Communicating with your employees and workforce is just as important as communicating with your customers. You need to be able to pass on new messages from your executive board to team leaders and hardworking employees.
Traditionally, companies have used emails to communicate key information. However, emails can be dull and take a long time to read, distracting employees from the details. To solve this problem, many companies are developing an internal communications video strategy to transform the way they interact with their employees. In this article, we will explain the different types of internal communications videos and the key factors and tips you should consider when creating them.
What Are Internal Communications Videos?
Internal communications videos are very simple. They are videos distributed throughout your company to meet several needs and communicate key messages. You could produce them to advertise your brand and values or educate your employees on new products and systems.
Why Your Company Should Use Them
Research shows that in 2019, the average person received 129 work emails a day, meaning that most people’s work inboxes are clogged up and they do not have time to read lengthy emails about new processes and values.
The main benefit of internal communications videos is that they are an easier medium to consume than text. They are clearer and more engaging than emails and newsletters. Not to mention, videos can be distributed quickly and watched on multiple devices in a short window to save time throughout the day and keep your teams on schedule.
Visuals provide more detail than words so they are great tools for explaining new ideas. Plus, they are universal so can be used in multiple languages if you have employees all around the globe. If you can display relatable characters and real-life stories, you can emotionally connect with your audience.
Types Of Internal Communications Videos
We understand that implementing videos into your internal communications strategy can be difficult, as you may not know what videos you should film. Here are some common styles to guide you:
Company Values
Internal videos can communicate and reinforce your values to your employees so they can adopt them when dealing with clients and customers.
Onboarding Videos
An onboarding video allows you to show new hires your atmosphere. It can highlight how you operate and explain any jargon or system they need to know.
Walkthrough Training Videos
Videos are great ways to train employees so they do not have to attend training courses. They are a straightforward guide explaining each step so your employees can learn exactly what they need to do. Then they can be a reference to answer any questions or problems.
Troubleshooting Videos
Troubleshooting videos are similar to walkthrough videos, however, they are used when employees are struggling to navigate a specific feature or process. You may have introduced new equipment or software that is generally working well, but employees are not able to use some features. A troubleshooting video can show your teams how to work with them and answer any frequently asked questions.
Announcement Videos
When there are changes in your company, you need an easy way to communicate them to your employees. An announcement video can explain the changes and answer any questions or concerns surrounding them.
Event Videos
You can use internal communications videos to promote your company events. A simple ‘who, what, when, where, and why’ format will inform your employees about the events and how they will help them.
Tips For Creating Engaging Internal Communications Videos
When you are filming your first internal communications videos, you can struggle to find the best ideas and themes. Here are five top tips that will help you create effective content:
1. Film For Your Audience
The most important thing to remember when creating video content is to understand your audience and cater to them. You should include information they need and care about to make the most of their time and your budget.
2. Keep Them Short
Taking your employees away from their daily activities and duties can be stressful as it can put pressure on their deadlines. So you should keep your videos short and quickly communicate key information to avoid disturbing their day.
If you are struggling to keep your videos short, use time stamps to highlight the different sections. Then you can direct your viewers to a timestamp with information to prioritise. That way, your employees can fit the video into their schedule, consume it quickly and then continue with their work.
3. Caption Your Videos
Your employees may not be able to watch your videos with sound, so produce captions to help them consume the video’s information. You could include infographics highlighting the key idea or subtitles of the narration.
Do not forget that if your video is going to be viewed around the world, you should create translated versions. You will likely be able to reuse the visuals but produce overdubbed audio and subtitles to cater to different languages.
4. Film Relatable People
For many people, there is nothing worse than being lectured to by a dull presenter they do not know. It can feel like they are back at school.
Choose engaging presenters that your employees know and appreciate, and then film different team members and locations that they recognise. These techniques will help you create videos that your audience can relate to, meaning they will be more likely to accept its messages.
5. Use Pre-Made Footage
To save money, mix your tailored, relatable footage with pre-made animation. It can be easily edited into your videos to communicate your messages clearly.
Great Internal Communications Videos
To show you how effective internal communications videos can be, we have pulled together some effective examples that highlight critical techniques and methods that you can implement into your videos.
H&M Values
This company values video includes footage of employees shooting videos, smiling to the camera and interacting with each other, making it very relatable. The key points and messages of the video are reinforced with subtitles.
GoWebinar Demo
This walkthrough tutorial demonstrates how to set up GoWebinars. It uses screen capture software to show how to navigate the interface and create a webinar. It is also broken into sections with heading slides and has no narration so it can be watched with no sound.
Edmonton Waste Management Onboarding Video
This onboarding video features footage of employees working and interviews with team members explaining why they appreciate working for the company. The video’s relatability motivates new starters so they buy into the culture.
Canity Training Video
This training video explains how employees should deal with angry customers. It utilises animation to clearly represent the situations and demonstrates how employees should act. It highlights correct processes with universal visual messages, like crosses, meaning that the video could be shown to audiences in different countries with overdubs and minor edits.
How We Create Professional Internal Communications Videos
At Ark Media, we help companies with their internal messaging by creating professional internal communications videos. Our award-winning team can create an internal communications video strategy, plan and storyboard the individual videos, and then shoot and edit them. We take care of the entire process so you can concentrate on running your business whilst we create great content.
Our approach is always bespoke and we meet with every client to learn everything about their employees and needs. Then we can tailor the videos to these requirements.
If you would like to invest in your internal communications videos with our Vega Digital Award Winning Video Company, contact our team today for a quote that meets your budget.
