Screencasting as a Service

• Anyone who provides a computer-based or web-based service where users could benefit from video tutorials.

• Anyone who runs a web site who would like to showcase its features or navigation items.

• Honestly, anyone who wants any sort of well-done screencast / screen recording but doesn’t have the time, expertise, or instructional know-how to feel confident in producing it oneself.

• Odds are, you run a web-based company that requires users to navigate some sort of platform for your product or service. Maybe you designed it yourself. Maybe a UI designer designed it. Maybe you’re locked into some third-party app-building service to help you do it.

• But the bottom line is that not all of these are built the same way. And odds are that your UI isn’t 100% perfect (no one’s is).

• Your users may get lost. And if they do, they’ll likely stop using your service and head over to your competition.

• By giving them short, easily digestible video tutorials showing them how to use your product, you save them time by making the learning curve easier.

• There’s a somewhat old saying: The right tool is the one that gets the desired results fastest. Make sure your tool is the right one.

I can, but you decide how involved you want to be.

• If you want to record the video to send, that’s a good option.

• If you want to draft your own scripts, that’s great, too!

• If you have no idea where to start, I’m happy to consult with you and get the whole thing done on your behalf.

It depends. The clearer the goals are, the more likely we are to charge per project. If you’re not sure what you need exactly, we are likely to charge per hour in order to avoid what is known as “scope creep.”

This is done in one of two ways.

1. You can either set up a testing environment for your platform for us to use OR give us a test account to use in order to grab footage. There are more benefits to having us screencast it ourselves as mouse data is captured as metadata.

That means that we can do useful things with the cursor in the editing process (change its size, add some click effects, etc.). Those features are often requested as it helps the learner stay on track.

2. You can send in your own footage for us to edit. This is a pretty common option since you are most likely your own subject matter expert. You know where to go and how to get there in the fastest way possible. We also encourage you to add your own off-the-cuff narration while doing this. Don’t worry, we clean it up later for your final product!

Feel free to set up a video call with us to go over best practices on how to do this in order to save everyone time!

• We generally recommend using OBS to get that footage. Once you have that footage, you can send it to us however you’d like (using DropBox, Google Drive, WeTransfer, etc.) TUTORIAL COMING SOON!

• Or, if you’re already familiar with OBS and how to screen capture with that, we always recommend sending video in 1080p. No more. No less. 4K is overkill, and 720p isn’t quite enough.

• Only move the mouse when it has to be moved. People have a tendency to use the mouse to call attention to things like a laser pointer. DON’T DO THAT. Let the editing magic draw focus to the right places.

• In short, if you’re not ACTIVELY clicking something, TAKE YOUR HAND OFF THE MOUSE.

• If you’re narrating to give us a place to start and make a mistake, DON’T start all the way over.

• Pause. Collect your thoughts. And start at the beginning of the last sentence or section.

• Remember: You’re paying US to edit. You’re not expected to get it right on the first try (or even all the way through).

• For video editing, we prefer Camtasia. It’s just so good for anything related to learning via video!

• However, we do have the Adobe CC available for any parts of a project that go beyond the capabilities of Camtasia. Some companies prefer custom intro/outro “bumpers” for each video, and those are often sourced via a third party. And that customization happens quite often in Adobe After Effects.

• For voiceover, Reaper is our preferred DAW.

Nope. There are a variety of voices you can choose from if you want to hear more or have voice actors audition for your project.

However, be aware pricing varies from actor to actor.

Using Alex’s voice (as you hear in the video above) cuts down on cost and time spent waiting for pickups if things need to be changed down the line.

One of the most tedious and time-consuming things we do is edit out personal info (e.g. Names, email addressees, etc.).

In fact, it’s SO time consuming, it almost always prompts us to default to charging hourly.

If you’re sending us video, please do your level best to have sensitive info NOT be “baked in” to the video. If you have set up a testing environment for us, please use pseudonyms, non-sensitive info, etc.

Sure, you could! But consider what you’re paying for here.

• Alex Mitts has been using Camtasia since 2015 and has years of video learning experience.

• His home studio has a single-wall, acoustically treated isolation booth.

• In that booth is an SSL2+ interface and a Neumann TLM 103 (a $1200 industry-standard mic!)

• His MA is in Educational Technology, but his BA is in English Literature — which means your content will be suited for digital learners AND be written in a way that’s both grammatically correct and will appease even the most pedantic critics.

• MittsTech uses software that would cost you well over $1k PER YEAR to keep up and maintain.

• Furthermore, Alex and his roster of voiceover talent have years of training & coaching in several styles of voiceover to ensure that your message is delivered the right way.