Analysis, Design, and Development

This was an instructional video eLearning concept project designed and developed to help library patrons learn how to effectively place a book on hold on their own, both via the library’s website, as well as through the RAScat app, without the help of library staff. The pacing of the video allows the learner to pause and replay parts, independently, achieving an autonomous, positive learning experience. 

Audience: Galesburg Public Library patrons, with a range of ages and abilities.

Responsibilities: Instructional Designer, Action Mapping (Needs Analysis), eLearning Developer, Voice-Over Narrator, Writer, Audio Editor, Video Editor, Storyboarding

Tools: Camtasia, Audacity, Envato Elements, Canva, Mindmeister, Google Docs

KPI:  Patrons asking library staff for help with putting a book on hold will decrease by 10% by the end of the first month after the video has gone live.

My Process

Guided by ADDIE, I iterated on each step in the process until I was positive that the look, clarity, and content of the learning process could be easily understood by the learners.  Throughout the development, I created an action map, drafted a script and storyboard combination, and included visual mockups of the backgrounds.

Action Map

The next step in the process was to implement action mapping, using Cathy Moore's book, Map It, as a guide.  Reviewing this with my SME and client resulted in several actions that could be taken to help library patrons to learn how to put a book on hold on their own, without asking library staff for additonal support.  As you can see, we settled on making the video available both online, and via a job aid, in the form of a bookmark, that could both be handed out and placed into books when they are retrieved.

With this action map, I had feedback to begin the storyboard/scripting process.  All stakeholders were aware of the direction, and all agreed that these actions would be the most helpful to change the performance problem.

Storyboard & Script

I decided to combine the storyboard with the script to give the client a more clear picture of what the video would look like, at the exact times that the words are spoken.  I broke up my script into scenes, and recorded my voiceover in segments.  I sent the storyboard and script to the client for approval, and she liked the direction of the project.  Her response to the first iteraction was, "Sarah, this is so great! The instructions are really clear and thorough. I added a couple of comments, but please only use them if it works for you and your goals."  I made the changes to the script that the client wanted, and was able to then start recording the voiceover scenes.

Full Development

Once I had the client's and stakeholders' approval, and I had the voiceover recordings finished in Audacity, and imported into Camtasia, I began to develop my video.  I included several videos from Envato Elements, to help the learner relate to the content, and put the learner at ease.  I included intro and outro music, but I did not include music in the background throughout the video to avoid learner distractions.

Once the video was completed, I asked for feedback from my community and coach.  I was encouraged to include a few more annotations, such as adding the website typed out into the scene, to provide more clarity to the learner.  After making the suggested changes, I sent the video to my client for approval.

My client responded with this feedback:  

"I noticed a couple of things that I missed in the script. If it's easy to edit, I recommend it, but if it requires you to re-record the whole thing, I don't think any of these are worth it. They were in your script and I missed them so it's completely my fault.

• Holds Shelf: We now call this Express Pickup

• Books on the Express Pickup shelf are labeled with the first four letters of your last name and the last four numbers of your library card.

• If it's an easy fix, could you remove the word "large" when you say they may receive an error message? That was my wording, but hearing it in the video makes me think that just saying "you have a fine" would be enough. 

These are all really small things which I should have caught sooner, and they don't compromise the quality or message of the video, so it's up to you if you want to address them."

Reiteration

Due to my client's additional requests, and also because my first iteration of my voiceover was too fast, I knew that I needed to rerecord all scenes of the voiceover. I wanted to ensure that I slowed my pacing, and that I satisfied my client's needs, keeping the learner at the center of my design.

Results and Takeaways

The video was well-received by the Learning and Development community.  Some of their testimonials include:

"Excellent transition to the phone, excellent focus with the different app stores."

"Awesome job, Sarah! It's thorough and extremely smooth. The video is easy to follow and will be super helpful to the library patrons."

"Nice job making use of the Camtasia postproduction features like the zoom, arrow, and mouse highlight. I think the way you read the script is very inviting and clear, as well."

Evaluation

I contacted my client one month after the video had been included on their website, their social media page, and after the job aid had been included in books.  This is what she had to say:

"Hi Sarah,

We have heard that the video has been very helpful! I can see that it's been viewed 233 times. As of February 28, we had 9,366 active card users. While our number of books placed on hold is about the same, staff have reported receiving fewer requests to place holds for patrons, which suggests people must be doing it on their own more. That sounds like a success to me!"

Overall, it was a success, and has resulted in less time being spent by staff helping patrons place books on hold.  I learned so much about the instructional design process, throughout this project, and I will take the lessons I learned and the feedback I gained as I continue my journey to upskill.