WATCH LECTURE VIDEOS, EFFORTLESSLY

Nishant Jacob

nishantj@stanford.edu

@nishantjacob

EXPERT FOCUS AREA

My Expert Focus Area: Reducing stress on online courses caused by

procrastination, by getting people to watch a video now

BRAINSTORM All the ways

we can get Joe to watch a video

Arranged by whether we can get Joe to do it and how effective it will be

TOP IDEAS

Joe clicks on a video link in an email Joe clicks on a video link he gets in a text message Joe schedules a reminder to watch the video on his gcal Joe watches a 30 sec intro clip and clinks on a link in his

email

PSYCHOLOGICAL RECIPES TO TEST

Email vs text for video links Scheduling system 30 sec intro video clip in the email

CRUMMY TRIALS INSIGHTS

Email VS Text

People were more likely to click on the video link when it was delivered via text

People did not always watch the full video on their phones (self reported)

Though the text message was a stronger trigger, people prefer to watch lecture videos on their laptops

VS

CRUMMY TRIALS INSIGHTS

Email with a 30 sec intro video clip along with a link to the full video

The intro video helped people set up video watching space (find headphones, setup laptop, charger etc)

Intro video served as low barrier to entry first step (people found it very easy to do)

People didn’t always transition to the full video after watching the intro video (not a foolproof system)

Having people watch an unrelated 30 sec video clip was less effective than an intro clip to the lecture video

CRUMMY TRIALS INSIGHTS

Schedule Video watching on Google calendar

People were most likely to schedule a video just after they had finished watching one, because they were high on motivation

Giving people scheduling suggestions helped them schedule videos quicker (ex. Try scheduling video watching just after dinner)

Scheduling was more effective when people also set alarms or alerts on their phones

There was no social accountability when people scheduled their own videos

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU? 1. Schedule your next video watching session

immediately after watching a video (try scheduling it after something you commonly do i.e. Dinner)

2. Set a reminder on your phone to watch the video at that time

3. Get a friend to keep you accountable (ask you whether you watched your video or not)

4. Use/demand a lecture video service that sends you an email trigger to watch the video with a 30 sec relevant intro clip to the video

MOVING FORWARD

Look at longer term trends When do the triggers (email/text) start to get boring ? How can we vary the triggers ? How can we build in more social accountability ? Exploring new triggers What time of day should the triggers be delivered ?