A new internal tool usually arrives with a meeting, a document nobody reads twice and a promise that "it is easy". A few weeks later the same questions come back: where do I click, why does it not save, who can see this? A short screen recording answers most of them, and it works for the colleague who was on holiday during the launch.
This article is for an owner or manager who has just introduced a small tool and wants staff to use it correctly. It is not a course on video editing. The aim is a plain five-minute recording that one person can make in an afternoon with software they already have.
Give each video one job
Do not record "the whole tool". A video that tries to show everything is too long to finish and too vague to find again. Choose one task that staff actually do, for example "enter a new order", "approve a leave request" or "export the weekly report".
A useful test is the title. If you can write it as "How to [do one thing] in [tool name]", the scope is right. If you need the word "and" in it, make two videos.
Start with the task that causes the most questions. Your support inbox or the person who answers "how do I..." most often will tell you which one that is. Other tasks can follow when the first video has proved useful.
Script five minutes before you record
Five minutes is enough for one task and short enough that people will watch to the end. A written script keeps you from wandering. It does not need to be fancy; a page of notes is fine. A simple order that works:
- The goal (30 seconds). Say who the video is for and what they will be able to do afterwards.
- The steps (about three minutes). Show them in the order staff will do them. Name each button and field as it appears on screen.
- One common mistake (one minute). Show what goes wrong, for example a required field left empty, and how to fix it.
- Where to get help (30 seconds). Name the person or channel, so viewers know what to do when the video is not enough.
Read the script aloud once with a timer. If it runs to eight minutes, you have two tasks, not one.
Record it simply
You do not need a studio. Most computers have a built-in screen recorder, and common meeting tools can record a shared screen. A few habits make the result much easier to watch:
- Use sample data. Create a test customer or a dummy order. Never record real names, prices or personal data, because the video will be shared and kept.
- Close the clutter. Hide other windows, notifications and browser bookmarks that do not belong in the picture.
- Slow down. Move the mouse deliberately and pause for a second after each click so viewers can follow.
- Make the text readable. Zoom the browser so the text is large enough on a laptop screen.
- Do one take, then fix only what matters. A small stumble is human; a wrong click that changes the story is worth re-recording.
Add captions
Turn on captions, or add them with the automatic tool in your video software and then correct them by hand. Many people watch at work with the sound off, and captions help colleagues who do not speak the language of the video fluently or who have hearing difficulties. Check names of buttons and the tool itself, because automatic captions often get these wrong.
Put it where staff will look
A good video in the wrong place is not used. Store it next to the tool, not in a general folder that only its author remembers. Practical options:
- A link on the tool's start page or help menu
- A pinned message in the team chat channel
- A short list of videos in the same place as the tool's written instructions
Name each file by task, in the words staff would search for: "Enter a new order - 5 min". Put the date of recording in the description, so people can see how old it is.
If the tool already has release notes, mention the video there when a change affects the screens it shows. Our article on release notes for an internal tool explains how to keep those short. A video also fits well into the first weeks after launch; see the 30-day plan after launching a new internal tool.
Keep it current
A video that shows an old screen is worse than none, because it teaches the wrong steps with confidence. Agree three simple rules:
- One owner. Name the person who is responsible for each video.
- Check after changes. When a release changes a screen shown in a video, the owner watches the video and decides whether it is still correct.
- Re-record small, retire clearly. If only one step changed, re-record that task. If a video can no longer be trusted, remove it or mark it "out of date" until it is replaced.
A yearly look at the whole list is usually enough for the rest.
Common mistakes
- Recording the whole tool in twenty minutes
- Using real customer data on screen
- Skipping captions
- Saving the file on one person's laptop
- Never checking the video after the tool changes
Checklist
- One task, with a title in the form "How to [do one thing] in [tool]"
- A one-page script that runs for about five minutes
- Sample data only, with notifications closed
- Captions turned on and checked
- A link next to the tool and a clear file name
- A named owner and a check after each relevant change
Sources
- Practical guidance based on common workplace training practice, offered as a planning aid. The structure, length and wording are starting points to adapt to your own company. No client results or market figures are claimed in this article.