Using Loom record a process walkthrough #

Loom is an screen recorder that captures what you’re doing on your computer screen. It captures the audio too.

It’s an amazing productivity tool that I use everyday to document and communicate with my team. One of my favorite ways to use Loom is to use create a process walkthrough screen recording.

Start with a procedures document #

In my company we use Tettraas our knowledge base.

Many are our Tettra pages are procedural which contain enumerated steps on how to do something. Having step-by-step instructions that our team can read and execute is a great start, but it’s much better to “show and tell.”

The first step in my process walkthrough video is to pull up the Tettra page and set it to display on half of my screen. On the other half of my screen is the app that I am using to do my walkthrough, say Quickbooks.

Record and narrate to do the process walkthrough #

With my screen setup, I start Loom to record my screen and capture the audit.

Then, I start executing the procedure documented in the Tettra page. I walkthrough it step by step show what I’m doing on the screen. I also make sure to narrate and tell viewer what I’m doing. I pretend as if there’s a new employee sitting next to me and I’m explaining to them the procedure.

Once I’m done, Loom automatically saves the recording and grab a link of the recording and embed it the Tettra page. Now the Tettra page has both written step-by-step instructions with a video.

Why bother with the process walkthrough at all if you have written step-by-step instructions #

Step-by-step instructions are great, but they can’t capture every detail.

For example, your instruction may be, “Click on the ‘Next’ button.” But where is the “Next” button on the screen? Is the bottom left corner or the upper right corder? You’re not going to put that kind of detail in the step-by-step instructions because that’s simply too much detail and it could become outdated when the screen is redesigned.

I always find that I provide additional tips and tricks on how to complete the procedures when I’m narrating that I didn’t capture in writing the procedure. Some things are too nuanced to capture with words and you can only show them.

Takeaway #

• Use process walkthrough videos to enhance written step-by-step instructions.
• You’ll find that you provide extra tips and tricks during the walkthrough video that you didn’t capture when you wrote the procedures.