The Visual Lounge

Communication is a natural part of everyday life, and yet most people don’t consider how they communicate. Whether it’s internal team communication or communication with customers and clients, it’s easy for mixed messages and confusion to crop up. The solution? Build a communication strategy. That’s Jesse Lahey’s, Co-founder and Strategic Partner at Workforce Communication, secret for communicatio...

Are you ready to upgrade your microphone but aren’t sure where to start in the complex world of audio equipment and microphones? You’re in luck. This episode of The Visual Lounge is all about audio – how to pick the best equipment, how to use it correctly, mistakes to watch out for, and much more. Host Matt Pierce has some helpful need-to-know tips and even tests some of the most popular microphon...

Are demos a necessary tool in L&D? Well, according to Troy Stein, TechSmith’s VP of Customer Advocacy, they’re super vital. He joins this episode of The Visual Lounge to explain why and share some tips on how to do demos the right way. The way Troy sees it, demos are to instructional videos what trailers are to movies. They don’t just give a sneak peek into what’s coming, they also pique the v...

How do you balance aesthetics and helpfulness when creating videos? Diane Elkins, the Co-owner of Artisan E-Learning and E-Learning Uncovered, joins this episode of The Visual Lounge to discuss. Diane is a national e-learning expert. She’s in the business of helping people create courses they can be proud of —and visual aids happen to play a big part. It’s not simply about creating visuals that lo...

Want to take your video editing skill to the next level (we’re talking ‘coloring outside the line ' levels)?  Then this episode has your name on it. Cristi Cotovan joins The Visual Lounge to take us through some of the ‘out of the box’ work he’s been doing on Camtasia. Cristi is a video editor, educational content creator, developer, and Founder of Design Catchup and Graphicious. One of his s...

Creating videos can be a work-intensive process – especially when you’re doing everything from scratch. But it doesn’t have to take eons to come up with a well-rounded video, and that’s what Andy Owen, the Social Engagement and Video Manager at TechSmith, discusses in this episode of The Visual Lounge. As Andy explains, recreating every element of your video from scratch is just not practical as y...

Storytelling can be a powerful tool in the L&D community. But, as it is with most tools, you need to know how to use it to get the desired end result. That’s what Hadiya Nuriddin, Learning Strategist, speaker, and CEO of Duets Learning, explores on this episode of The Visual Lounge. Hadiya doesn’t just have a wealth of experience developing and delivering both technical and professional develo...

What can learning and development professionals learn from marketing experts? That’s the question we tackle in this episode of The Visual Lounge featuring Danielle Wallace, Chief Learning Strategist from Beyond the Sky. Danielle specializes in coming up with innovative ways to infuse marketing into training to create learning content that sticks . Believe it or not, we can learn so much from marke...

With the world shifting more into virtual spaces, live events are becoming the order of the day. If you’re in the L&D community, it’s probably time to think about ways to manage your time, space, tech and everything in between. To speak more on how to own your virtual training space, Kassy LaBorie, the Founder of Kassy LaBorie Consulting, LLC and virtual classroom master trainer, joined The Vi...

What makes graphics click with your audience? Is it your skill level, the finer details like color or shape, or could it be something else altogether? While those things definitely contribute to the success of your graphics, you could still end up producing graphics that just don’t work even if you have the skills to show for it. Mike Parkinson, author and Founder of Billion Dollar Graphics, joins...

Using stories to make more impactful videos is not a new idea. But it’s an overlooked part of video creation, especially when it comes to tutorials or corporate videos. But storytelling isn’t just for the fun, creative videos out there. Even if you’re creating a video tutorial about car insurance, injecting a little storytelling can go a long way in hitting your primary video goal – connecting wit...

What’s the secret to the perfect video editing workflow? Same as for many great questions we hear, the true answer is that it depends. But it all depends on you . Building a workflow that’s efficient, doesn’t cut corners, and saves time can take a while to figure out, especially if you’re new to it all. But once you’ve figured out what works for you, you can start to level up your videos and fine-...

How do people really learn? As an instructional designer or learning and development professional, understanding how people learn helps you deliver training that hits the nail on the head. It’s more complicated than learning styles or picking video over written instructions. In fact, there’s a whole science behind it. Clark Quinn, Executive Director of Quinnovation, joins this episode of The Visua...

It may be considered the most basic part of editing, but there’s nothing basic about a cut. Cuts can be powerful tools in the hands of anyone who knows how to wield them. They don’t just make videos look way cooler, they bring an extra dash of clarity, brevity, and seamlessness to the table. In this episode of The Visual Lounge, Matt Pierce takes us through some handy cutting techniques as well as...

Are you ready to level up your video creation skills this year? Whether you’ve been creating videos for the past month or several years, there’s always room for improvement to make your content the best it can possibly be.     Matt Pierce, host of The Visual Lounge, breaks down some ways to hone your skills, improve your videos, and level up for 2022. If you want to make 2022 your y...

Snagit 2022 is here! And it comes packed with brand new and updated features to help instructional designers, L&D professionals, and anyone who wants to create video level up their content. To explain more about what’s new on Snagit and why, TechSmith’s Chris Larson, Technical Product Manager and Daniel Foster, Strategy Manager, joined The Visual Lounge to give us a breakdown. Chris currently...

What’s new in the world of instructional and informational video? If you’re in the business of creating videos, having the latest research and stats at hand is always important. Luckily, we’ve got you covered. We’ve just released our 2021 Video Viewer Study – a collaboration between TechSmith and Dr. Jane Bozarth, Director of Research at The Learning Guild. We publish this study every year, but th...

Thank You for Listening Just a quick end-of-the-year episode to say thank you and to share with you some of the things we have learned. I asked a few of my TechSmith friends and colleagues to share so of their takeaways about visuals and images this year. We'll be back with full episodes in 2022 and look forward to continuing the conversations in The Visual Lounge. Share What You've Learned We'd l...

Your video and workplace media can have a big impact on users, but is it affecting everyone in the same way? Understanding how your media choices represent people and their experiences can help you select more diverse and inclusive images and videos that impact everyone more effectively. Jess Jackson, Racial Equity Strategist, and Megan Torrance, CEO, both of TorranceLearning, join this episode of...

What’s the best budget-friendly microphone to make videos? How do you set up your lighting in a home studio? Do you need a green screen? What’s a stream deck? The TechSmith team has all these answers covered and much more. On this episode of The Visual Lounge, host Matt Pierce, Kara Swanson (Content Marketer), Andy Owen (Video Production), and Anton Bollen (Customer Success) share their top picks...

What can we learn from comic books that we can apply to instructional design or marketing? It may seem like an odd question, but it turns out we can learn a whole lot from comic books. Buddy Scalera, comic book writer, educator, and Founder of Comic Book School, joins The Visual Lounge to share those lessons with us. Whether you’re creating your own comic book or designing instructional videos for...

The digital age has ushered in its fair share of upsides and challenges, especially when it comes to productivity. While there are so many applications and tools that promise to make it a lot easier, sometimes, they do the opposite. That’s probably why people end up getting lost in the maze of keeping up with the times, are overwhelmed while finding information, or are just plain unproductive. The...

Becoming a content creator is a dream that many people have these days. But it’s far from an easy road to follow. It takes a great deal of grit, determination, and a commitment to learning and growing to get your channel off the ground. On top of that, there’s also the big learning process of developing your camera and editing skills. Joining this episode of The Visual Lounge is Sean Cannell, CEO...

What makes a solid explainer video? The kind that gets your point across fast, without confusion, and equips the audience with all they need to know. There are many components that go into a good explainer video. Lee Lefever, Co-Founder of Common Craft, breaks them down in this episode of The Visual Lounge. Common Craft excels in creating simple animated videos to explain concepts suitable for use...

What does it take to be great at learning and development? Is it down to fancy tools, qualifications, or top video creation skills? Not exactly. It’s all about your audience and focusing on what they need to know. The other stuff can come later. In her career, Kati Ryan, Founder of A Positive Adventure, has picked up so many fantastic tips for L&D professionals. She joins this episode of The V...