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Will my product video go out of date?
List the screens you might show and how often each changes. Get what to show, what to keep short and what to leave out.
Your screens
Add the screens, pages or features you could show. Up to ten.
Your plan
A product video goes out of date when it shows screens that change. Show screens central to your story that rarely change, keep fast-changing ones short and cropped, and leave out screens that change often and are not central.
The most common reason founders delay a product video is a fear that the interface will change and the video will look wrong the moment it goes out. The fear is reasonable, but it is manageable, because not every screen changes at the same speed. A settings page may change every week, while the core action of the product may not change for a year.
This planner sorts your own screens by two questions: how often does each one change, and is it central to the story the video tells? From your answers it tells you which screens to show, which to keep short, and which to leave out. It runs in your browser and nothing you enter is sent to us.
The rule behind the plan
Two things decide what a screen should do in your film: how often it changes, and how much the story needs it.
| Central to the story? | How often it changes | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | Rarely, or every few months | Show it. It should stay accurate for a good while. |
| Yes | Monthly or weekly | Show it, but keep it short, crop to the part that stays the same, and plan to refresh it. |
| No | Rarely, or every few months | Optional. Show it only if it helps the story. |
| No | Monthly or weekly | Leave it out. It will date the film for no gain. |
Ways to make a film last longer
- Crop and zoom. Show the part of the screen that does the work, not the whole window with its navigation, which changes often.
- Hide what dates. Version numbers, dates, banners and "new" badges all age quickly. Clear them before recording.
- Use neutral demo data. Names, amounts and dates that look real but carry no date or season stay usable for longer.
- Show the action, not the layout. A film about what the product lets you do ages more slowly than a tour of where the buttons are.
- Keep the words general. Voiceover and captions that describe the benefit hold up when a button moves.
When a refresh is worth it
Treat the shelf life as a planning guide, not a promise. It comes from the change rates you entered, so it is only as accurate as your estimate. A film that shows only stable screens can be used for a long time. A film that shows a fast-changing screen needs a refresh when that screen changes, so it is cheaper to avoid showing it than to re-record it.
If several of the screens that tell your story change monthly or weekly, one long film may be the wrong shape. Short films, made as each release ships, can keep up with a product that moves fast. That is the idea behind our monthly plan, but you can also do it yourself: record a short clip for each release and keep the core film for the parts that stay still. See how to announce a new feature with a short video and how long a product demo video should be.
What to do with the plan
Take the list of screens to show into your script. The launch video script builder turns them into scenes, and the cost calculator shows what a refresh would cost you in time. If you would rather have it done for you, send us a brief. We send a one-page storyboard first, then a private preview, and you pay only once you are happy with it.
How to use it
- List your screens. Add the screens, pages or features you might show in the film. Use short names.
- Rate each one. For each, choose how often it changes and tick the box if the story needs it.
- Check the plan. You get the screens to show, keep short, or leave out, and a rough guide to how long the film should stay accurate.
- Take it into your script. Copy the plan, or send it to us as a brief, and build the film around the screens that last.
Frequently asked questions
Will my product video go out of date when the interface changes?
Only if it shows screens that change. A video built around the core action, with changing screens cropped or left out, stays accurate far longer than a tour of the whole interface. Plan which screens to show before you record.
How often should I update a product video?
When a screen it shows changes in a way a viewer would notice. This is why the planner asks how often each screen changes: a film built on stable screens needs few updates, while one built on fast-changing screens needs more.
Which screens should I leave out of a product video?
Leave out screens that change often and are not central to the story, such as settings pages, billing screens and menus. Showing them dates the film without helping the viewer understand what the product does.
Where does the shelf-life estimate come from?
From the change rates you enter. It takes the fastest-changing screen you have chosen to show and turns it into a rough planning guide. It is a rule of thumb, not a prediction, so adjust it with what you know about your own releases.
Is anything I enter stored?
No. The planner runs in your browser and nothing is sent to us. The send button only saves your plan on this device to fill in our brief form, and you decide whether to submit that form.
Want it made for you? Every Release, $699 / month
For teams that ship every week or month: four videos a month, each with a 15 second cut and the post to go with it. You see a storyboard and a private preview first, and pay only once you are happy.
See what's in Every Release or get a free storyboard →