Screencasting is all the rage these days and with good reason. Using screencasting you can now communicate with your potential future clients in a way that is both personal and educational for them. In this 101 we’ll take a look at what screencasting is and what benefits it holds for you.
What is Screencasting?
Screencasting is essentially broadcasting your computer screen and what you’re doing on it in video form thus explaining why it’s called screencasting. There are a number of reasons why you might want to screencast including the ability to create video how-to guides on how to use things like your site’s real estate search, and suggestions on where a user should start when they use your site (example: Find town information under “Area Info”. It’s separated by region…)
Why Should I Start Screencasting?
Screencasting is pretty simple to do and it gives you another, more personal method of communicating with your prospective clients who visit your website than boring, plain text will. Imagine how many more leads you could generate with your IDX system if web users had an audio and visual guide to maximizing your site’s real estate search functionality.
How Do I Start Screencasting?
First thing’s first, you’ll need a microphone or headset with microphone to record audio if you’re going to give a verbal walkthrough while demonstrating during your screen recording. You will also need screencasting software to record and export your screencasting video. For Windows users TechSmith’s Camtasia is a popular choice while Mac users will feel right at home using Screenflow.
Any Other Tips?
Don’t worry about your first screencast coming out crappy. It’ll take a few runs to get an idea of what kind of message you’re trying to convey and how you want to show it. During my first screencast attempt I think I recorded it over 30 times before I got one I was happy with. That’s not to say it’ll take 30 times for each one but you will pick up new techniques each time through trial and error. What’s most important is that you’re giving it a shot in the first place.
Image Credit: andyrob
Thanks for the suggestion Josh.
I think I’ll pass this on to Terry. She has a backgound in broadcasting and something like this could be right up her alley.
I really like the idea of being able to show clients how to use our IDX search to its full capabilities.
@Jolenta — Cool, let me know if you have any questions!
@Benjamin – Yeah, there are a lot of really nice ways to use screencasting for our industry. I look forward to seeing what Terry comes up with!