Writing a compelling video script can be more difficult than it sounds. Whether your video is a high-paced commercial, or a serious employee safety video, the bad script can put your audience to sleep and a strong script can make bland content exciting. Lindisfarne Productions has some tips on how write and evaluate your own script writing.
Outline your Goals
What story do you want to tell? Who is your audience? What do you want them to take away from the video? Why should your audience care? Knowing the answers to these questions can help define the direction of your video scripts.
Grab your Audience’s attention
The first 30 seconds of your video needs to grab your viewer’s attention. This is crucial to engaging your audience. Use the first 30 seconds to communicate why the video was made and why the audience should keep watching.
Keep it simple!
While longer sentences and paragraphs may be appropriate for the written word, they can be confusing or misinterpreted when spoken aloud. Keep your sentences short and to the point to make sure your message is clear. When in doubt, read your script out loud to another person. If you stumble over words or phrases, your talent probably will too. If your listener is confused, your audience probably will be too.
It is also important to focus on a single message in your script writing. Confusing your audience with too much information can be overwhelming and lead them to disengage.
Set the Tone
It is extremely important to keep your target audience in mind when writing video scripts. More formal tones generally mean longer words and sentences, making it more difficult for listeners to stay attentive. A more conversational tone allows your audience to feel as though you are speaking directly TO them, creating rapport and ensuring a more engaged audience.
Write conversationally
Throw out what you know about perfect grammar and academic writing. In everyday conversation people constantly cut sentences short, use contractions, start sentences with conjunctions, and use slang. It is possible to convey a message professionally and accurately while using less formal, more conversational language.
Use Humour
Humour, when used correctly, can be a very effective way of connecting to your audience. Humour can make bland information more memorable and grab your audience’s attention. However, it is important to use humour effectively to ensure the audience is not distracted from the message.
Consider your Ending
What do you want your viewer to take away from the video? Do you want them to share the video? Buy your product? Donate? Is there an action you want to propel them to? or do you want to leave them with “food for thought?” Having a clear understanding of how you want to leave your viewer will help you craft an engaging and memorable ending.
Writing your first video script can be a daunting task. At Lindisfarne Productions we are happy to offer tips for your own video concept, or have our own creative team do the script writing for you. We have experience writing scripts for a wide variety of videos and are excited to help bring your concept to life on screen!
Check out some examples of our past work here.