Onboarding a new team member is often the most time-consuming part of growing a business. You find a great candidate, but then you realize you have to spend hours, if not days, walking them through the same repetitive tasks you’ve done a thousand times. This is where learning how to record and edit your first Loom video for onboarding new staff becomes a complete game-changer for your workflow. Instead of repeating yourself, you record the process once, and it serves as a permanent training asset for every future hire.
In this guide, we will walk through the exact steps to master Loom, from the initial setup to the final edits, ensuring your new staff members have clear, professional instructions they can refer back to at any time.
Why Video Onboarding is a Game Changer for Small Businesses
Traditional onboarding usually involves long manuals or live Zoom sessions that are easily forgotten. Research suggests that visual learning is significantly more effective for retention than text alone. When a new hire can see your screen, hear your voice, and watch your mouse movements, the "knowledge gap" closes much faster.
Using Loom allows you to build a library of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). Whether you are showing a VA how to manage your inbox or teaching a project manager how to update a CRM, a video provides a level of clarity that an email simply cannot match. It also builds an immediate personal connection, allowing your new staff to feel the culture of your company before they even start their first task.
Step 1: Getting Started with the Right Loom Setup
Before you hit record, you need to choose how you want to use the tool. Loom offers three primary ways to access its features: the Desktop App, the Chrome Extension, and the Mobile App.
Choosing Your Platform
For most onboarding videos, the Desktop App (Windows or Mac) is the superior choice. It offers higher recording quality, better stability, and advanced features like "drawing on the screen" while you speak. The Chrome Extension is great for quick, 30-second updates, but for a deep-dive onboarding session, the desktop version is more reliable.
Configuring Your Hardware
Nothing kills the effectiveness of a training video faster than muffled audio. Before you start, go into the Loom settings and ensure your microphone source is set correctly. If you are using a headset or an external mic, select it from the dropdown menu.
You should also decide on your camera bubble. Loom allows you to show your face in a small circle in the corner of the screen. For onboarding, we highly recommend keeping the camera on. It humanizes the process and helps your new staff member put a face to the name, which is vital in a remote or virtual environment.
Step 2: Preparing Your Onboarding "Script"
You don’t need a word-for-word script, but you do need a plan. Recording "off the cuff" often leads to long pauses, "ums," and "ahs" that make the video harder to follow.
Pro Tip: Open all the tabs and software windows you plan to show before you start recording. If you need to show how to log into a specific portal, have that portal ready. This keeps the video concise and professional.
Think about the specific outcome of the video. If the goal is "How to Process an Invoice," stick to that. Don't wander off into "How to talk to clients" in the same video. Keep your onboarding videos bite-sized: ideally between 3 to 7 minutes each.
Step 3: Executing the Perfect Recording
Once your tabs are ready and your mic is tested, click the "Start Recording" button. You will see a 3-2-1 countdown. This is your moment to take a breath and smile.
Using the On-Screen Controls
While recording, you will notice a control bar on the left side of your screen. Familiarize yourself with these three buttons:
- The Pause Button: If you get a cough or need to wait for a slow website to load, hit pause. This prevents unnecessary dead air in your final video.
- The Restart Button: If you stumble over your words in the first 30 seconds, don't sweat it. Just hit restart to start the clock over without having to delete and start a new file.
- The Drawing Tool (Desktop App Only): Use this to circle buttons or highlight text on your screen. It’s a powerful way to direct your new hire’s attention to exactly what matters.
As you record, try to explain the why behind the what. Don't just say "click this button." Explain that "we click this button so the client receives their confirmation email automatically." This helps your staff understand the bigger picture of your business operations.
Step 4: Editing Your Loom Video for Maximum Clarity
After you finish recording, Loom will automatically open a new tab in your browser with your video. This is where the real magic happens. You don't need to be a professional video editor to make your onboarding look polished.
Trimming the Fat
Click the "Edit" or "Trim" button. Most videos have a few seconds of "dead air" at the beginning and the end where you are clicking the start and stop buttons. Use the trim tool to cut these out. You can also "Split" the video to remove any mistakes in the middle. If you spent 20 seconds trying to remember a password, just cut that section out.
Adding a Custom Thumbnail and Title
Change the title from "Loom Message – 3 March 2026" to something descriptive, like "SOP: How to Upload Content to the Company Blog." You can also add a "Call to Action" (CTA) button at the end of the video that links to a Google Doc or an employee handbook.
Step 5: Organizing Your Video Library
One video is a tip; a collection of videos is a training system. As you create more onboarding content, use Loom’s "Folders" feature to stay organized. You might have folders for:
- General Company Culture & Tools
- Department-Specific Tasks (e.g., Marketing, Admin, Finance)
- Client-Specific Walkthroughs
By organizing these into a structured library, you can simply send a single folder link to a new hire. This is particularly helpful when you are working with executive assistants or personal assistants who need to hit the ground running.
Moving From DIY to a Fully Managed System
Learning how to record and edit your first Loom video for onboarding new staff is the first step toward reclaiming your time as a business owner. However, as your business scales, creating every single SOP and training video yourself can become its own full-time job.
The most successful entrepreneurs realize that while they can do everything, they shouldn't. Recording these videos is a great start, but managing the people who follow them is where the real growth happens. If you find yourself overwhelmed by the administrative burden of training and managing staff, it might be time to look at professional support.
At Virtual Nexgen Solutions, we specialize in providing highly trained, human virtual assistants who understand how to take your recorded instructions and turn them into seamless business operations. Whether you need help with office administration or specialized support for real estate, our team is ready to step in.
We don't just provide "help": we provide specialized human talent that integrates into your workflow, using the very tools like Loom that you've just mastered. Imagine recording a video once and having a dedicated professional handle that task perfectly from then on.
Ready to Scale Your Team the Right Way?
If you are ready to stop doing the "busy work" and start focusing on high-level strategy, let’s talk. Our human-centric virtual assistant solutions are designed to give you your time back so you can focus on what you do best: growing your business.
Take the next step in your business growth:
- Explore our services: Virtual Nexgen Solutions
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- Get in touch: Contact Us Today
Don't let onboarding become a bottleneck. Master the tools, record your processes, and then let the experts at Virtual Nexgen Solutions help you manage the rest. Schedule a consultation with our team today to find the perfect human talent for your business needs.