Make Explainer Videos in Slack with /kolavid

Make a narrated whiteboard explainer video in Slack: type /kolavid and a topic or link, pick 1 or 2 minutes, and the video is posted in the channel.

To make an explainer video in Slack, add the KolaVid app to your workspace, then type `/kolavid` followed by a topic, some notes or a link to a web page. Pick 1 or 2 minutes, and KolaVid posts a narrated whiteboard video in that channel, usually within 2-3 minutes. Each person connects their own KolaVid account once, and the videos they ask for use that account's credits.

Below: install steps, what the app says at each stage, six requests to copy, and fixes for common problems.

What the Slack app does

KolaVid turns a topic or a document into a whiteboard explainer: a narrator talks through the subject and each drawing appears on the board as it is mentioned, one idea a board. The Slack app lets you ask for one of these without leaving the conversation where the question came up.

You type one slash command. The app answers privately, asks for a length, and later uploads the finished MP4 into the channel with a mention of you.

How to install KolaVid in Slack

1. Open the install link: Add KolaVid to Slack. It works for any workspace. You can also use the Add to Slack button on the KolaVid integrations page.
2. Slack shows its consent screen for your workspace. Click Allow.
3. You land back on kolavid.com/integrations with the note "KolaVid is installed in your Slack workspace."
4. In each channel where you want videos posted, invite the app: `/invite @KolaVid`.

The app asks Slack for three permissions only: to add the slash command, to post messages, and to upload files. It does not ask to read your channels.

Connect your KolaVid account (once)

The first time you use `/kolavid`, the app replies privately with a Connect KolaVid (free) button. If you just typed a topic, it keeps that topic while you connect, and also offers Make it on kolavid.com, which opens the website with your text already filled in.

The connect button opens a KolaVid page titled "Connect KolaVid to Slack". Sign up or sign in there. Sign-up is free and includes a 2-minute video. When it works, the page says "Slack is connected" and has a Back to Slack button.

Back in Slack, the app picks up where you left off: "Connected as jo…@example.com. Make a video of ...? Pick a length:" with 1 minute and 2 minutes buttons. It shows only the start of your email address, enough for you to recognise the account.

Two details worth knowing:

• The connect link is one-time and works for 30 minutes. If it expires, type `/kolavid connect` for a new one.
• Connections are per person. Your colleague in the same workspace connects their own KolaVid account, and their videos use their credits, not yours.

How to make a video with /kolavid

Type the command with your request after it:

``` /kolavid how our expense approval works, for new managers ```

The app asks "How long should the video be?" with two buttons. Press one, and it replies: "Making your 1-minute video now. I'll send it here when it's ready, usually in 2-3 minutes." It also gives a link where you can watch the video being drawn on kolavid.com.

When the video is done, the app uploads it into the channel with your name and the line "Your whiteboard video is ready." Everyone in the channel can play it there.

The other commands:

Topics, notes or a link

You can send three kinds of request:

• A topic, with who it is for: "photosynthesis for 10-year-olds".
• Pasted notes: meeting notes, a short policy, a process written as bullet points. Up to 4,000 characters are used.
• A link to a web page: one link, with a short instruction of up to about 40 words, is read as the page to explain. A link on its own becomes "Explain this page." If you send a long text with a link inside it, the whole text is treated as the brief.

Six requests you can copy

Each names one subject, who is watching, and what they should take away.

1. A process for new starters

``` /kolavid How a support ticket moves from new to solved at our company: triage, assign, reply, close. For new support agents. End with the one rule they must not skip. ```

2. Explain a page the team keeps asking about

``` /kolavid https://example.com/handbook/leave-policy Explain this for new employees in plain words ```

Use a page anyone can open; a page behind a sign-in cannot be read.

3. Meeting notes into a recap

``` /kolavid Recap for the sales team: we are moving from monthly to quarterly targets from January. Why: fewer end-of-month discounts. What changes: reviews every quarter, same commission rates. What stays the same: weekly pipeline call. ```

4. A concept for a non-technical audience

``` /kolavid What an API is, explained for our marketing team with one everyday example ```

5. A safety or compliance reminder

``` /kolavid Why we lock our screens when we leave our desks, for all staff. Keep it friendly, one real example, end with the habit to build. ```

6. A lesson in another language

``` /kolavid How compound interest works, for adult learners, in Spanish ```

For narration in another language, say so in the request.

For more on wording requests, see how to write prompts for whiteboard videos. If you plan to use Slack videos for company updates, internal communication with whiteboard videos covers what works.

Limits and what it costs

• Length: 1 or 2 minutes from Slack. For 3 or 5 minutes, a vertical or square frame, or a different voice, make the video on kolavid.com, where paid plans go up to 5 minutes.
• Frame and voice: videos made from Slack are wide 16:9.
• Credits: whiteboard videos cost 1 credit a second, so 60 credits for a 1-minute video and 120 for 2 minutes. A free account has 120 credits, enough for one 2-minute video, no card needed. Plans are on the pricing page.
• One at a time: each account makes one video at a time. Wait for the first to finish before asking for the next.
• File size: videos up to 200 MB are uploaded to the channel; anything bigger comes as a link to watch or download on KolaVid.
• Failed videos: if a video cannot be finished, the app says so and no credits are taken.

Every video also goes into your KolaVid library, where you can download the MP4, share a link, or download captions.

Privacy in plain words

The app sees what you type after `/kolavid`, and nothing else in your channels: it has no permission to read messages. What you type is sent to KolaVid to make the video, the same as typing it on the website. Its replies before the video (length buttons, connect links) are private to you; the finished video is posted in the channel where you asked.

If a workspace removes the app or revokes its access, KolaVid deletes that workspace's token and every person's connection to it. You can also disconnect yourself at any time with `/kolavid disconnect`. The support page is the place for questions.

Troubleshooting

The video was never posted in the channel. The app is probably not a member of that channel. Run `/invite @KolaVid` there. When it cannot post in the channel, it sends you a link instead, privately or in the app's own messages in Slack.

"This link has expired." Connect links last 30 minutes and work once. Type `/kolavid connect` for a fresh one.

"A 2-minute video needs 120 credits and you have ..." Your account does not have enough credits for that length. Choose 1 minute, or top up or upgrade from the link the app sends.

"You already have a video in progress." Your account is still making a video. Wait for it to arrive, then ask again.

"Sorry, that video couldn't be finished, and no credits were taken." Send the topic again, or word it a little differently.

FAQ

Does everyone in the workspace need a KolaVid account?

Only the people who ask for videos. Each of them connects their own account once and pays with its credits. Anyone in the channel can watch the videos that are posted.

Can I make the video longer than 2 minutes from Slack?

No, Slack offers 1 or 2 minutes. Paid plans make videos up to 5 minutes on kolavid.com, and you can paste the same request there.

Can I edit a video made in Slack?

The video lands in your KolaVid library, and the message links to it to edit or download. There is no editing timeline inside the video; you change the request and make it again.

Does the Slack app read our channel messages?

No. It only receives the text you type after `/kolavid` and the buttons you press.

Try it in your next thread

Next time someone asks "how does this work again?", answer with a video. KolaVid also works in Discord, Telegram, Google Docs and more; see all the ways to use KolaVid.

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