Creating Online Video: Planning

This is Lesson Three of Matt Estlea's Video Creation Masterclass.
To go back to the lesson plan - Click Here

I advise against using scripts.
They take bloody ages to write, you often trail away from them, and they make you sound robotic and hollow. Instead, write down a few ​key points​ that you want to cover in the video, structure t​hem into an order that makes sense, sprinkle a few extra ​statements or props into it where possible, and use that as your guide.

Once I’ve created my video guide, I usually print it out and place it just outside of the camera's view. Alternatively, you could approach it like a news anchor and have your pre-prepared notes stacked up in front of you. Either is fine, but have a plan!

​This the first page of one of my video plans with annotations explaining some of the sections. As you can see, it makes absolutely no sense on it’s own. But is invaluable at keeping you on track when filming. 
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How to make a Plan
Video content can be split into two broad categories: ​Education and Entertainment.
​So it’s worth figuring out which one you want your video to be focused on. Here’s some examples: 

The last one will make more sense in a minute. But in reality, it’s best to​ mix elements of one into the other anyway. For example, a dash of humour in an educational video helps keep the​ viewer interested.​ A bit of education in an entertainment video gives the viewer  something to remember and take away​ from the video.

Unboxing videos for example are a mix of the two. From an education perspective, they educate ​potential customers on what to expect upon receiving their package. Although I personally love watching unboxing videos, even if it's for something I can never afford.  Why? Because i​t’s entertaining.​

An extreme example of this is Casey Neistat's video on his experience flying with Emirates in their First Class Suite.
​It’s essentially an unboxing video. Potential customers will now know what to expect. Nosey individuals such as myself will watch it in awe as entertainment: 

On the other end of the scale, I have recently become addicted to watching a YouTube channel called ‘​Drain Addict’.​​ And it is perhaps the best example of how ​anyone ​can start making YouTube videos. (No discredit to the guy's profession. After watching his videos, I have a new-found respect for people in this sector.) The guy simply has a GoPro strapped to his head and films himself ​doing his day job of unblocking drains.​ Without sounding too weird, from an entertainment perspective It’s so satisfying to watch when the seal breaks and the water comes flooding out. But I’ve also learnt a little bit about the existence and function of something called a Double Barrel Turbo Nozzle. Not because he taught me about it, but because I watched a conversation he had with a client in one of his videos. As of writing this, the guy has over ​185,000 subscribers ​simply from putting a GoPro on his head while unblocking pipes. He also has his own merchandise that can be purchased from his website. But best of all, he doesn’t even edit the video! It just gets uploaded to YouTube in its raw format. 

The Intro
If you’re going for an educational video, tell the viewer what they are going to learn and what they should expect to be able to do by the end of the video. The important thing is to keep it ​succinct and gripping.​ 

This is the​ actual intro f​or the video plan shown above. For context, the chisel is worth about £60 and doing this is sacrilege. But, this makes the intro short, memorable, and has a dash of humour and controversy. Perfect. After the intro rolls and I have got the viewers attention, this is where I quickly explain who I am and what they are going to learn.

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If your video is for entertainment however, just jump straight into the action.
Bond films never start with dialogue,​ they start with guns and explosions and leave a lot of questions unanswered until they get into the main story.
Here’s an example of some YouTubers doing that: 

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​At the other end of the scale, here is a much more achievable, refined version of jumping straight into the action by one of my favourite content creators. 

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Now imagine if Peter had started the video by saying:
Hi, my name is Peter McKinnon and in this video I’m going to film myself editing in silence. I wanted to do this because it’s a different style of video that I think you might find interesting. Also, have a look at my affiliate links for this equipment in the description below.... Ok. Let's start editing...

Firstly, it just ruins the whole feel of the video and would seem awkward afterwards.
It would feel as if Peter ​knows ​we are sitting there watching him. The beauty of this style of entertainment video is that it creates a ‘fly on the wall’ situation where we assume Peter ​does not know ​we’re watching him. Secondly, why bother saying all of it anyway? The viewer clicked on a video that was titled ‘Silently editing photos on an iPad’ Did the viewer really need the extra explanation? 

This is one of my early examples of an entertainment​ style video where I am not teaching or saying anything, I just wanted to share my journey.
​Looking back on it, I believe the intro drags a bit too much. But at the same time it creates suspense.
So I think it works. 

Despite not teaching anything, this video has generated over £10,000 of sales from people buying the plans to build the workbench themselves. I simply put the link to my store in the description of the video as well as the YouTube ‘cards’ that pop up in the top corner of the video from time to time. There is also a separate series that teaches people how to build the workbench. But the separate series has nowhere near the amount of views as this main video.

So don’t overthink it and start filming.
I​f you stick with it, you’ll eventually find an intro format that works for you.
Just remember to keep it ​short and succinct! 

A Disclaimer
When I film tutorials, I often find that adding a disclaimer at the start helps filter out viewers that will not be interested in my content.

​For example, when teaching people how to sharpen a chisel, I inserted a disclaimer that informs people that the tutorial is in the context of fine woodworking and is ​not suitable f​or those who just want to smash out a socket for a door hinge and be done with it. Here’s an example:
(Skip to 0:13 if you’re feeling impatient)

​Don’t be afraid of telling people what your content is not.
I​t will help solidify what your content​is about​ and will build trust and rapport. If you’re doing an entertainment video however, don’t bother with a disclaimer.
Unless of course you’re jumping into a bunch of Cacti while naked and want to ensure that people 'Don't try this at home!’ 

The Call to Action
When I film a tutorial, I try to think of at least 2 other videos that I want to direct my viewers to. This allows them to get caught in my ​‘video web’​ mwhahahaha!
The basic idea behind this is to make people​ binge watch ​my videos, and learn a ton more in the process. Here’s what it looks like. ​​

When I started my YouTube channel, my first thought was that I wanted to do a video on cutting a dovetail joint.​ But what if the viewer didn’t know how to use a saw correctly?
I decided to make a video prior to the dovetailing video showing them​ how to use a saw.​ But what if they didn’t know which saw to buy?
I decided to make a video prior to the sawing tutorial video that talked them through​ which saw to buy.​ The same goes for chisels used in the dovetailing video, the vice I used, the glue I used and the angle I cut the joint at. Right down to the projects I’ve used the joint in!
It’s an ever expanding web that people get lost in.

​Now when filming the dovetail video, all I have to do is innocently say:
“... and if you’re unsure how to use a saw correctly, be sure to watch the video I have put in the description as it will r​eally h​elp you out.”
....then I put my little finger up to my mouth, raise an eyebrow, and watch menacingly as they descend into my video web. *insert evil laugh here*

Breaking down content this way also makes idea forming for videos far easier. So if you plan to make educational videos, get your original ideas list and keep breaking it down
into smaller bitesize videos. Firstly, your viewers will love you for pointing them in the right direction. Secondly, the YouTube algorithm will love you for keeping the viewer on YouTube for longer. Thus your video will be rewarded by being recommended to more people.
This is the best technique I have for YouTube SEO.

Another important call to action in both education and entertainment videos is the simple​like, share and subscribe​ call to action. This is best placed ​midway t​hrough a video. But I usually say it at the end as I’m wrapping up because it feels more natural. Secondly, asking for audience engagement via comments is hugely valuable. The most fun I had with this was when wearing shorts on camera for the first time and my viewers decided to start making fun of my pale British legs. So in response, I challenged them to come up with the best insult they could think of regarding my pale legs. The rest was history.
They varied from having PVC drain pipes coming out of my shorts to being ‘whiter than clapping when the plane lands’. I was in stitches at some of the responses.
​You could also use the call to action as an opportunity to point people to your website, store or affiliate link of course. ​Just give them some sort of direction to work with! 

The Outro
Wrap up what the viewer learnt in the video but ​don’t dwell​ in it too much. In my experience, as soon as the viewer detects that they’re watching the outro, many of them will move onto the next video. You’ll see this happening if you ever venture into the YouTube analytics graphs. ​Make it quick, make your call to action, sign off. ​The red line below shows where I began my outro on a recent video. 

Summary
Work out if your video is educational or entertainment. If you’re simply demonstrating one of your products, its ​education.​ If you’re making a cake using one of your products, it’s probably somewhere in the ​middle.​ If you’re trying to demonstrate how good your adult bibs are by eating a cake as fast as possible. It’s probably biased toward
entertainment,​ but with an element of ​education.​

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​​I’ll leave you with the best example of this.

​Behold the YouTube channel ‘Will it Blend’

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Matt Estlea
Matt Estlea is a professional furniture maker now specialising in online teaching.

​You can find more on his website at: www.mattestlea.com/

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BACK TO LESSON PLAN

LESSON TWO: EQUIPMENT

LESSON FOUR: EDITING