What Training Video Production Companies Don’t Tell You

That’s all you’ll likely hear from training video production companies. Full disclosure: we agree! But, let’s not sugarcoat this: video production is an involved process. It takes time, money and patience. And sadly, most businesses don’t realise all three until they’re well into the process.

Allow us to explain.

Training videos are essential for effective staff training

Training videos are an essential tool for businesses looking to onboard new employees, educate staff on new processes, or provide ongoing professional development. This statement is backed up by facts: Studies show that viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video compared to just 10% when reading it in text.

Not only that, but various sources quote cost-savings figures of up to 50% when using training video content, compared to traditional instructor-led training.

Working with professional training video production companies will absolutely help you here. Pick a good one and you’ll have polished, effective video content for training employees and onboarding new staff. Want to get an idea of how polished that video content might be? Take a look at our video production examples.

But before you jump, be prepared for what will follow

Just like buying a new car and then realising the size of the monthly payments after you’ve signed on the dotted line and left the showroom, video production is a big investment that you really don’t want buyer’s remorse from.

Yes, it’s worth the investment! But all cards on the table – there’s likely going to be several factors that will go unmentioned at the start.

Before you embark on your training video production journey, here are four things that training video production companies might not tell you, but you absolutely need to know.

1. The true cost of video production

Training video production companies often quote a base price that covers the essentials – in other words, scripting, shooting and editing.

However, what many don’t disclose upfront are the additional costs that can accumulate throughout the process. To be fair, they may not expect them – but neither will you. These can include:

Revisions: Multiple rounds of edits can quickly knock the costs northwards. So, make sure to clarify how many revisions are included in the initial price.

Special effects and graphics: Adding animations, special effects or custom graphics can significantly enhance the video but also increase the overall cost. Something that may seem like a quick and easy addition might be six hours of extra  post-production by an animation expert. Make sure you consider any animated or motion graphic content you might want at the outset. If you’re unsure, a video production company will be able to steer you.

Talent fees: Professional actors, voice-over artists, or subject matter experts featured in the video may incur additional fees. Ensure you’re fully onboarded with, and understand, what the costs are for these elements.

2. Time commitment from your team

Investing in a talented training video production company is a great idea. It’s great if you don’t have the talent in-house to do it; it’s also great if you do, but can’t spare the time.

While video production agencies handle much of the heavy lifting, your team will still need to invest a time in the project. So, three examples of this could be:

Pre-Production meetings: These meetings are essential to ensure the production team understands your goals and audience and, and know the content of the training inside-out.

Content approval: Your team will need to review and approve scripts, storyboards and rough first edits of your training videos – this may all be rather time-consuming.

Coordination and feedback: Effective communication and timely feedback are crucial to keep the project on schedule.

Make sure your team is prepared for these commitments to avoid delays and ensure the production of your training videos runs as smoothly as possible!

3. Post-production can be lengthy

Once your training video has been shot, we’re on the home-straight to a finished product, right? Wrong! Post-production can be lengthy and requires patience. That’s because one or more of these things needs to be considered, created ad/or completed:

Editing: The art of cutting and arranging the footage to tell a coherent story!

Sound design: Adding music, sound effects and voice-overs to your video!

Colour grading/colour correction: This is the process of ensuring colours are clear, correct and ‘true’.

Graphics: This can be anything from animation (an involved job) to motion graphics (not quite so time-consuming, usually) and/or subtitles (the quickest of the jobs here). Don’t forget the top and tail, too – if your video needs them!

Training video production companies often need several weeks to complete this process, depending on the complexity of your project, and how many videos are being created. Be prepared for this and plan your project schedule accordingly – or seek guidance from the video company!

Think about who needs to be involved, what their part in the story is, and how people and places will articulate your message and move the story along.

4. Updates and revisions can REALLY slow down the whole process

Let’s be fair, here: a lot of this will be on you. Normally, storyboarding and mapping out your videos will ensure what you receive at the end is exactly what you expect. But, there are so many variables to consider. Like that stakeholder in your business who missed a meeting, and has now decided that he likes blue text rather than red.

Or, someone realises a whole extra load of training should really be added into your video, and the finished product absolutely cannot do without it.

Once your training video is produced, it’s easy to think the work is done. But that first review can sometimes throw up unexpected – and unplanned – extra tasks. Depending on what these are, they could impact the cost, too. Our advice? Be absolutely sure from the outset that you know what needs to be in your training video.

Additionally, the nature of training videos means that, due to company changes, or policy changes, videos may need to be updated. For example:

• New regulations or internal policy changes.

• Updates in technology that necessitate new training methods.

• Some elements of training, in hindsight, might need more coverage or better detail.

Training video production companies may not highlight the importance of planning for these future updates. When negotiating your initial contract, discuss terms for future revisions or updates to ensure your training materials remain current and effective.

Make sure you choose the right training video production company

In summary, then: When speaking to training video production companies, ask detailed questions about each phase of the process, clarify costs, and ensure you understand the time and effort required from your team.

Using video content for training purposes is absolutely the right thing to consider. Working with the right video production company brings so many benefits, and really help to vastly improve your training processes.

However, understanding the hidden aspects of the production process, such as additional costs, the time commitment required from your team, the crucial pre-production planning phase, the length of post-production, and the need for future updates, can help you manage your project more effectively. Be aware of these factors – and better prepare for a successful training video production that meets your business needs!

And finally…

Don’t forget: WOWVI Video will help you transform learning like you never thought possible. We’ll make sure your training video content is accessible, flexible and fun!

Get in touch with our team and out more by clicking the button below.