How to Create a Video Knowledge Base for SaaS [+ Examples]

Shreelekha Singh
July 12, 2023
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When you buy furniture from IKEA, what do you prefer of these two options

  • Reading a user manual with confusing diagrams and no clear instructions
  • Watching a 2-minute YouTube video with step-by-step guidance

Navigating a new product feels a lot like assembling furniture from IKEA—you’re filled with excitement, but the complexity of instructions slowly drains all your energy and makes you overwhelmed.

What if you could save users from this sinking feeling and keep their excitement levels high from the start? With a video knowledge base, you can.

A video knowledge base includes a collection of product explainer videos, showing different features and capabilities within your product. You can host this knowledge base anywhere, like the resources section on your website or any video hosting platform.

In this guide, we’ll give you a complete walkthrough of video knowledge bases and discuss:

  • 6 reasons why every SaaS product should have a video knowledge base
  • What’s holding teams back from creating knowledge base videos?
  • How to create knowledge base videos with Floik
  • Video knowledge base showcase: Top 10 examples to inspire you

6 reasons why every SaaS product should have a video knowledge base

If you’re considering whether creating a video knowledge base is worth the effort, here are six reasons why you must make training videos for your customer knowledge base:

1. Enhance customer education through visual learning

Using videos can be especially helpful for complex or technical topics, as videos show users the steps involved in a task or use case.

For instance, a video tutorial on how to use a new feature in your product can show customers exactly what they need to do to get started. This can be much more effective than a text-based article, which requires users to read through multiple paragraphs of text to understand the same information.

2. Boost user engagement with interactive content

You can make videos interactive by adding quizzes, polls, or other interactive elements. This can help keep users engaged and ensure that they are actually learning something from the video.

For example, a video tutorial on how to complete a specific action in your product could include a quiz at the end that tests the user's understanding of the material. This is good to check if users are paying attention and actually learning something from the content.

3. Improve your SEO game and drive organic traffic

Videos can improve your SEO results by making your website more discoverable on search engines. Videos are often more likely to be shared on social media and linked to from other websites, which can earn you backlinks.

Besides, YouTube is the second largest search engine after Google. So, ranking content there can generate more ROI from your SEO efforts.

4. Maximize accessibility and reach a wider audience

You can make videos accessible to users with hearing disabilities by adding captions and transcripts. This also allows you to reach users who speak different languages.

For instance, you can add captions and transcripts to your videos so that users who are deaf or hard of hearing can still access the information. You can also add closed captions in multiple languages to make your content accessible for users who speak different languages.

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5. Get insights for content optimisation from video analytics

Video analytics offer real-time insights into how users are interacting with your videos. Unlike textual content, this data is more helpful in getting a pulse of your audience.

For example, you can track how long users are watching your videos, which videos are most popular, and which videos are leading to conversions. This information can help you identify which videos are performing well and which need improvement.

6. Increase customer support efficiency with seamless training

Videos can be used to train customer support agents and help them resolve issues more quickly. This can save agents time and frustration, while also ensuring your users receive the best possible support. This content can be great to store product knowledge internally and train new hires as well.

Challenges in building a video knowledge base

Despite the many benefits of a video knowledge base, not every SaaS team is able to create video content. Why not? There are many reasons, including these six main ones:

1. Investment of time and resources

Creating knowledge base videos takes a lot of time and resources. Planning, scripting, recording, editing, and producing high-quality videos can be time-consuming and require specialized equipment or software.

Besides, teams may need to allocate resources for training team members on video creation and production.

2. Language and accessibility challenges

Knowledge base videos need to be accessible to a diverse audience, which can pose language and accessibility challenges. Creating videos in multiple languages or providing subtitles for different languages requires additional effort and resources.

Moreover, ensuring accessibility for individuals with hearing or visual impairments may involve adding captions, audio descriptions, or other accessibility features.

3. Technical expertise required to edit content

Editing video content often requires technical expertise and knowledge of video editing software. Teams may need to learn how to use video editing tools or rely on external resources, such as video editors or graphic designers—which can add complexity and cost to the process.

Lack of technical skills within the team can be a significant barrier to creating and editing high-quality videos for a customer knowledge base.

4. Measuring content's effectiveness is challenging

Determining the effectiveness of knowledge base videos can be challenging. Unlike text-based content, measuring engagement, understanding, and retention levels of video content may require specialized analytics tools.

Gathering feedback from users and tracking metrics such as view counts, completion rates, and user satisfaction can provide insights, but it may be more complex compared to traditional knowledge base articles.

5. Hosting and distributing videos

Once you’re done with knowledge base video creation, you need a good platform to host and distribute these videos to reach the intended audience. Selecting a suitable video knowledge base software, managing video libraries, and ensuring smooth streaming can be a technical and logistical challenge.

What’s more, determining the most effective channels/methods to reach your users and promote the videos may require additional effort and expertise.

6. Updating videos as products evolve

Knowledge base videos often focus on demonstrating specific product features and workflows. When products undergo updates or evolve with new user interfaces (UI) and capabilities, existing videos may become outdated or inaccurate.

As a result, teams may need to redo or update the videos to reflect the latest product versions, requiring additional time and resources to maintain an up-to-date video library.

Exploring different format of video knowledge base

Let's embark on a journey through various formats and types, infusing a conversational tone along the way, and highlighting popular SaaS examples for inspiration.

1. Tutorial videos

 The tutorial videos leverage step-by-step guidance with storytelling prowess. These videos transform complex processes into digestible chunks, empowering users to master tasks with ease. Step-by-step guides that walk viewers through specific tasks, explaining different  features & how to use them.

Canva's tutorial videos seamlessly blend educational content with creative flair, guiding users through design techniques and empowering them to unleash their creativity.

2. Explainer videos

Explainer Videos are concise yet informative videos that break complex concepts into simple narratives, leaving viewers enlightened and entertained.

Imagine sitting down for a friendly chat with a knowledgeable friend, who effortlessly demystifies intricate topics with wit and wisdom. Likewise, Dropbox's explainer videos artfully convey the benefits of cloud storage and collaboration, captivating audiences with relatable scenarios and vibrant visuals.

3. Demo walkthroughs

Provide users with a virtual tour of product features and functionalities using demo walkthroughs. These immersive experiences offer firsthand glimpses into software capabilities, guiding users through key interactions and use cases.

Slack's demo walkthroughs showcase the platform's messaging and collaboration tools in action, illustrating real-world scenarios and inspiring seamless teamwork.

4. Interactive videos

Interactive videos turn passive viewing transforms into active participation. These dynamic experiences invite users to make choices, explore branching narratives, and shape their learning journey.

HubSpot's interactive videos engage users with quizzes, polls, and clickable elements, transforming passive viewers into active participants and enhancing learning retention.

5. Behind-the-scenes vlogs

Let users peek behind the curtain with behind-the-scenes vlogs, offering glimpses into the inner workings of SaaS companies. These authentic and relatable videos humanize brands, fostering connections and building trust.

Buffer's behind-the-scenes vlogs provide a transparent look into remote work culture and company initiatives, fostering community engagement and strengthening brand loyalty.

How to create video knowledge base: Step-by-step guide

Let’s dive into the detailed steps to create a video knowledge base:

1. Target audience & objectives research

Define the goals and objectives of your video knowledge base. Determine what you aim to achieve, whether it's educating users, providing product support, or driving conversions. Conduct thorough research to understand your target audience's preferences, needs, and pain points. Consider factors such as demographics, industry, and skill level.

  • What are your customers struggling with? 
  • Analyze support tickets, FAQs, and user behavior to pinpoint areas needing video explanations.

2. Choose your topics for videos

Prioritize topics that align with your product or service offerings, addressing both beginner-level and advanced-level content to cater to a diverse audience. Brainstorm a list of topics based on your audience's needs and interests, as well as your business objectives.

  • Consider common questions, pain points, and frequently asked queries.
  • Surveys or interviews with your target audience can provide valuable insights into their preferred learning styles and preferred video formats.
  • Start with high-impact topics that address frequent customer pain points. This maximizes the return on your investment.

3. Outline content

Break down each topic into smaller segments or chapters, making it easier for users to navigate and digest the information. Include clear objectives and learning outcomes for each video. Define the chapter or video outline of not just an overall video but also the segments in the video.

  • Create a content calendar or roadmap outlining the topics, formats, and timelines for your video production. 
  • Consider sequencing your content to guide users through a logical learning progression.

4. Create engaging videos

Experiment with different video formats, such as tutorials, demos, explainer videos, and interviews, to keep your content diverse and engaging. Visually map out the flow of your video, including scene changes, visuals, and narration. This ensures a smooth and logical progression of information.

  • Keep your language concise and conversational. 
  • Use storytelling elements to weave information into a narrative that keeps viewers engaged.
  • Aim for shorter scripts to avoid overwhelming viewers. Break down complex topics into digestible chunks.

How to create knowledge base videos with Floik

Tired of the headache of creating product videos? Say goodbye to the back-and-forth between multiple tools and streamline your process with Floik.

Designed for customer-facing teams, Floik offers a user-friendly interface for recording slick screen and webcam presentations. Whether it's a 1-minute clip or a longer form video, Floik allows you to record, pause, blur confidential details, edit, and embed your final masterpiece seamlessly. Say hello to hassle-free product videos with Floik.

Here’s an explainer video created using Floik:

When your output is ready, use the intuitive editor to fine-tune all the details and make your videos publish-ready.

Floik’s video editor is designed for users of all skill levels—so you don’t have to spend hours scratching your head and figuring out how each feature works.

Floik home page banner

Here’s everything you can do with Floik to create knowledge base videos effortlessly:

  • Branded content: Create videos with your brand colors and logo and get a shareable link for your domain to maintain your branding across all content.
  • Seamless collaboration: Collaborate with other members of your team or work cross-functionally with other departments using a team workspace.
  • AI voiceover: Include an AI-generated voiceover by entering your script instead of manually recording voiceovers for every video yourself.
  • Transcribe audio: Auto-generate subtitles and edit whatever you want to change to enhance the viewer experience and increase accessibility.
  • CTA for the next steps: Add a custom call-to-action for your product to guide users about the next steps and help them navigate to a relevant page.
  • Content management system: Organize all the content in a content management system and publish folders with multiple videos on a dedicated landing page.
  • Viewer analytics: Track user interactions and content performance with real-time analytics to gauge the effectiveness of your customer education efforts.

Watch Floik in action with this explainer video and sign up for free to give it a test drive today.

Top 10 examples of video knowledge base to inspire you

We scoured the internet to find the 10 best examples of video knowledge bases to give you some good inspiration in the process. Let’s take a look.

1. Floik

Floik knowledge base

We built our YouTube knowledge base by recording small snippets of our platform with Floik. Then we downloaded these videos and uploaded them to a dedicated playlist with custom thumbnails. These videos are also hosted on our help center with subtitles and voiceovers to make the content more impactful.

Check out how you can use Floik to create customer service videos.

CTA for Floik

2. Canva

Canva knowledge base

Canva has a video knowledge base hosted on their website along with multiple playlists on YouTube. Their knowledge base videos cover multiple product capabilities, such as team collaboration, advanced features, sharing content, and more.

Most of Canva’s knowledge base videos are under a minute and include simple animation. You’ll see the product in action with click marks, blurred background, and auto-zoom as some added effects.

3. Litmus

Litmus knowledge base

Litmus involves multiple advanced features and their video knowledge base effectively explains all these complex functionalities. Their explainer videos are 2-3-minute long with a consistent AI voice across all videos.

Each video has a plain background with a screen recording showing a task/feature in action. They often create ‘feature spotlight’ videos to explain their newest or most complex features.

4. Apollo

Apollo knowledge base

Apollo has multiple playlists on their YouTube channel, each covering a specific product feature or capability. These videos are screen recordings of their product with an employee explaining everything through voice narration. Most of these videos are 1-2-minute long and don’t include any effects or animations.

5. Zapier

Zapier knowledge base

Zapier has a dedicated YouTube playlist titled Zapier University with 30 short video tutorials explaining different features on the platform. All these videos feature a member of their staff and animated videos showing the task in action.

These videos don’t include a screen recording. Instead, they are designed and edited from scratch with a full feature of their employee.

6. Framer

Framer knowledge base

Framer also has a video knowledge base playlist on YouTube with 20 training videos. Unlike other examples on this list, Framer’s videos are much longer—with a minimum of 5 minutes and going as high as 20 minutes.

Since Framer is a complicated tool, they have to explain every feature in detail and give users a complete walkthrough of a specific use case.

Every video includes a gradient color background and a product screen recording explaining the functionality. The content includes a human voiceover and includes titled timestamps on YouTube.

You know Framer’s videos are great when you see user comments like these all over!

YouTube comments

7. Hopin

Hopin knowledge base

Hopin has many YouTube playlists with explainer videos for different product capabilities. Each video is between 1 to 4-minute length and features a member of their team giving users a walkthrough with a screen recording.

Videos include timestamps to quickly guide viewers to the most relevant parts of the content. Every video includes some animation and auto-zoom effects to create more engaging content.

8. Formstack

Formstack knowledge base

Formstack is a productivity software with a complex interface features where users need some handholding. Their YouTube knowledge base includes 19 short tutorial videos to give you every information you need in a snackable format.

Each video includes a product recording with little animation effects. Their videos also have an AI voice consistent across all videos. They’ve added timestamps for ease of viewing.

9. Clearscope

Clearscope knowledge base

Clearscope has a unique product interface with multiple features that users might not know how to use. They’ve created several playlists on YouTube to categorize their video knowledge base according to use cases and features.

Each video has a product screen recording and a talking head of their co-founder, explaining how each feature works. You can see click marks to know exactly where you should click to follow the steps.

10. Honeybook

Honeybook knowledge base

Honeybook has a knowledge base playlist with 30 explainer videos covering different aspects of the product. These short videos guide you through a small action within the platform. You can see a recording of the product, supported by the voice of their team member. Each video has a unique thumbnail as well!

Over to you: Create your video knowledge base today

A video knowledge base has significant business value—from enhancing customer education through visual learning to increasing customer support efficiency with seamless training.

While there may be challenges to creating and maintaining knowledge base videos, a powerful solution like Floik can remove all roadblocks and make it easier to create explainer videos in minutes. See for yourself! 😉