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For a long time, I’ve wanted to get into video marketing and making videos for YouTube.
However, there are some things that I was concerned about and they were stopping me from even getting started.
I didn’t want to appear on camera and I could come up with 100 excuses why not (and that’s what they are really – excuses).
Next, I’m not a big fan of my voice when I hear it back and I was really hesitant about getting my voice on camera in any video.
To add to this, I just thought that maybe at least for now, I’d focus my efforts on my website and get into it later down the road.
Well, this summer, I finally made a YouTube video, all without appearing on camera or even talking. I think it came out well and I’m looking forward to making more and eventually getting over my insecurities and showing up in the videos. I had to get started though and this is why I decided to just get a video up by any means necessary.
Based on feedback that I’ve received, I am not alone and lots of other people have the same fears that I have – they don’t want to appear in the videos or even have to voice anything.
In this article, I’m going to lay out step-by-step how I created my first YouTube video so if you’re still waiting to get started, just follow the steps and you can have your video up by the time you get to the bottom of this post.
My First YouTube Video
The video that I made was more of a demonstration for a blog post I wrote about turning your blog posts into YouTube videos. It just made sense to actually show that I knew how to do exactly what I was talking about.
I chose one of the methods that I mentioned in the article or rather a mix of a couple of methods and went ahead and created a video on the topic.
It came out nice and I’m already planning some more videos based on other blog posts I have.
Below, you’ll find the step-by-step instructions on how I put together this video so that you can start turning your own blog posts into YouTube videos as well.
Step 1: Select a Blog Post
The first step in the process is to select a blog post from your blog. This blog post should fit into the topic of your YouTube channel but if you’re doing it as an extension for your blog then your video should be a good fit.
You can choose any post on your blog but the best ones are helpful and easy to consume. These include list posts, best of posts, reviews, buying guides and how-to posts. These translate very well to the video format.
Posts that may not work so well are personal posts or posts that may not be relevant two months from now.
I chose a how to post which was also in list format, that demonstrated ways in which you can turn a blog post into a YouTube video. This post is helpful to people looking to get more traffic from their blog using YouTube video.
I could already see this post as a video and there are videos on the same topic already on YouTube.
Step 2: Write a Script
The next step to turning your blog post into a YouTube video is to trim down your blog post by writing a video script.
A video script is a text version of exactly what you’re going to say in the video. This is similar to how screen writers make scripts for movies when they’re using novels and books as their source material. You wouldn’t need to include everything you wrote in your blog post because you can convey a lot with video than you can with text.
Your script needs to include the most important details from your blog post.
So for my blog post which I turned into a script, I started with the intro paragraph. This part of the script would only have what I was going to discuss in the video.
Then I have 4 methods which would form the rest of my video. I’d briefly mention what you needed to do for these 4 methods.
The last part of the video was just a brief recap and a call to action – check the video description and subscribe to the channel for more.
This script would keep my video to less than 3 minutes long after I did step 3 below.
You can read more about doing a video script from the Hubspot blog here.
Step 3: Create The Voiceover
After picking out a blog post and creating a video script for it, it was time to start creating my video. The first step was to convert my script into a voiceover. Instead of appearing in the video using the script as a guide to what I would say, I chose to use a voiceover track because as I explained before, I didn’t want to use my own voice.
For the voiceover, I used a text-to-speech application called Speechelo. This cloud application turns any text into a voice over with a natural sounding human-like voice. You can read my review here about Speechelo.
In the application, instead of pasting the entire script, I worked with a few lines at a time to make sure that I got the entire voiceover perfect. It would be easier to correct a mistake if there was one. I then merged all the clips together within the software to get one track for my entire script.
I then downloaded my voice track which was ready to add to my video editor.
Step 4: Create Video Inside Video Editor
The toughest part of the entire process was putting together the video inside of the video editor. It was also the most fun part of the process.
For this step, I used Wondershare’s Filmora X video editor. Initially, I used the demo version thinking that it was totally free but found that I couldn’t export without a watermark.
However, I loved that this editor was very easy to use and it had some very powerful features and lots of useful elements. So I purchased the full version.
Putting together a video without shooting anything meant I had to use stock video which is great. I found some great free stock videos at Pexels video and Pixabay.
I also used screenshots for some parts of the video where it was appropriate for me to do so. Having them animated using Filmora’s effects and transitions was a good touch.
Most of the time was spent matching up the voiceover with relevant video, cutting clips and arranging them on the timeline.
Step 5: Enhance Creation with Background Music
The voiceover actually sounds better with background music which I added during the video creation. I didn’t start the video with the voiceover but rather a nice track from Filmora X’s library where they included some free background music for you to use in your videos.
I added the track and split it just before the voiceover comes in. This way I could fade in the first part and the once the voice over starts, I could lower the volume so that it doesn’t overpower what the audience should hear.
Background music adds a bit of flare to the creation and prevents the voiceover from sounding dry and boring.
If you’re not using Filmora X, you can do a Google search for “royalty free background music”. Find sites where you can download and use music for free with no copyright issues. Make sure to read the license terms so that you know how the creators want you to use the track. Some require a credit.
Step 6: Upload to YouTube
Once I finished editing the video and watching it over to see if it was what I wanted, it was time to upload to YouTube.
I chose to go to YouTube and upload it there but Filmora X actually has a direct upload feature that let’s you upload to YouTube or Vimeo.
From there you could set the title, description and other settings.
The video came out to just about 2 and a half minutes which is a nice length for easy consumption by YouTube viewers.
I wrote all the resources mentioned in the video inside the description area.
There are a couple of things I didn’t do though that you should, which includes:
- adding a custom thumbnail
- adding an endscreen (I didn’t have any other videos)
- adding open or closed captions
These are things that I felt my video was missing after I published it but they are things that I can go back and add.
Other Options for Video Creation
The above process which I laid out is for if you don’t want to appear on camera or record your own voice. There are other ways to create your first video though so it’s up to you to do what you’re comfortable with.
Nothing beats real human connection where you appear on camera so if this is possible then this is the way to go.
You can still turn your blog post into a video by recording yourself talking about the topic. Use b-roll when necessary for further illustration.
You can also do a screencast by recording your computer screen and talking about what’s going on. This is a great option for reviews or showing your audience how to do something online.
Do You Want Me To Convert Your Blog Posts?
I would like to help you convert your blog posts into YouTube video if this is something that you want but somehow can’t handle at the moment yourself.
If this is something you want, comment below and let me know or contact me here so were could talk about what you need.
Thank you so much. I have searched for this guide for a very long time. Now, I’m ready to start my channel.
I’m glad you found this helpful Awuah.