Using Keynote to Create Training Videos

Greetings educators! My name is Sal, and I use Keynote on macOS with GarageBand to create short (1 to 3 minutes) podcast video episodes demonstrating how to use the Automation features of software from the Omni group. You can watch these videos as episodes of the Omni Automation Vids podcast

And here's how you can create these types of short-form videos yourself:

Start with an idea or concept of what knowledge you wish to share with others. In my videos, they're all "How to..." examples where the steps to use Automation tools are demonstrated on-screen. Don't try to show too much, stick to a single topic.

Distill the process of the lessons to most efficient and fewest steps possible. Remember: Simplify, simplify, simplify. Only a couple of our videos use voice narration, so try to keep reliance on narration or the reading of text prompts to a minimum. If you do use text prompts, encase them in a standout color shape like Cyan, so they are quickly read and absorbed. I usually allow about 2 to 3 seconds of screen time for the user to read the prompt.

IMPORTANT: Make all of your slides auto-advancing so that the presentation "presents" itself! This is essential for the next step:

'Export your presentation as a self-playing movie. I often watch my videos to see if there are "slow spots" where transitions between slides takes too long. If so, I edit the presentation to streamline them so everything is smooth as possible.

Next, import the movie into GarageBand so you can create a soundtrack for the video. Apple provides hundreds of free Apple loops in all styles and instruments that you can combine to create fun, interesting, and expressive audio backgrounds. I try different types and keys for each video: Country, Classical, Rock, and even Hawaiian! Use different tempos, depending on the video length and topic. You don't have to be a trained musician to create soundtracks using Apple loops.

After you've created the soundtrack, Share it to disk as a high-quality audio file (AIFF).

For the final step, I use iMovie or ScreenFlow to combine the video and sound track and to overlay any text titles or reference links (usually at the end of the video)

Export from the video editing app and you're ready to share, either as video files, or on YouTube, or other services. I use the excellent Apple Podcasters tools to distribute the videos to subscribers on the Apple Podcasters Network that are interested in the topic of software Automation.

In summary, Apple really does provide amazing software and tools to assist you in your communication and education needs. Take advantage of their excellent free software! And the best part is: it's really fun to use!

Hope this thread was helpful. Try it yourself -- SAL (AKA Trudy A.)