You’ve written a script for your video, you’ve included the relevant content, and incorporated some feedback. Time to press “record,” right? Not so fast. Over the years, we’ve learned a few things about how to improve your video script in its final stages – before you start filming.
The key thing to keep in mind is that the spoken word is different from the written word. Something well-written on the page may come out sounding stilted in a verbal delivery – and that’s what we aim to avoid as we near the end of the script writing process. So here are 3 simple tips for improving your video script that we use for ourselves and our clients as we wrap up script development.
Whether you’ll be the one delivering the script on video or you’re writing it for someone else, take the time to read it aloud. No need for an audience at this stage – just hearing yourself read through the script is enough. As you read, ask yourself these questions:
A natural-sounding delivery is what you’re after in a business video, so make some adjustments wherever needed.
Tip: Contractions occur more frequently in speech than in writing, so swap those in where you can.
After making the initial changes from reading your script outloud, take it a step further. Record your newly edited script on your phone and then listen to it critically. For a business video, it is important to keep in mind the purpose of your video and your audience.
If further edits are needed, make them now. You’re getting closer to a finalized video script!
Bonus: This also gives you a pretty accurate idea of the length of your script. If you need to shorten it up, condense or cut some content.
Enlist the help of a colleague and read your script to them. You can even get a few people together for this step. This is so helpful, because sometimes other people will hear things that you won’t. It’s useful to give them some idea of what they are listening for – you’re not looking for a full re-write here, just small changes that can improve content and/or delivery.
Tip: This is also a great time to take care of any redundancy or wordiness in your script.
Having other people on your team weigh in truly helps to make sure you didn’t miss anything in your edits. If you need to send your script along for final approval, you can confidently pass it along, knowing you’ve done your due diligence. If you don’t, now is the time to get ready to film!
We know it can be tempting to skip these final steps in order to keep the video production project moving forward as quickly as possible. However, these steps – reading your video script aloud, recording and reviewing your script, and reading your script to someone else – are simple and quick. And every edit you make is an edit that doesn’t have to happen while you’re shooting. Even worse, you could miss something entirely and have to re-shoot or just live with it. However, by taking the time to utilize these methods, you’ve done all you can do to avoid finding yourself in that situation.
The quality of the script directly impacts the quality of your video overall – a better script means a better video. And that’s the goal, right? You want to produce a great video that communicates with your audience clearly and effectively and works for your business.
If you’re looking for a video production partner to assist you with script writing, video planning, filming, and more, let’s talk!
How to Write a Script for Video
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