I hate lazy videos!

[marciayudkin]

I can't think of anything more boring than to be sitting in front of the computer trying to listen to a Camtasia video where the visuals change about every five minutes and are totally dispensable. I made it through about an hour of this in three or four chunks, but I simply can't stick with it.

In this case, the marketer said, "Why am I providing this information in video form? Quite frankly, because it's easier."

I don't get this. Why isn't it easier to provide it as audio? In that case, there is no need to make visuals. And the customer can then be doing something other than twiddling her thumbs in front of the computer and going stir crazy. There is no way to download the material as audio, as far as I can see.

And if for some reason, it's easier to make the slides and the audio narration, why not provide an audio download for someone who would rather not listen on the computer and is quite happy to live without the stupid slides? (Ditto if it's a talking head video.)

If it's in audio format, I can walk or run or do dishes while listening and feel more engaged, be able to stick with it longer.

Before you provide information ONLY as videos, please ask yourself:

1)Could this material also be communicated as audio content?
2)Can I give the customer a choice about which medium they prefer?
3)Is the medium that is easiest for me less convenient for some of my customers? Should I work a little harder to meet their needs?

Sorry for the rant. I find this very frustrating.

Marcia Yudkin

[embrown]

I understand completely! What's worst is are the videos with just ONE slide and the whole thing is someone talking. Its usually a picture of them and their cars, or something like that. I'd rather just have the audio.

But what I think, is most marketers want to say "Hey, I've got video!" Which technically they do. Its just not a good video.

[Rezbi]

Personally, I prefer video but only if the product warrants video.

If the same info can be utilised in audio form then it seems like a waste to me and it's probably made in video form just to make it seem more valuable.

[xiaophil]

100% agreed. It's video for video's sake.

Video is the 'in' thing, so many people look for any excuse to have one.

Content not appropriate for video? No problem you can just 're-purpose' it. Have some PLR articles lying around doing nothing? Cool there's a 'video' or three!

Text-to-video is the worst IMO. Who would have dreamed of making a video of a book with a VHS video recorder? So why is it suddenly appropriate now?

Now video-to-text, that would be impressive. And actually useful to someone!

Yes lazy video's are exploding. But a means to filter out the crap will surely follow. Ultimately I think those who put creative effort into their work will be the long term winners.

[Josh Anderson]

Marcia,

You have identified one of the major issues with most videos in IM...

They drag on with pointless drivel.

Its best to get to the point, deliver the meat.

It is also good to consider delivering an audio version and in some cases a transcript.

My partner Scott Lundergan and I have developed a new approach to publishing which can solve this problem.

We produced about 5 hours of talking head video covering various subjects on video optimization... but we knew that some people would want to cut to the chase and find quick answers to specific questions and might not be interested in all we had to say.

So we clipped the video down to close to a dozen episodes for easier navigation and consumption.

Scott created a time line outline showing the exact minute and second mark that various topics were discussed so that people could use that to know where to jump to in the video.

We also ripped just audio versions of the episodes.

We loaded the audio, video, and pdf timeline outline of the episodes into a one click podcast. We also embedded the video and the audio in web based pages.

Now the clients can view online, listen online, or download the video, audio, and pdf timeline to their desktop.

We also edited out anything unecessary.

We call this delivering the meat and skipping the milk.

Also when I create tutorials I strive for a goal of under 10 minutes... but even shorter if possible.

People do not have the attention span to listen to fluffy milk filled drivel.

We are in the age of meat.

People are seeking meat and they want it in bite size easy to chew quickly delivered pieces.

They also want it in the format that they wish to consume it... whether text, audio, or video.

The best strategy now is to make sure you publish in such a way as to boost consumption.

So if you were to make the same content available online in video, audio, and text as well as available in one click to popuplar portable devices such as ipod, iphone, and zune, as well as downloadable in one click using the worlds most popular desktop delivery system itunes (bypassing the itunes store) then you have the perfect strategy.

All you need after that is a keen knowledge of optimization to make your file size and delivery speed optimized.

[JohnMcCabe]

Originally Posted by xiaophil

Text-to-video is the worst IMO. Who would have dreamed of making a video of a book with a VHS video recorder? So why is it suddenly appropriate now?

Phil, I can think of one text-to-video application. There was a study some years ago (I'll edit this if I can find the cite again) that showed test subjects retained more material if they listened to the text being read as they read it.

This was a specialized application that scrolled the text precisely with the audio track. The study also hinted that reading speed could be increased by gradually speeding up the scroll/speech rate.

Now that I'm done with my wise-ass attack, I do agree with you. If I wanted to read the book, I'd get the book.

I've been saying this for a long time - people don't dislike a particular media format, they don't like poor execution...

[marciayudkin]

You have identified one of the major issues with most videos in IM...

They drag on with pointless drivel.

Its best to get to the point, deliver the meat.

Josh,

I totally agree with you. In this case, though, the content is actually very, very good. It's just the wrong medium for the content.

I have a high tolerance for so-so material on audio. I walk 2-5 miles several times a week with my audio player, and I don't mind if there's just 2 minutes on a 60 minute recording that gives me a new idea.

However, with video I can't just sit and listen at the computer even if the ideas are thought-provoking unless it's TV-quality video.

Marcia Yudkin

[Sam Smith]

Well, there is a reason people use it.

If you do a screencast, it's kind of ok to have notes and speak at a slower pace. Plus you can show people stuff directly like websites etc, and I guess the idea is that people will watch longer than they will listen.

But, I have to admit, I hate it in big courses. Hardly ever seen it add much. I ripped it all en-masse onto MP3 onto my ipod and just do without the visuals.

[Josh Anderson]

Which is precisely why the strategy I posted is so important.

I am not talking about how to crummy content... I am talking about how to make content more consumable ;-)

Originally Posted by marciayudkin

Josh,

I totally agree with you. In this case, though, the content is actually very, very good. It's just the wrong medium for the content.

I have a high tolerance for so-so material on audio. I walk 2-5 miles several times a week with my audio player, and I don't mind if there's just 2 minutes on a 60 minute recording that gives me a new idea.

However, with video I can't just sit and listen at the computer even if the ideas are thought-provoking unless it's TV-quality video.

Marcia Yudkin