2 0 2 2 C H AT S U M M A R Y

Thank you for your interest in our Level Up event!

During the live event we had a great chat, full of amazing content that
we want to share! In this document you will find common questions
that were posed in the chat and their answers, as well as some
wonderful inspiration and ideas shared by attendees. Thank you for all
you did in making this event a success and contributing to this resource!

Thank you for all you did in making this event

a success and contributing to this resource!
INSPIRATION, IDEAS, AND INSIGHTS
SH A R ED B Y AT T E N D E E S I N T HE CHAT D U RI N G LE V E L U P !
The best videos have scripts.
– Anne
So important to look at the “Why”
before we put lots of effort into
making videos. :-)
– Fiona
Keep it simple sweetie!
(KISS) - LOVE IT!
– Crystalynn
Templates are the biggest time saver!
– Suzanne
My motto: good training content can
be understood by any mammal.
– David
Iteration is SUPREME!
– Sandy
My favorite descriptor is how I feel
about video creation: scare-cited!
– Whitney
I think humor is about keeping
it consistent - and making the
humor obvious by using sound
effects (crickets/record scratch)
or zooming on a freeze frame/
awkward silence a la “The
Office.”
– Jonathan
We have music in our intro and that’s
it. It’s a great way to add consistancy
with our YouTube series.
– Tori
Pauses have great power.
– Ellen
The WOW over the
HOW...I’m gonna use that.
– Daniel
I love the chapters in
Camtasia to jump around.
– Michelle
Rewatch your content...AFTER
stepping away for a break. Also
helps to watch it on a different
monitor (just puts your brain in a
different space than when you were
pouring over every single detail on
your normal Editing monitor).
– Jessee
When creating training demos, I
like to create my first draft with all
the transitions and animations to
give the reviewer a better picture
of what the final cut will look like
to better critique my content.
– John
Repetition: Turning
content into “easy mode”
– Jonathan
Reuse - love that I can reuse clips
using the Camtasia library!!!!
– Jamie
I’m already nerding out over this!!
– Brandilyn
We use music in the intro of our
videos, and the same clip for a
specific product line, which lets
the viewer know what product
they are learning about.
– Miles
My workflow is to write the script,
then record the voiceover, then
record the screen and cut it to
match the audio.
– Andrew
You start a script by saying “Hey
Mom” or some other name. The
idea is to re-frame your mindset to
make sure you sound like you’re
speaking to a specific person and
you have that person in mind as
you deliver your instruction.
– Doug
ALWAYS use an active voice!!! It’s
so much easier to translate.
– Mary Beth
We create video series - most
recently customer experience
videos to walk our associates
through what our customers
experience when using our digital
solutions. We use opener and closer
templates that we brand for each
video in the series. Very useful.
– Erin
HELPFUL Q&A

What is the latest version of The most recent version of Camtasia is Camtaisa 2022 with Camtasia
Camtasia that is available? 2023 targeted to release in the middle of 2023.
Camtasia 2022

What is the latest version of The most recent version of Snagit is Snagit 2022,
Snagit that is available? Snagit 2023 will be released at the end of 2022.
Snagit 2022

I’m looking into getting Snagit Snagit and Camtasia both provide a variety of great
or Camtasia, what are the screen capture benefits. You can check out their
differences? features and differences here to see what fits you best:
Snagit vs. Camtasia

What program did Matt use Matt’s slides were created using PowerPoint, an iPad, and a lot of
to create his slides? creativity. Here is a video breaking down his creation process:
Slide Decks Don’t have to be Boring

What is the difference While both demo videos and tutorials are polished, scripted videos
between tutorials and demos? that inform the viewer about you software or product, there are a
few key objectives. Below are lists of what the TechSmith Team has
determined to be the main aspects of both videos types.
Definitely a good way
to spend the 4 hours. Demo Tutorial
– Sam Polished Polished
Pace: Fast-paced (think movie Pace: Slow enough for audience to
trailer) follow along each step, not very fast-
paced
Scene changes: Rapid, draw
attention with changes Scene changes: Not too rapid - need
to ensure viewer can understand the
Scripted: Yes context of what they are viewing
Objective: Excite, inspire, grab Scripted: Yes
attention, create interest in a
product or service, tell enough that Objective: Help others learn how to
they are interested in learning more, complete a task or inform, tell them
not to fully instruct on all details everything they need to know
How to create a Demo How to create a Tutorial

Can we see an example Yes, here is an example of a demo video that our
of a demo video? team has made for our Camtasia product page:
Camtasia Demo Video
HELPFUL Q&A
How would one go about creating
a how-to/tutorial video?
Does the cursor effect only
work if you use Camtasia to
record, or can it work if you
used something else for the
original screen capture?
Can you create your own “cursor”
through effects, and hide the
recorded cursor, so that the motion
is smoother and more precise?
If my faculty only watches
the first 30 minutes of this
presentation, my job and their
content will be 1000x better.
– William
When should I use storyboards
for video? How do I create my
own storyboard?
How do you apply the
blur effect in Camtasia?
I LOVE THE VIDEO GAME THEME!
Very engaging—well done!
– Jane
Here is a guide on making tutorial content as well as a video example:
How to Make a Tutorial Video
Adding effects to an existing cursor requires the use of some Camtasia
magic, so you do need to have a video recorded with Camtasia to
adjust a recorded cursor. However, if you have a video without a
cursor, you can add one and adjust the cursor effects, regardless of
which tool you used to record.
Camtasia Cursor Effects
To understand why cursor effects only work on cursors recorded with
Camtasia, check out this explanation from Troy Stein
You can create your own cursor using any type of graphic or callout.
You could also import an image to use as a mouse cursor. To achieve
this effect, turn the opacity of the recorded mouse to zero so it
doesn’t show, and add your custom mouse to the timeline, next add
animations to move the mouse around how you want. You can hide the
recorded mouse by selecting the clip on the timeline that includes the
mouse, and going to the properties panel on the right. Make sure the
cursor tab is selected, and just change the opacity.
We have an update coming to Camtasia 2022 by the end of the year
that will make adding custom curors easier and faster.
How to Hide Your Cursor
We tend to rely on storyboards for more of our complex video content,
but not always. We suggest setting your own guidelines for what
content you might want a storyboard for. Here are some resoruces to
get started creating your own storyboards:
How to Create a Storyboard Basics: Creating and Using Storyboards
There is a blur callot in Camtasia that can be used to create that effect.
Often we’ll use two versions of the same image and blur the one in the back.
There is also a blur effect in Camtasia that can be used as well.
How to Blur a Video Blur or Mask a Video Tutorial
HELPFUL Q&A
What is the best resolution to
record at to avoid the zoom
making things blurry?
For example, if we want our entire video
(non-zoomed) to be played at 1920x1080,
what should we do the recording in?
Are there any recommenda-
tions for Global English and
English as a second language?
such as using closed captions
or speaking pace?
If you film a video with a SLR
camera and import it into
Camtasia, can you then use the
Camtasia tools to improve it?
Can you record your audio
track first and then add it
to a Camtaisa video?
How can I make it easier to
upload adobe illustrator files
to create more engaging
animations and explainer videos?
Can the TechSmith screen
reader detect hotspots?
Wow that was insightful.
Thank you so much!
– John
Are there tools to track
what part of a video
is watched the most
frequently?
Keep the recording at 1920X1080, then anytime a zoom is used, try to
zoom into a very round number (200%, 150%, etc.). That should keep
the text as clear as possible.
Crisp Clear Screen Recordings Tutorial Screen Recording Basics
It’s usually recommended to keep a slower pace that’s easy to follow
if you’re making content for an international audience. We also
recommend having closed captions available for all videos, even if it’s
off by default.
How to Add Captions to Video
You can use all Camtasia capabilities on video recorded with SLR
cameras, except proper color correction.
Camtasia Video Editing Basics
Yes you can add audio in Camtasia both ways. You can record audio first
or you can record the video, and then come back to record the voice over.
Record Voice Narration
You can export the graphics as PDF files from Illustrator and then use the
PDFs in Camtasia. This retains the transparency and vector structure.
Yes, the TechSmith Smart Player does support screen readers detecting
hotspots. The Smart Player is the video player used by Screencast and
Knowmia. You can also export the Smart Player with your video and host it
yourself, or export a SCORM package that includes the Smart Player and
upload it to a Learning Management System (LMS).
Screencast Knowmia Pro
What you’re looking for is called “engagement analytics” and a lot of
hosting platforms offer them. We use Wistia and YouTube, which both
offer great engagement graphs. Using these graphs will allow you to
see where people drop off, where they re-wind, and how long they
stay engaged.
How to Measure Video Engagement