Do you have PowerPoint training materials that you want to make available online? A previous post covered how to convert PowerPoint into an elearning course.
Another option open to you is converting the PowerPoint into a video. This is one of the simplest ways of making an online course. But how do you convert a PowerPoint presentation into a video?
PowerPoint has its own slide-recording functionality – see the recording menu image below.
PowerPoint’s own help section will guide you through this process so there’s no need for me to go into detail with it here. Instead, here are some essential things to plan and organise before you hit the record button.
Narrate your slides
A PowerPoint presentation is generally created for use in a face-to-face classroom setting. If that’s the case for your PowerPoint, how about narrating your slides? Narrating the slides will:
- Make the content more meaningful – for example, you can explain in full a bullet point or image.
- Allow you to connect with your audience through the narration, as if you’re delivering the presentation face-to-face.
Prepare a script to narrate
To help you narrate the slides, you need a script. You might know the detail of your presentation inside out and think it will be easy to record the slides without a script. Yet, in my experience, once you start to record, you might start to feel nervous narrating. And that might be enough to make you forget what you want to say. Using a script means:
- You’ll know exactly what you want to say
- You’ll avoid unnecessary ‘umms’, ‘ahhhs’ and pauses.
- Your narration will have a smooth flow. And that will make for a better-quality video.
Animating your slides
Next, assess the content of each slide.
Do you have text or images which will appear one at a time when you click the mouse?
For example, in a classroom situation, the trainer might reveal bullet points one at a time. Talk about each point separately before moving and revealing the next point.
When you record the slides, you’ll need to narrate the detailed explanation, using the mouse to reveal your content in time with your script. In other words – you’ll need to synchronise both narration and content animation.
To plan your animation with your script notes, simply bullet the narration.
In the example below – there are six points I wanted to cover. My notes section of each slide details the script I want to narrate. I’ve numbered each script to match the slide content. So, I know that, when I’m ready to talk about point 1, I need to click the mouse to reveal that point during the recording.
Rehearse
Like every good performance, it’s important to rehearse it. Without actually pressing the record button, practise the script and the animation first. You’ll get to hear how your script sounds and see how the content is animating in time with your script. From this rehearsal:
- Make any necessary changes to fine tune the script and animation.
- Check that the sound does not pick up any surrounding noises. If it does, try using a separate microphone.
And finally…
- Follow the above steps to plan your recording.
- Work through the Help section in PowerPoint telling you how to record the slides.
- Then hit the record button to start converting your PowerPoint into video.
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