The foundation of a successful video is the script. Let’s find out what you need to know to write it, and how to learn how to do it.
Users watch a billion hours of video on YouTube every day. And that’s not just nice numbers for a blogger, video content brings in revenue for the creators.
What you need to be able to write scripts:
- come up with topics;
- gather and research sources;
- write vividly, wittily, eloquently, and intelligently;
- use literary techniques;
- think outside the box;
- be creative “on schedule,” not when inspiration strikes;
- understand YouTube trends;
- Listen to others and at the same time defend your position if you work in a team.
Content summary
Yes, this step may seem trivial, but it is vital. Copywriters and all professionals who create content for clients are aware of the power and possibilities of a detailed brief.
The video brief is relatively standard. It is important to mention in it the advantages, disadvantages, and characteristics of the company / brand / personality that will be discussed. Next, you need to clarify the features of the proposed product and draw up a portrait of the target audience. All of these questions are contained in a traditional copywriting brief.
Develop a concept
Today it’s hard to find someone who hasn’t heard the word “concept. It is spoken about everywhere. But what does the term mean in simple words? To put it another way, it is a well-developed strategy that defines the direction, the development, the system of activities to achieve the goal. It would not be a mistake to replace the word “concept” with “the main, overriding idea”.
The following stage is to comprehend and record what your video will be about. You can not begin shooting the video immediately, without an idea you will have nothing to work with. To make your youtube video viral, characterize the accompanying:
- Your ideal interest group. Who is the ideal interest group for the video? Distinguish individuals you need to reach. Your crowd will decide the style, tone, and content of your video.
- Usually, the first 10 seconds of a video determine whether or not it will intrigue the viewer.
- The product or service you want to present. Create a clear concept of what you want to promote. Your task will likely be to present the goods or services, emphasizing their benefits and features.
- The plot of the video for the YouTube channel should be interesting and dynamic, otherwise, no one will watch it to the end;
- If you are creating promotional videos, you need to make them short;
- Regular publication of new videos with relevant content suitable for the target audience of your channel;
Introduce yourself and the video
If you routinely watch recordings on YouTube or other video facilitating destinations, you have as of now retained their leads consequently. Notwithstanding the call to prefer the channel, save the video, and offer it with companions, the voice in or in the background fundamentally presents itself and additionally the subject of the video.
The fact is that a video title works on a similar principle to titles for texts: it is who acts as the main criterion for clickability. Yes, the title of the video may contain its main idea, but this does not prevent you from repeating and describing it in more detail in the first 30-60 seconds of your video.
Writing text
The script for YouTube, even if you’re planning to shoot a promotional video or review of a product or service, should be built on the principle of any artwork, and divided into 3 parts:
- Intro. You should write a very strong introduction to grab the user’s attention in the first 5-10 seconds. “Make suspense by asking a question that viewers would like to get an answer to. A long introduction will make Youtube users not listen to it till the end and just turn off the video.
- Climax. The longest part, in which you answer the question asked in detail, and tell your main story in accessible terms. Try to be specific, and pay more attention not to describing the merits of your proposals, but to what problems of users they can help to solve, and how they will be useful to them. Do not try to show off his erudition, compiling flowery phrases, or in the description of products to include a lot of technical terms, poorly understood by ordinary people. The more lucid the text will be, and the more easily constructed sentences, the more interest it will arouse among users.
- The denouement. In the end, you should succinctly summarize all of the above, and unobtrusively lead your viewers to make some kind of decision. What kind of decision depends on the main idea of the video – for example, to go to watch another video on Youtube, go to the website, subscribe, place an order, etc.
A script for a Youtube video should be coherent, logically structured, and not look like a dry statement of facts. It’s better to write all the main theses first and then make them into an entertaining story that will be interesting for Youtube users.
In addition to the main text of the script, you will need to think and write more things to it:
- Locations. Where to place and how to move your characters, at what point they need to turn to the camera, and at what point they need to focus on the person or object they are talking about.
- Plans. At what moments do you need to zoom in and out of the picture, close-up up one object, or a general picture of what’s going on – all of this should also be included in the script of the video for YouTube.
- Emotions. In the script, you should write not only what you want your characters to say, but also what emotions they should express – which words to say with a smile, and where they should be as serious as possible.
- Audio accompaniment. If background music may be required for a stronger emotional impact on the viewers, specify the time of their insertion. When composing your soundtrack, be careful to respect other people’s copyrights or you could get blocked by Youtube later.
Add technical information
A separate text block in the script is information about the survey. Describe in detail all the details: people, props, place and time, equipment, etc. This will not only simplify the work of operators and directors but also make the text as relevant as possible to the surroundings of the video.
Specific terms will be useful to describe the frames in the video:
- the footage is an accompanying video sequence;
- packshot – a demonstration of the main product that is advertised;
- sub print – text content for a moving or stationary frame;
- plan (close-up, general, etc.) – this is the size of the image in the frame.
Thus, the script should be as voluminous and thoughtful as possible. It includes not only the spoken text but much more supporting and even technical information.
BUT
Good videos can be created without a quality script, but only in rare cases, such as when dealing with viral content. But in fact, a detailed script is required to develop high-quality video content. It is difficult to write it only the first time (ten, twenty, or one hundred), but detailed instructions are guaranteed to simplify this process.
