Informative videos

Report

A video report of an event or phenomenon, intended to inform people who were not at the event or who were unaware of the phenomenon. A well-known example of the report genre is the evening news report on the TV (such as the NOS eight o’clock news).

Trends & Context

The formula for a good report is timing x relevance. A fantastic report at the wrong time is useless. And the same applies to a report that lacks the right approach or covers the wrong topic. This includes using the wrong tone of voice. In short, timing and relevance are the most important elements. The first of these is relatively easy: it’s often a question of speed. The second is trickier.

For TU Delft, relevance means being sensitive to what students feel strongly about and daring to communicate in the way that students communicate.

To continue the analogy with TV reporting: there is a good reason that there is a difference between the traditional eight o’clock news, the Newsround children’s programme, and the trendy news programmes on internet channels.

Explainer video

Giving a video visualisation of practical and complex subjects and processes. Often contains animation, or may be fully animated.

Trends & Context

Often a very effective medium for highlighting abstract concepts. Just like TV commercials, this form demands a single straightforward message. It is better to use several videos than one video with multiple messages.

Besides the fact that this form of video is very service-oriented as viewers are looking for something specific to be explained to them so don’t want to be bothered with several topics, for effective findability, the search term should correspond completely with the video’s content, titles and other metadata.

Simplifying a complex message is an art which is often underestimated, and explainer videos are often dry and overly complicated. Less is more. It can almost always be even more simple and shorter. Fully animated explainer videos can be expensive to make. The most popular hybrid form right now is a combination of a talking head, i.e. someone speaking directly to the camera, with animations providing support where needed.

Testimonials

A testimonial is a first-hand experience recorded on camera. For TU Delft, this is a useful instrument for getting students to talk about all kinds of things, such as their experiences in their study programme.

Trends & Context

Saying that a degree programme is brilliant when it’s your own programme doesn’t carry much credibility, which is why we have testimonials. Sincerity is the biggest trump, but all too often this is compromised.

The idea of a testimonial often starts with the best of intentions, but somehow it ends up being a video in which the concessions and indoctrination are palpable. Sometimes this can even leave the viewer feeling uncomfortable. The most important lesson for some video makers is that the speaker is not a hand puppet.

The best testimonials are not completely polished but contain bits that are not 100% on brand. The marketing manager may well be frowning, but the viewer believes the story. And that is the most important goal of this type of content. (*This applies to other video formats too, such a documentaries and news reports.)

There is an interesting phenomenon at play here: the Pratfall Effect. This effect occurs during imperfection: when a competent person makes a mistake (shows imperfect behaviour), their attractiveness and credibility increase. The opposite is also true: a perfect story is treated with suspicion.

In short, a flawed testimonial is the perfect testimonial.