaping the benefits of including visual information. Choose a tool that allows you to do it easily by embedding videos directly in articles and other training materials.

Do not forget to organize your videos into a structured, searchable system with the help of categories and tags, so users can find the information they are looking for quickly.

Best Practices for Creating Video Documentation

Keep It Short and Focused (2–3 Minutes per Task)

Since the primary goal of creating video user guides is to simplify complex tasks and scenarios, it is important that you keep each video short and focused.

Users can only assimilate a limited amount of complex information, even if it is simplified. Also, attention span for videos is shorter on average because of the continuous influx of visual media in their daily lives.

Add Subtitles and Captions for Accessibility

As mentioned before in this article, subtitles help readers to understand spoken words better by reinforcing them, especially when they aren’t well-versed in the video’s language.

You can also use captions to make your video accessible for the hearing-impaired or challenged. 

Maintain Consistent Branding and Tone

It is important that you create a signature style for all your videos so that whenever your audience watches a video, they know it is yours, thereby establishing your brand.

Use style guides that include rules around colors, typography, and imagery, as well as the basic rules around the brand voice.

Use Visual Highlights and Callouts to Reinforce Key Steps

As mentioned before in this article, highlights and callouts can be used for various purposes, but be sure to use them to reinforce key steps.

This aids information retention as both highlights and callouts grab attention while helping you in passing critical information in a bite-sized.

Update Videos Regularly as Your Product Evolves

Just like all the other content in your knowledge base, video manuals also work best when they are regularly updated. Updation is important to maintain accuracy and relevance, enhance user experience, and support continuous improvement in your tasks.

Conclusion

As you saw, creating video manuals is not so complicated if you break down the process. Start by knowing your audience, defining their challenges, and choosing the right video creation AI tool and video format. Keep your script concise and conversational, ensure the video and audio are high quality, and use editing techniques to refine your video. Do not forget to organize your videos in your knowledge base so they’re easy to find and update.

Start with one complex scenario if you have to, and don’t worry about getting it perfect the first time. Learn from the process and keep refining it, and before you know it, you will realize that each new video will be faster, tighter, and more impactful.