How to Use a Teleprompter Online for Professional-Looking Videos

Due to the digital transformation of the world, videos are vital for businesses, content creators, and professionals. If you’re shooting a marketing video, an online course, or a social media reel, keeping eye contact with your viewers and delivering a clear and flowing speech will go a long way. This is the point where a teleprompter online is a life-saver.

An online teleprompter is like a digital teleprompter that scrolls the script on the screen, so you can read the script without taking your eyes off the camera. Online teleprompters are as accessible, economical, and user-friendly, unlike the teleprompters used in television studios. If you are just starting out or you are a seasoned presenter, learning how to use one correctly can up your video production game.

1. Choosing the Right Online Teleprompter

From browser-based platforms to mobile apps, there are plenty of online teleprompter tools that you can find. Popular examples are Teleprompter App by FDD, BigVu, Teleprompter Mirror, SpeakFlow, and CuePrompter. When choosing one, consider features such as adjustable scrolling speed, font size customization, and voice activation. Some online teleprompters are free, others have premium features like video recording, cloud storage, or multi-device syncing.

2. Setting Up Your Teleprompter for a Natural Flow

One of the big no-no’s with a teleprompter is to sound like your reading. To combat this issue, place the text near your camera lens to keep your eyes on target. Use a teleprompter window placed close to the top: If you’re using a webcam, put the teleprompter window close to the top of your screen. If you’re recording using a smartphone, apps such as Teleprompter App by FDD allows you to show the text on top of your camera view so that it’s more natural to maintain eye contact.

Set scrolling speed in the text to your natural speaking rate. If it’s going too fast, you’ll find it hard to keep up; if it’s too slow, you might make uncomfortable pauses. Myriads of teleprompters can be found online, enabling you to control the speed manually, or even with your voice. Try seasoning both slower and faster before you get someone to record you.

3. Writing a Script That Sounds Conversational

Even with a teleprompter, you want your delivery to sound conversational rather than robotic. The important thing is to write your script in a conversational style. Write like you’re talking to your readers: long, complex sentences don’t belong, only short and clear phrases. Adding natural pauses, contractions (like “you’re” instead of “you are”) and even a dash of personality makes your speech roll off your tongue more easily.

Line spacing also helps to break up your text. Dancing around large lumps of letter also makes reading fail out, which can cause a higher risk of slumbering over speak. Instead, write in very short paragraphs or even a bullet-point format to make it easier to scan the text while you are speaking.

4. Practicing Before Hitting Record

Teleprompters can ease the video production process, but it still takes practice. Do some test runs to read off the screen a few time before pressing record. Watch your tone, pacing and your facial expressions. If you sound too dull, practice your intonation (vary your vocal pitch) and stress the important words.

Asking the pupil to film a test clip and review it helps pick out areas to work on. Do you look too stiff? Is your gaze shifting in an unnatural way? It’s the little tweaks, like speaking a little more slowly than you think is necessary, or incorporating natural hand gestures while you talk, that will help you look less like a robot and more like a human being appearing in a video.

5. Maintaining Eye Contact and Natural Body Language

One of the biggest signs that someone is reading off a teleprompter online is lots of eye movement. If your eyes are shifting back and forth across the screen, it can become distracting to the viewers. To avoid this, place the teleprompter text as near as you can to the camera lens. Some professional set-ups employ reflective glass teleprompters, which superimpose the text directly in front of the lens, but even the absence of one can work with a bit of care about where to place the screen.

Also, keep in mind body language. If you’re standing, stand up straight and use controlled hand gestures to add dynamism to what you’re saying. If you’re seated, don’t lean back too far or sit up straight. Confidence and engagement is not only about what you say — but how you say it on screen.

6. Adjusting for Different Video Formats

The way you use the teleprompter may have to change depending on what type of video you’re making. For example:

YouTube Videos & Online Courses: Use a friendly delivery. Make eye contact with the camera and speak as if you’re addressing a friend.

Business presentations & webinars: Keep a professional tone, but don’t be unapproachable. Smile once in a while, use your hands like they are real, this can help.

Social Media Videos (Reels, TikToks, Shorts): Keeping your script brief and high-energy because of the short, fast-paced nature of these videos. If it’s running slow, your delivery will feel slow.

It is useful to have more control of the scrolling speed in longer presentations or live recordings. Some teleprompter tools allow you to control, start, pause, or slow the text from another device when you’re not in front of the camera, so keep those in mind too! When using a smartphone app, connect a Bluetooth remote or foot pedal, so that you can control the text fluidly without disturbing the performance.

7. Using a Remote or Foot Pedal for Control

When the presentation is longer or Live Recorded, controlling the scroll speed helps. There are even teleprompter tools that let you control them remotely so you don’t need to leave the comfort of your new corner office to initiate, pause, or change speed. Using a Bluetooth remote or foot pedal can help you control the text smoothly without interrupting your performance, if you’re running the app from a smartphone.

8. Editing Out Mistakes for a Flawless Video

Things go wrong even when you have a teleprompter. The good news is that editing software exists that can polish the final video. Basic tools such as iMovie, CapCut or Adobe Premiere Pro make it easy to cut out awkward pauses, delete mistakes, augment your video with smooth transitions. There are even some teleprompter apps that come with built-in editing features, including the ability to trim mistakes and refine your delivery without needing to go into another piece of software.

9. Leverage AI Teleprompters

Teleprompters are getting and better with the help of AI. Some even AI-powered teleprompters will automatically calibrate the scrolling speed to your voice, making sure the text moves at the perfect speed. Others let you change the script in real-time, helping you improvise. Each of these tools can help your overall video production process and making it easier than ever to get that content delivered.

Conclusion

The best teleprompter online can make your video quality improve tremendously because you will have eye contact, you will have a synchronous script and you will have the confidence to present it. A well-written script, the right setup, and some practice will help you make videos that look professional with little effort. The teleprompter is a skill that will enhance your video presence and you as a content creator, business professional, or public speaker.