It's true that you don't have to do this yourself—you can hire someone to do it for you, or pay someone to edit your raw footage into a finished video. However, I still recommend learning how to record and edit your own videos. Doing so will help you save money in the long run, and it will also allow you to get a better feel for what works well in an online course video and what doesn't.

When you’re presenting, it can feel like you have to be the life of the party. You need to know everything, do everything, and be everywhere at once. But that’s not how it works.

In fact, there are five rules that all good presenters follow—rules that are guaranteed to deliver results every time if they’re followed.

And regardless of your level of experience or whether you're a novice speaker making your first appearance in front of the camera, these guidelines still hold true.

1. Establish a consistent tone and style

When you’re teaching on camera, you have to walk a fine line. ou want to make sure you're engaging and entertaining, but not so much that you come across as over-the-top or forced.

  • Who is the target audience here? What would people expect of a teacher, then?
  • Which facets of my personality can I highlight to best serve my audience and the brand I'm creating?

Once you've given this some thought, it's time to stand in front of the camera. Keep those qualities in mind as you record your first video a few times and calibrate it by watching it back.

2. Imagine speaking with a friend.

When you give a presentation in front of the camera, you're not simply giving it to a small group of listeners in the room; instead, you're giving it to a viewing audience of hundreds or even thousands of people. It is crucial to have self-assurance in both you and your message because of this.

This guideline also applies to speaking skills, as evidenced by the way your favorite speakers pay attention to and make eye contact with certain audience members before moving on to someone else.

In fact, the same principle applies to any situation where you want people's attention: when you're trying to convince people of something, when you're in a job interview, or when you're just trying to make sure that everyone at the party is having a good time.

Imagine someone you know; they don't have to be a member of your target audience in order to accomplish this on camera.

Depending on what you need to do to get yourself in the appropriate frame of mind, it can be your sibling, best friend, or lover.

3. Spend effort scripting and structuring.

It's quite impossible to teach a course completely off the top of your head without any prior planning. The organized educational experience that they can calculate is what your students are expecting.

They need to receive the information in a systematic manner, but you also need to pique their interest.

Script writing is a great way to make sure that your delivery is consistent and polished. It also means that you don’t have to worry about what comes out of your mouth as much—you can focus more on how clearly you speak or how well you pronounce a word.

4. Boost your energy levels because the camera makes expressions disappear.

When you watch yourself back on video, you'll see that you're only putting out half the energy that you think you are.

If you want to be more persuasive, try being even more enthusiastic than you think is possible.

When you do this for the first time, you could feel awkward and believe you're being too dramatic.

However, if you do it, it will significantly improve the ultimate quality of your presentation.

Sometimes you need to overdo it to really get a feel for this. Before you go out, watch some videos of yourself acting naturally, then try out the same expressions and gestures you saw in those videos while you talk to people in real life.

5. Optimize your body language.

Body language is the first thing people notice about you.

If they see that you're comfortable in your own skin and are confident, they're going to be more likely to trust you and what you have to say.

Body language can also have a huge impact on how people perceive your message. If someone is sitting up straight, making eye contact, and speaking clearly and confidently, their words will be taken more seriously than if they were slouching, avoiding eye contact, or fidgeting with their hands.

You've put in all the work to create a stellar online course. Now it's time to show the world what you can do!

If you're planning on recording your own videos for your online course, we've got some tips that will help you nail it.

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