A glossary video can become a spoken dictionary. Terms are more useful when employees see what difference they make to a working decision.
Group unfamiliar terms around one practical workflow and show the consequence of confusing them.
Choose terms that change what people do
A vocabulary film should begin with a practical confusion. Ask the process owner which terms employees mix up and what consequence follows. Words that merely sound unfamiliar may belong in a glossary; terms that change permission, responsibility or sequence can justify a demonstration.
Use one workflow to connect the definitions. A document moving through review, approval and release can reveal the difference between those states more clearly than three separate dictionary-style answers. Keep the official term and explain it in plain language rather than inventing a convenient substitute with a different meaning.
Show the consequence of the distinction
For each term, ask what the employee may do at that point and what they must not assume. A status may mean that a document has been checked for one purpose without being authorised for another. The film should preserve those limits instead of treating every positive-sounding label as complete approval.
Use text and spoken explanation together where helpful. Colour can reinforce a distinction but should not carry the meaning alone. Ensure the status labels remain readable in the intended delivery format and in any approved screenshots.
Keep a maintained glossary or process source available. The film can teach the relationship between terms while the authoritative reference carries exact current definitions. If terminology changes, the owner should review both resources rather than updating only the text.
For acceptance, give viewers a fictional item at one status and ask what action is appropriate. Then change only the status and ask again. Their answer should change for the reason the film explained. A successful vocabulary resource makes a working distinction usable; it does not merely help employees pronounce internal jargon or repeat definitions without understanding their consequence.
Ask the process owner to approve any simplified labels used in diagrams as well as the spoken definitions.
Commissioning checks
| Input | Why it changes production |
|---|---|
| Approved term definitions | Define terms in context |
| Commonly confused pair | Use a matched example |
| Relevant process example | Keep the authoritative glossary available |
An illustrative application
Suppose staff confuse a draft approval with permission to release a document. The film follows an invented document and shows what each status allows. It does not list every possible status or use colour alone to carry the distinction. This example is hypothetical, not a Live Images project.
Ask a viewer to explain what they may do at each status. Do not simplify a technical term so far that its operational meaning or required qualification disappears.
Discuss the production brief
Bring this decision and the available material to a Live Images production enquiry. Review the current services first, then confirm suitability and scope; specialist policy, training or advisory work is not assumed to be included.
Source and scope
Australian Government Style Manual plain language is relevant background, checked 30 October 2026. This is original commissioning guidance, not legal, employment, safety or regulated professional advice. Prepared with AI assistance for Live Images.