7 Great Tools For Creating Your Own Video Tutorials
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When you want to learn how to do something new or need to fix something, what do you do? A lot of people use YouTube to help them figure out how to do things. Whether you arecreating animated video explainers, interviews or educational resources, a video tutorial is the most effective way to explain how to use a product, complete a task, solve a problem, or accomplish a procedure.
So how can you create an easy-to-follow and clear demonstration to help your target market understand how to use your product, solve a problem, or make their life easier? Below are seven great tools for creating your own video tutorials.
Screen Capture Software
Screen capture softwareis a tool that will record your computer screen. Use it to create a video tutorial walk-through of how a product or process works. Capture your entire screen or only relevant portions of it.
OBSis an open-source and free video recording software program that runs on Mac, Windows, and Linux.
To start recording your desktop :
OBS features include:
Watch afull video tutorialto help youset up and use OBS.
Apowersoftis a free web-based screen capture software program. Capture whatever is displayed on your computer without having to download anything.
Key features include:
Watch avideo of the user guideto get started using Apowersoft.
Screencast-O-Maticis an easy-to-use screen recorder. It offers both a free and a paid version.
Features include:
Screencast-O-Matic offers a free version and two premium options: a Deluxe version at $1.50/month and Premier for $4/month. Paid versions offer additional features such as drawing while recording, videos more than 15 minutes, and no watermark.
Watch Screencast-O-Matic’sTraining and Tutorialsfor detailed instructions on how to use the software.
Quality Microphone & Optimal Audio
Most screen capture software includes the ability to record audio while showing your desktop. However, some built-in computer microphones result in a muffled sound.
The quality of your audio matters and contributes to the overall professionalism of your video. If you are new to creating video tutorials, try a USB microphone. They provide good audio quality, are affordable, and don’t require any additional hardware. Plug the cable into your computer and start recording.
Using the right microphone will minimize the distractions caused by echoes and background noises.
Below are some suggestions for high-quality USB microphones:
All USB microphones are not the same. What works best for live streaming games might not work well for recording music or video tutorials. If you find that your audio still needs some tweaking to clean up any noise or static, you can useAudacity.
It is an open-source multi-track easy-to-use audio editor. Audacity works on many operating systems, including Mac OS X, Windows, and GNU/Linux.
Video Editing Tools
Many of the screen capture software tools provide some editing options. Others, such as Screencast-O-Matic, require the Pro version to get access to editing effects such as creating captions and drawing on the screen.
If you want to make your video tutorials more visually appealing, using a video editing tool that goes beyond what is included in some screen capture programs is the best route.
The video editors below are free to use.
Blender
Blenderis a free and open-source video editing program for Mac, Windows, and Linux. Perform basic edits such as splicing, video masking, and cuts.
Shotcut
Shotcutis also a free and open-source video editing program that is available on Linux, Windows, and Mac.
Shotcut supports a wide range of video formats and offershelpful video tutorialsto help users learn the software.
Two major features that make Shotcut stand out from some of the other free video editors are its native timeline editing and support for 4K HD resolution.
VideoPad
Available only for Windows,VideoPadis simple and easy-to-use for beginners.
Features include:
Users can export completed videos directly to YouTube and other social media platforms. Watch avideo tutorialto learn how to use VideoPad.
Camera
Capturing your screen is one way to create a video tutorial. Another way is to shoot live video. Whether you shoot a live video for part or all your video tutorial, you will need to have a good video camera. It isn’t necessary to hire a professional videographer or use expensive equipment.
You can create high-quality videos with low-cost equipment and even your smartphone, especially iPhones.
Below are some smartphone video shooting tips:
Lighting
To make sure your videos look professional, you must have the proper lighting. It’s best to maintain control over the lighting rather than relying on the natural light that can cause shadows or change quickly.
Clamp lightsare inexpensive, versatile, and can be mounted in several ways. A downside of these lights is the lack of diffusion and dimming control that can lead to harsh lighting.
For those with a higher budget,studio lighting kitscan be purchased for $100 to $500. They include effective diffusion materials and often use large fluorescent lights.
Video Animation Tools
Adding animated video segments into a video tutorial can make it more entertaining and engaging and hold viewers’ attention. Animations can explain a complex idea, topic, product, or service in easily digestible content.
Creating animations doesn’t require as much time or technical expertise as it did in the past. Various animation and online presentation tools simplify the animation creation process.
Below are some tools to consider using.
PowToon
UsePowToonto create eye-catching animated videos and presentations.
Users can customize ready-made templates with a simple drag-and-drop interface. Powtoon has a tiered pricing structure, including a free version.
Renderforest
Create explainer animated videos and slideshows withRenderforest. It also has pre-made templates that can be customized with a simple drag and drop user interface.
Renderforest has a tiered pricing structure that includes a free version. It also offers the ability to pay per product if you want a higher definition video without a watermark.
Animoto
Animotois a drag-and-drop video maker. Users can create impressive videos without needing editing experience.
Animoto has a three-tiered pricing structure and offers a 14-day free trial. The personal plan is very affordable at $5/month (billed annually for $60).
Hosting Platforms
After you have created your video tutorial, where are you going to host it? YouTube and Vimeo are the most well-known and popular video hosting sites.
YouTube is the second largest search engine, and by far the most widely used video hosting platform.
It’s free to use and has many advantages, including:
There is not much security on YouTube so others can steal or copy your video. Avoid running into copyright infringement issues by not “borrowing” music that you don’t have a legal right to use.
Vimeo offers users a professional-looking interface and customization options. It provides a limited free version and four tiers of premium membership. If you are looking for more control over your video content and more privacy, Vimeo is a good choice.
It has many other benefits, including:
Compared to YouTube, Vimeo has lower search engine exposure. But there are many other hosting options, includingWistia,Brightcove,Dailymotion, andVidyard.
The number of video tutorials presented on marketing platforms, websites, and social media continues to increase. This is because they are more effective in demonstrating, explaining, or teaching than written content.
David has a background in small business and lives in Australia. He is a WordPress and Ubuntu Developer who enjoys design, CSS and tech tool integration.Read David’s Full Bio
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