What Makes a Great Video Script Great?

We have all seen or heard the commercials that are uncomfortable, awkward, and obviously lack natural conversation skills.  That is, most definitely, what you want to avoid as an advertising professional.  As in most things, the best way to figure out what works for video scripts and what doesn’t, is simply to consider the competition.  In this case, maybe not the work of direct competitors, but rather just the body of videos and commercials that you come across. 

Make a List As you watch and listen, write down what you like and what you don’t.  You’ll be amazed at how clearly you can define what you want from your script by doing this.

Consider Everyday Conversation If you would not converse on this topic, and, more importantly, your customer wouldn’t converse on this topic in the course of a normal day, then chances are it will come across as awkward in the video.  So, you might have to change your approach, creating a monologue, as opposed to trying to pass it off as normal dialogue.  If it is a discussed, topic, then really consider how it is discussed.  In what setting?  Using what sort of language and by whom?  If you can write a script that is very closely based to real life interaction, then you will be far more successful with it.

Hire a Professional Am I biased?  Of course I am.  I work in the voiceover industry and I have the utmost faith that I can create a more believable voice for the dialog than the untrained individual can.  However, to take it one step further, you really should avoid using friends and family members for the voice acting in your video.  Just as people can be camera shy, they can be microphone shy, which can cause them to alter the tone, tempo, and inflection of their speech, resulting in an awkward form of speech that is far from convincing.  This is exactly why we see and hear so many ‘awkward’ commercials.  Avoid the discomfort and allocate some money for professional voice services.