Launch videos get over-produced because the stakes feel high. Teams spend days on a music bed and an animated logo, then record the actual product at midnight before launch on a build that still has a bug in step two. The viewer, meanwhile, came to see the product.
This checklist puts the effort where it pays. Copy it into your launch doc and tick it off.
Two weeks before
- Write the one-sentence result: "[Viewer] can now [do X] in [time]." If two people on the team write different sentences, settle it now.
- Pick the single flow that proves that sentence. It should take under a minute to perform.
- Decide the master length: 60 to 90 seconds for most launches. Shorter versions get cut from it later.
- List every place the video will appear: launch page, homepage, email, social, the launch platform listing, the sales deck.
- Book the voice. Your own, a teammate's, or an AI voice. Decide now so it does not hold up the edit.
One week before
- Freeze the UI for the flow you are filming. Any later change means a re-shoot.
- Set up a dedicated demo account with believable data. No "test" rows, no real customer names.
- Write the script in two columns, screen and voice. Our script templates are a good starting point.
- Read the script out loud with a timer. Cut it until it fits.
- Do a rough recording and show it to someone outside the team. Ask what the product does. If they cannot say, fix the script, not the edit.
Recording day
- Use a browser window around 1280×800 or 1440×900 at 110 to 125 percent zoom.
- Notifications off, other tabs closed, bookmarks bar hidden, clean browser profile.
- Record each scene as a separate short take. It is easier to redo 15 seconds than 90.
- Move the cursor deliberately: go to the target, pause, click.
- Record a few seconds of the finished result on its own. You will want it for the opening and for thumbnails.
More detail on the craft side is in how to make screen recordings look professional.
The edit
- Open on the result in the first 3 to 5 seconds.
- Cut every wait, spinner, and hesitation.
- Zoom in on each important click, then back out.
- Caption every spoken line. Many people will see it muted in a feed first.
- Keep music low and stop it under key lines, or skip it.
- End on one ask: try it, sign up, or upvote. Pick one.
- Make a thumbnail from a real product frame, with three or four words at most.
What to cut, every time
| Cut this | Why |
|---|---|
| Animated logo intro | Costs the first seconds, which are the most valuable ones |
| Team photo or founder intro before the product | Save it for the about page or a separate story video |
| "We're excited to announce" | Viewers decide in seconds; show, do not announce |
| A tour of settings | Nobody launches a settings page |
| Every feature in the release | Only one result sticks. Put the rest in the changelog |
| Stock footage of people pointing at laptops | It signals that the product is not interesting enough to show |
Launch day: one master, many cuts
From the 60 to 90 second master, cut versions for each channel. A 15 to 30 second clip for social, square or vertical, with captions burned in. A silent loop of the key moment for the launch page header. A GIF or short clip for the changelog and the in-app announcement. The full version for the homepage and email.
- Upload natively to each social network rather than posting a link, where you can.
- Put the full video in your launch email with a real product thumbnail.
- Pin it at the top of the changelog entry. See how to turn your changelog into marketing.
- Send it to existing customers inside the product, not only by email.
- Give your sales team the link and a one-line description they can paste.
After launch
Check where people stop watching, and re-cut if there is a clear cliff. Then set a reminder for the next release that touches this flow. A launch video that shows last quarter's UI is worse than none, and launches tend to be followed by fast follow-up fixes that change exactly the screens you filmed. Our guide on keeping product videos up to date covers how to make that painless.
Steperly helps with the middle of this checklist. Record the flow once and you get a narrated video with zooms and captions, a clickable demo for visitors who want to try it themselves, and a page that explains the steps. For smaller releases between launches, use the shorter feature release video format.