A Simple Video Script Template: Execute Powerful Storytelling | Brafton

Video remains an increasingly powerful part of digital storytelling, with modern marketers and audiences growing in their affinity for high-quality video content. A convincing 89% of businesses use video in their marketing campaigns, with the globe’s leading video platform — YouTube — enjoying top preference as the go-to third-party platform.

However, a lot goes into video production before you get a spiffy, award-worthy final video. You have to put time and effort into scripting for video to ensure a smooth, effective end-to-end process that sets you up for successful outcomes.

What makes a great video script? There are a few components to master, and this article provides a video script template to get you started. Read on for best practice advice on scripting marketing videos for in-house, clients and other branding purposes. A simple on-screen-only template example awaits you, too (skip straight to the template here)! 

What Is a Video Script?

In marketing, video scripts usually take two forms: the polished copy that a voice-over artist reads to narrate a video or the on-screen-only copy that guides effective storytelling for different marketing video assets (an example of the latter is provided later in the article).

In-tune, responsive marketers should use video scripts to carefully detail their planned execution because good scripts can:

• Help writers, videographers and designers account for all necessary production resources, from suitable voice-over artistry to sophisticated on-screen graphics.
• Ensure marketing teams pinpoint the tone and clarify narrative and audience messaging.
• Solidify the exact details of the different elements that’ll form part of a specific video asset.
• Assist project managers with defining their marketing campaign vision, aligned with the bigger marketing goals.
• Provide proper scope for the best creative angle and direction to take in the execution of each video asset.

A good script template, then, is a reliable way to plan and follow through with each video project you embark on to guarantee a striking final video that’ll appease audiences. Whether putting together a B2C or B2B marketing video, scripting is the key to making sure you’ve covered all the required bases.

Types of Video Scripts

Four main video scripting categories are most popular in the digital marketing world: educational, commercial, explainer and promotional. Let’s dive into each type for a better understanding of suitable use and effective application.

Educational Video

When you script for an educational video, the aim is to build authority, with the overarching purpose of sharing information and educating the audience on a specific topic. Educational videos are value-adding and foster more trust between businesses and their target audiences.

Commercial Video 

Commercial video scripters use subtle but highly effective writing techniques of persuasion to get the audience to purchase a particular service or product. Here, there’s a strong sales angle that must come through to the viewers with unmistakable appeal.

Explainer Video

Explainer video scripting is very process-driven, normally to provide a how-to, topic breakdown or a description of complex ideas. With an explainer video script, much like the final video asset itself, there’s a more formulaic approach. When crafting an explainer video script template, it’s the process that determines how useful that particular template will be across a marketing team. Check out our fun video that…wait for it… briefly explains explainers.

Promotional Video

As the name implies, promotional videos are very suggestive, showcasing a brand, product or service in an engaging way. So then, scripting for promotions requires writers to keep compelling visual storytelling in mind.

Furthermore, video script types can fall under the following subsets:

• Animation scripts for animated video.
• Brand awareness video scripts for brand-building.
• Documentary-style scripts with precise scene descriptions.
• Interview scripts for different Q&A formats.
• Product demo scripts for show-and-tell instructionals.
• Social media outreach scripts for social promotions.
• Testimonial scripts for client and customer feedback.
• Training video scripts for in-house team building.

Ultimately, video script choice, type and use depend on the purpose, goals and objectives of each team or individual’s video marketing campaign.

PSST: Check out this corporate video brief example to get an idea of different ways to plan for business-facing video assets.

How To Put Together a Video Script

Video scripting can take all kinds of creative directions, but this simple four-step process provides a good starting point for first-time video scriptwriters:

Step 1 – Identify a Hook

Your hook is your key to grabbing your viewers’ attention. Ensure that your hook is strong, punchy and memorable.

Step 2 – Present the Problem

You’re a marketer after all, meaning that you’re trying to help the viewer solve some kind of problem. Before revealing your magic solution, you need to address a common audience pain point by presenting what the relatable gripe is.

Step 3 – Introduce the Solution

Here, you’ll present your service, brand or product as the ultimate solution for the common problem your video viewers may have been struggling with. Moreover, try to aim to differentiate your unique solution from those of your competitors.

Step 4 – Craft a Strong Call-To-Action (CTA)

Encourage further action from your audience or viewers with a persuasive CTA that’ll spur them to act on the information they’ve just received. Email, website or telephone prompts work best as marketing CTAs.

Pro Tip: If the brand, product or service allows, careful injections of wit, humor or light-heartedness often work wonderfully within the execution of the above four-step process.

More Brafton reading: Need some B2B video ideas? We’ve got you!

Video Scripting Tools and Platforms

How efficiently you execute each video script will also depend on the platforms, apps and tools you use. The following common advantages are well-enjoyed by marketers across industries:

• Saved time.
• Assistance with style and tone.
• Improved content quality.
• Reduced spelling errors with tools that fix grammar, remove passive voice, etc.
• Optimization for increased viewer engagement.

With the rise and popularity of AI, many platform options streamline the video scripting process, providing a much-appreciated assist for busy marketers juggling multiple projects at the same time. Of course, these shouldn’t replace human-led video scripting, but should serve as an aid instead. Responsible AI use is now a non-negotiable for many corporations.

Some helpful video script-generating tools (powered by AI) include:

• contentmarketing.ai.
• Celtx.
• ChatGPT.
• Copy AI.
• InVideo.
• Jasper AI.
• Kapwing.
• Maekersuite.
• Narrato AI.
• Plot Generator.
• Syllaby.
• ToolBaz.
• Veed.
• Writesonic.

Video Script Best Practices: Tips for an Effective Video Script

Here are 10 important video scripting tips and considerations to include in your planning and execution processes to churn out a compelling video script time after time:

1. Be conversational but concise because viewer attention spans wane quickly.
2. Decide what kind of video script formatting will work best for your campaign or project.
3. Remember your audience and target market. Factor in their interests, online behaviors, needs and preferences.
4. Be intentional and consistent with your video script writing technique, style and tone of voice.
5. Use logical video structure and flow with a “less is more” and structured script approach.
6. Appeal to human interest and aim to connect with the viewing audience. Personalized video outputs are a winner for this feat.
7. Stay mindful of ideal video length and short attention spans. Shorter videos can still be mighty powerful.
8. Drive your video scripting with high-quality content and one strong visual element that appeals to different sets of eyes. Good visuals are the key to producing engaging content.
9. Keep positive brand visibility and effective brand messaging front of mind throughout the scripting process.
10. Select the best platform to share your video. Weigh up the pros and cons of your own website versus third-party platforms like YouTube, where certain restrictions might apply to your YouTube video.

Your Brafton-Inspired Template: A Downloadable Example

Oftentimes, all you need is an easy video script template to get you going  — so, it’s time to share our template to help you kick off your video scripting efforts.

But first, scriptwriters need to plan for on-screen-only copy and voice-over script copy, where separate scripting is needed for voice actor narration. On-screen copy is read by the viewer as a video asset plays. Voice-over copy is recorded and layered strategically onto the video product to enhance the video asset overall — a viewer listens to recorded text while the video plays.

The example below provides a simple, free template for on-screen text only without voice-over scripting. These templates are fun to create from scratch or copy, paste and adjust using tools like Google Docs or Microsoft Word.

Promotional Template Example:

Start Scripting for Your Video Campaigns Today

Even when starting with a free video script template, each content creator and digital marketer can master creative, compelling video assets that amuse, enthuse and entertain viewers. Powerful video creation requires thorough planning and precise execution, and scripting enables exactly that.

Tap into video scripting for both on-screen and voice-over products to unlock smooth video production processes from start to finish.