When it comes to selling medical devices or technology, a picture may be worth a thousand words, but a video can be so much better. Even if there is more showing than telling in your video, you need to have that story down on paper. Your creative team will use that as a framework to help bring your vision to life, but in order to do so, they need a strong foundation to work from.
At the script portion of the production process, there’s already a lot of responsibility on your shoulders to make sure that you fully articulate your ideas so that they can be created and transformed into 3D animations and present your device or technology accurately and persuasively. But if you’ve never written a video script to sell medical technology before, where do you even begin?
That’s exactly why we’re here to help! The process is actually very simple once you break it down into individual steps. By following this simple formula, you’ll be able to set yourself up for success right from the start! Let’s jump right in!
Decide on Your Goals
It can be tempting to want to jump right into writing, but all you’ll do is waste time rewriting and rewriting in order to get more aligned to your overall goals. In addition, you’d be forgiven for thinking you need to outline your video script for your medical product launch — but don’t do that yet either. Avoid getting ahead of yourself by answering these three simple questions first:
- Why do I want to tell this story?
- Who is going to be watching this video?
- What is my angle? In other words, how will I approach telling this story?
Once you’ve answered those questions, it’s time to start with your story outline. Keep in mind that this is just the outline. In some cases, writers will take that outline and turn it into a video script without thinking about the story behind the script, which can make your video presentation of your medical device sound bland, dry and uninspired. The story is what keeps people hooked and keeps them paying attention!
Create Your Story Outline
Your story outline is what will be initially attracting your target audience to watch your video. However, it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. If you can, distill the product’s story in as little as five sentences. This will serve as the “bones” of your outline which you can then flesh out in the next step.
The best story outlines feature a broad narrative arc that captures interest, answers the question and helps fulfill the need to know “what happens next?”
Write the Story
This is often viewed as the fun part of the process, and it is! But it’s important in crafting the story that you keep it together as a cohesive unit — with a beginning, middle and end. You have to first snare the viewer with an emotional hook or a reason to care. This can come in a variety of forms, including:
- A captivating story of a patient your device or technology has helped
- An interesting anecdote about the device or technology’s development
- A surprising statistic about the condition or disease that the device treats
- A unique perspective that differentiates your product or technology from the norm
From there, the focus shifts to the message itself. This is where many video scripts that sell medical devices go off track. It’s tempting to want to reveal everything in the small amount of time you have their attention, but this only serves to muddy the waters. You want to concentrate on a single story and then use visuals, including 3D animation and video, to help reinforce it.
After you’ve written the message, you’ll need to further reinforce it with context. This is particularly important if your product or technology is reliant on data or needs to express a complex concept. Resist the urge to bore them to death with statistics. Your target audience needs to understand how your device helps them in the real world and helps them improve their life. Connect the dots for them and don’t make them think!
Remember, the action you should be concentrating on them taking most is to find out more or schedule a demonstration. Don’t assume they understand all of the terminology or the ideas you’re sharing, particularly if you’re marketing to key decision-makers who aren’t necessarily surgeons or specialists. Give them the context to understand how the data points you’re sharing correlate to your product or service and why they should pay attention.
After this point is completed comes the closing. This is the point at which you’ve set up the story, and now viewers get the pay off; in other words, the satisfaction of knowing what comes next. They’ve invested time and attention and now need to feel rewarded.
Crafting the Closing
Writing the introduction to a video script to sell a medical device or technology is tough, but the ending is often even harder. If you don’t “close” the right way, all of that momentum and excitement and engagement you’ve built up so far will sputter. The last thing you want is for your presentation to seem salesy or high pressure. You don’t want to lose what you’ve built up or have that excitement dissipate into thin air.
Your video script ending is a call to action, but a powerful one. It’s not enough, especially in the world of medical device and technology marketing, to simply throw up your URL and logo and hope people will want to find out more. That’s nothing more than a blatant sales pitch and makes people feel like they’ve wasted their time.
Instead, make your ending reiterate what you want your viewer to do, such as making a call, scheduling a demo or talking with a specialist.
Of course, once you have your story, you’re still not finished. If you hand over your script to video production now, you’ll get a decent result, but it could still be much better, and we’ll show you how.
Read It From Your Viewer’s Perspective
Once you’ve got the core story nailed down, it’s time to look at it the way a viewer would. You’re, quite literally, flipping the script. Of course, the goal of your video script is to promote your brand and medical device or technology, but despite that, it still needs to connect with your audience. Look at it through a viewer’s eyes and listen to it through a viewer’s ears. Read it aloud and ask yourself the following questions:
- How easy are the concepts to understand? Are they appropriate for the viewer’s level? It’s a fine line to walk because you don’t want to insult their intelligence, but you also don’t want to talk over them and make them feel lost or confused by what you have to present.
- How relevant is the information you’re presenting? The world of medical devices and technology is fascinating, to be sure, but sometimes you need a bit more of a back story and an emotional hook to make viewers understand and care.
- Are you using a lot of industry jargon and terminology? Not everyone is familiar with medical terminology and precise wording. Look to see if you need to replace or rephrase anything in the script.
Check the Tone
You may not realize it, but the tone is a very important part of your video script. It “sets the stage” and gives people direction on how they should feel about what they’re seeing. The tone also needs to match the viewer’s expectations. You wouldn’t want to take a somber subject and make light of it. Your tone should match the idea or story you’re looking to convey.
Grab Your Knife
So far, you’ve got the first draft ready. Now it’s time to cut! When you use too many words, it not only makes your video longer but it also weakens your presentation. Keep your video short and to the point. You have a limited time in which to explain something that’s quite technical, so look for ways to say it simpler. Anything that doesn’t absolutely need to be there should be taken out.
Read It Out Loud
This might seem like a needless extra step, but did you know that our brains are programmed to scan through words when we’re reading them on screen or in a book? The moment we read them aloud, we might trip up on certain phrases or vocally hesitate on others. Even the best possible voiceover artist does this, and these “catches” in the script can trip up listeners and make them pay more attention to the way something was said, than what was actually said.
To help fix this, read your script aloud in a single take (even if you won’t ultimately be the one reading it aloud). If there’s any word or phrase that makes you stumble, remove it. You should be able to read through it smoothly and cleanly. This way, when you hand the script over to the voiceover artist, they’ll be able to keep up a steady rhythm and tone.
Get Feedback from Others
So far, you’ve been the one in control of the outlining, creation, crafting, cutting and reviewing of the script. At this stage it’s a good idea to seek out feedback from others. You need fresh sets of eyes to look at the script, not just to proofread but maybe to add a bit of direction, guidance, a new perspective and much more.
Next Steps
Now that you know how to write a video script that can help sell your medical device or technology, the next step is to work with a professional 3D animation and production company to bring it to life. We can help you polish your video script along with realistic, expert-grade animation and demonstrations to help present your product in a way that perfectly captures your brand.
From demonstrations of complex medical techniques to advanced technology and explanations, our realistic, high-quality medical animations can help you save time without compromising on results. Contact us today to learn more!
