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Video is the most effective way to convey a message, tell a story, or promote a brand. It’s also 72% of consumers’ preferred way to learn about a product or service.
A successful video is relevant to the viewer and engaging. Writing a script is crucial to producing a compelling video that people will enjoy watching.
We’ll start with why it’s important to write a script for those tempted to skip this step. However, most people see the benefits yet get stuck wondering, “How do I actually write a script for my video?”
You’ve come to the right place! We’re going to cover writing a video script step by step. Plus, grab our free script template to jumpstart your creativity and make the writing process easier.
A video script outlines the details of your video, including the setting, characters, on-screen visuals, music, dialogue or voice-over, and more.
Traditional scripts, like those written for movies, follow a particular format. This formatting provides a consistency that allows the script’s readers to understand the content and visualize the final outcome.
Scripts for how-to lessons, marketing announcements, product features, internal communications, and help videos tend to follow a looser format that, at minimum, includes the visuals and audio scene-by-scene.
It may be tempting to skip the daunting task of writing a video script in favor of “winging it.” Here are a few reasons to plan your video ahead of time by writing a script.
Whether you’re working with a team or running a one-person crew, creating a video script can save time, money, and frustration. The real benefit of writing a video script is taking the time to fully map out your creative vision. By fleshing out the details, you’ll create a plan of action.
When working with a team, writing a video script helps avoid scheduling (and paying for) additional filming days or extra revisions for animation and editing. A strong plan prevents unnecessary back-and-forth and miscommunication between departments.
The first few seconds of your video are crucial. The social media conglomerate Meta, which owns both Facebook and Instagram, found that a viewer who sticks around for the first three seconds is likely to watch for 30 seconds.
Writing a script provides multiple points to conceptualize the final result, get feedback, and clarify the vision. Without spending any money, you can brainstorm video ideas, write test scripts, and perform or read them to your peers.
Writing a video script provides structure for refining your message. The result will be a higher quality video that took less time to produce than if you didn’t have a plan in place.
Those who are working with a team or production company will find it necessary to align before creating the video. Team collaboration also helps to produce a video that appeals to a more diverse audience with different perspectives. By encouraging input from all team members involved, you can avoid corporate hiccups and mishaps.
One minute of a video contains an average of 140-160 spoken words. This varies based on the pace of the speaker, as well as any action that takes place outside of the dialogue or voice-over.
Traditional screenplays generally require one minute of video for every page of the script. However, for the purpose of your video script, assume that every 150 words will require about a minute of video. This will help you estimate how long of a video you are writing.
Estimating video length is important for both engagement and budget.
42% of marketers spend less than $500 producing a video, but the average cost for a one-minute video when hiring a production company is $1,000-$10,000.
The type of video you produce and the number of people (voice actor, director, animator, editor, etc.) involved in creating it will greatly impact the budget.
Companies that create videos on a regular basis should consider bringing video production in-house or hiring freelancers for projects.
Businesses with larger budgets may choose to hire a production company. Production costs vary widely between companies. Be sure to get a quote for your video and ask these five questions before signing a contract.
Videos under two minutes receive the most engagement. Yet viewers who watch for more than six minutes are likely to finish a video.
The ideal length of your video will depend on the subject matter and purpose of the video.
In general, shorter videos (under three minutes) provide an introduction or overview, while longer videos allow the viewer to establish a connection and absorb more in-depth information.
For this reason, shorter videos often use a hook (such as humor) to get the viewer’s attention. Longer videos might tell a story to create emotional investment or provide detailed instructions for the viewer to follow.
The first question you need to answer when creating a video is “Who is this for?” The answer should align with a segment of your target audience.
When writing the video script and planning visuals, put your target audience front and center. Regardless of the type of video you are creating, the goal is to provide value to that audience. Therefore, it’s important to consider your audience’s budget, pain points, questions they might have, hesitations, and big desires.
Businesses often create ideal avatars, or personas, that embody each segment of their target audience. Focus on appealing to one ideal avatar per video.
Why is this video being created and what will it be used for? Determine the purpose of the video, then create a contextually appropriate goal.
The video’s purpose will likely depend on the type of video you’re creating. An explainer video, for example, is meant to build brand awareness and increase top-of-the-funnel conversions. Therefore, the goal of this type of video will be directly related to that purpose.
Now, you have the clarity to create an outline with focus and intention. It can be helpful to consider how long you want the video to be as you create the outline. This will allow you to specify how many words each section of your outline should have (give or take).
Every video is different. This formula is optimized for shorter marketing videos. However, these four sections will help you create a broad outline for nearly any video. Use this if it helps create structure, but don’t be afraid to break the format.
Get to the point immediately, whether you’re providing information or marketing a product. Consider what you’re conveying (both visually and with audio or music) within the first three, 10, and 30 seconds.
These are the most crucial moments for getting someone’s attention. But as we saw with this seven-minute short film of an ad from Lyft, there are many ways to encourage viewers to pause and watch.
This stage is about highlighting and emphasizing the pain points your customer base is frustratingly familiar with. This sometimes is called “agitating the problem,” because it sets viewers up for emotional relief when you present your solution.
For some types of videos, the problem might be less obvious. For example, an onboarding video that covers How to Set Up Slack might point out some of the common issues that remote workers face, which using the application solves.
This section contains the “main course” of the video. It’s valuable information that presents your solution to viewers. This solution might be in the form of a product or service, information, tutorial, entertainment, or emotional connection. This section includes whatever form of value you’re providing to viewers.
What action do you want viewers to take after watching the video? Incorporate one call to action at the end of every video.
Instead of asking viewers to make a decision, direct the ideal path you want them to take. (Keeping in mind that they may still choose a random path.)
We’ve discussed the importance of capturing the viewer’s attention as soon as possible. This is called “the hook”.
A hook doesn’t need to be flashy to be effective. Generally, it immediately tells the viewer what to expect from the video. This might be a quick overview of what’s to come, a direct question to the viewer, an enticing vibe created by the visuals and music, or anything else that convinces the viewer to stick around and watch.
Here are some example hooks from our list of the best marketing videos:
Oftentimes, the solution your product or service provides is compelling on its own. In which case, an effective hook will be as informative as it is engaging.
This list also highlights that a great hook is more than just good writing. It’s the setup of the entire video. How will your visuals and audio work together so that people want to keep watching?
Now it’s time to write the actual script! This is a first draft. It’s an opportunity to put everything you have in your mind onto the page. If you’re working with a team, it’s time for everyone to bring their expertise to the collaboration.
It’s easy to think of scriptwriting as just the words that will be spoken. But a helpful video script will include:
Even if you don’t have every detail figured out, describe each aspect when planning out the scenes. As you collaborate with a team (film crew, animators, editors, designers), it will be easier to convey what is wanted.
Open Video Script Template
To make this process easier, we created a video script template. Here’s how to get your personal copy.
Plan and write your video script!
Once you’ve created your own copy of the template, you can customize it to your liking. For example, add a Storyboarding column to insert quick sketches of each scene.
Take a break. After you have written your script, put it away for the day. Revisit the script with fresh eyes after a good night’s sleep.
A beautiful thing happens when you get into a writing flow: it all feels genius. Once you take a step back, you may realize it needs improvement. This is completely normal!
Let your rough draft be rough. Then when editing the script, step into the mindset of your target audience.
Pizza dough needs to be proofed and kneaded before you can roll it out.
The proofing of the dough encourages fermentation, which adds air and depth of flavor. Then the gluten in the dough needs to be ripped apart continuously to form stronger bonds (kneading).
Writing is the same.
Take a break from the “dough” (rough draft) you’ve just created. Let it ferment in your brain. When you return, you’ll be ready to rip it apart to make something amazing.
Just like with pizza dough, it’s important not to skip the “rest” stage in favor of editing immediately. You will still be attached to what you created and unable to review it objectively.
Give yourself some time with the draft before asking how it could be better. Consider having peers review the script as well after your personal revisions.
Want more? Use these 10 tips for editing to walk through the process.
Whether you read your script out loud or perform in front of a small audience, find some way to get real-time feedback.
Another way you can showcase and evaluate your script is by creating a storyboard. This could simply be quick sketches of each scene, shot-for-shot. Storyboards allow you to present the visuals and dialogue or narration in a format that mimics the final result.
Dialogue and narration that reads well on the page may not sound as smooth spoken aloud. Even just recording yourself describing the video can help you make important final changes that improve the final result.
Small businesses and content creators might also consider involving loyal customers by requesting feedback in exchange for a discount or gift card. This approach can be especially helpful when producing a marketing video.
Here are some of the most important nuggets of information from the article as well as bonus tips (and things to consider) for writing an engaging video script.
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