Instructional videos are all over the web. Some are fantastic and some are horrendous. FreeDrumLessons has been releasing great videos for quite a while now. The one below demonstrates their new iPhone app and also a taste of the content on their other videos.
I really think instructional videos are amazing. It’s free lessons about anything you want on the web; be it cooking, drumming or creating something. Some subjects are better visually, but if the production is well thought out, the subject can be taught. Besides the ability to find whatever you want, the overall interaction with the video is great. You can pause it, rewind it or skip ahead. Instructional videos are also a great add-on for further marketing. Television networks like the Food Network, can put snippets of instructional programming on their website. It’s a way to re-purpose content that can basically get sponsored twice. It also builds thought leadership for the channel. They become “the place” to go when you have food-type questions.
There are a few downsides to web instructional videos. There isn’t a ton of interaction possible. A person watching can’t really ask a question and get a response right away. They might be able to post a question in a comment box and possibly wait for an answer. The other issue is that there are bad videos out there. It takes time to find good videos that really help. If the user has the time to search for instructional videos, that works out. If you are looking for a great collection of how-to videos on pretty much everything, check out eHow.
I think instructional web videos are a great tool. They allow anyone with access to learn about anything they want! That’s an amazing amount of power to have.
