How to Make a Welcome Video with Synthesia
A practical 2026 path for CX and People: write a 30–60 second hello from the first-day invite or Day-1 note, put a Synthesia host next to one slide if the public product shows the next door, generate the cut, and drop the MP4 or share link onto the welcome email, first-login page, or new-hire note above what they should do after they watch — without filming the founder every time the first button moves. Built from Synthesia's live docs and pricing (August 2026).
Most “AI welcome video” posts skip the two facts that actually decide the project. First: a first-day clip is not a handbook tour and it is not a how-do-I. It is 30–60 seconds that says hello, names who it is for, and closes on what they should do after they watch — open the invite email, start the first workspace, reply to the Day-1 note. Second: the tool this site sends for that talking-head file is Synthesia (synthesia.io). This guide is the working path when you will not film the founder every time the first button or the first channel moves: hello, host, one picture if the product shows the next door, generate, shelf.
When a first-day hello needs an avatar — and when it doesn't
Use an avatar when the welcome email, the first-login page, or the Day-1 note needs a face and you cannot or will not sit a named founder or CSM at a desk every time product renames Start workspace or People moves the first Slack channel. Edit the line, swap the one slide, generate again. That is the economic case.
Skip the avatar if they only need the written sentence. Skip it if the first day has to be a live circle — the clip closes with “open this email” or “reply to your manager,” it does not replace a human handshake. Skip it if the file is a multi-chapter handbook — the HR how-to walks culture, benefits, and tools. Skip it if the file is an internal SOP — the training how-to is the other desk. Skip it if the file is a public how-do-I — the customer-FAQ how-to answers one published question. Skip it if the file is a handbook amendment — the policy-update how-to reads a signed clause. Skip it if the file is a changelog — the release-notes how-to names what shipped. Skip it if the file is a Friday comms blast — the internal-update how-to names what changed this week.
The seven-step Synthesia welcome video
- 01
Write a 30–60 second hello from the first-day door, not from a handbook
A welcome video is one hello and one next action, spoken. Open on who is speaking to whom — a first-day customer or a new hire — then say you are glad they are here in one breath, then close on the one thing they do after the last line: open the invite email, start the first workspace, reply to the Day-1 note their manager sent. Copy the words CX or People already send in that first note. Time it out loud. Most first-day hellos sit between 30 and 60 seconds. If you wanted a multi-chapter handbook walk, that is the HR onboarding how-to. If you wanted a how-we-do-this lesson, that is the training how-to. If you wanted a public how-do-I, that is the customer-FAQ how-to. If you wanted a handbook amendment, that is the policy-update how-to. If you wanted a changelog read, that is the release-notes how-to.
- 02
Confirm a talking-head hello is the right format
Use a presenter when the welcome email, the first-login page, or the Day-1 note needs a face and you will not film the founder, the CSM, or a camera every time the invite button or the first Slack channel moves. Skip the avatar for a live welcome circle, a manager 1:1, or a written note that does not need a voice. Skip it if the file is really a handbook tour, an SOP lesson, a public FAQ answer, a signed clause, a Friday comms blast, or a shipping-notes cut. The avatar is a welcome host saying hello and pointing at the next door, not a substitute for a human first week and not a substitute for the written invite.
- 03
Open Synthesia (synthesia.io) — check the domain
Synthesia is the presenter desk this page is written for. On the home screen, start a blank video — Synthesia’s assistant help currently labels that Create video; some workspaces still show New video. Same start. Synthesys (synthesys.io) is a different company. HeyGen and a Loom-style recorder show up in the same “AI welcome video” search; they are editorial mentions here, not hops. Mixing the names is the expensive mistake. This page sends you to Synthesia only. The welcome email, the first-login page, and the Day-1 note are shelves, not hops.
- 04
Pick one stock avatar as the welcome host
Select the Avatar tab in the top menu and choose one stock presenter. Keep that face for this hello and for later recuts when the invite button, the first channel, or the owner of the note moves. A welcome read is second-person and specific: you, this first day, this next door. Head-and-shoulders. Do not commission a founder or CSM likeness until CX or People have watched a stock cut of the real hello. Do not clone a founder voice unless you have written consent. One host. One crop. One hello.
- 05
Add one slide if the public product shows the next door
The picture job is a single visual the avatar can point at: the hello, the one next action. If the welcome names a public first-day screen — the invite email, Start workspace, the Day-1 checklist — select Media at the top of the canvas and choose Upload media — Synthesia’s help lists images as .jpeg, .png, and .svg. Export that one welcome slide as an image and upload it. Import PowerPoint exists for a full .pptx; for one hello card, the image upload is enough. If the next door only makes sense on a live public product screen, select Record at the top of the canvas, then Record Screen (Full Screen, Window, or Browser Tab), or Upload screen recording if you already have an MP4 — crop anything that should not leave the welcome email. Place the visual beside or under a head-and-shoulders crop. We do not invent a “welcome” or “hello” template. If your workspace has a saved layout, use it. If it does not, Media or Record plus the Avatar is the whole move. If the next action is a reply with no public screen, skip the upload and let Text carry the hello.
- 06
Paste the script, then Generate
Select a scene in the left scene menu, open the script box, and paste the spoken hello. Split the greeting and the “what you do after this” beat across scenes if you want a pause on the slide. Use Generate at the top right. If the file will play muted on a welcome tile or in an inbox preview, turn Burned-in captions on in that panel before you generate. Preview a scene first if you only need to check framing — Synthesia’s preview help says a preview does not use credits; Generate consumes minutes. Watch the first second, the hello, the one visual, and the close that names the next door. Mouth-sync is consistently strong in English and major European languages. Hand gestures loop. These are narrators. Edit the line and generate again instead of re-booking the founder.
- 07
Download the MP4 or copy the share link, then drop it on the welcome email, first-login, or Day-1 note
A clean download starts on a paid plan — Synthesia’s download help says Basic and trial users cannot download. After generate, use the three-dot menu and choose Download, then the MP4 (Full HD 1080p). Or open Share, create a link, and copy the link or the embed code; Synthesia’s share help says an embed updates when you edit. The same Share path can copy a GIF thumbnail for email. Paste the embed above the written hello on the first-login page or the welcome email, or upload the MP4 if that editor wants a file. Put the same next-step line in the note intro that you put on the slide: open the invite, start the workspace, reply to your manager. Keep the written hello under the player. Name the export so the next recut is obvious: welcome-first-workspace_aug_v1. When the button or the first channel moves, change that line, generate, bump the version, replace the file or the link.
Welcome-host avatar vs a written note vs filming the founder
“AI welcome video” is a search, not a product. The decision is the format. Plan names and download gates on the Synthesia column match the live synthesia.io/pricing page as of August 2026. Confirm the current grid before you tell CX or People the export is included.
| Criterion | Welcome-host avatar (Synthesia) | Written welcome email / Day-1 note | Film the founder / CSM / manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| What the first-day person sees | A host talking to camera next to one slide that says hello and names the next door | A sentence they were already going to skim | A real person, a real hour, a file that ages the week the invite button moves |
| When it is the right buy | The welcome email, first-login, or Day-1 note needs a 30–60s face and you will not re-film every recut | They only need the sentence, not a presenter | The face has to be that person, once, and will not be recut |
| What you re-do when the first door moves | Edit the line and swap the one slide, generate again, replace the email or page object | Revise the sentence — no voice to update | Re-book the founder, the room, and an editor |
| Where it lives | A welcome email, a first-login page, or a Day-1 note, above the written hello and the one action they take after the clip | The same email or page, as text | A one-off attach that CX or People will forget to replace |
| Best 2026 fit | A single first-day hello you will keep current: the greeting, the next door, one thing they do after they watch | The source of truth the clip should quote, not replace | A named-leader letter that cannot be an avatar |
Synthesia
A welcome-host presenter reading a 30–60s first-day hello, with one slide if the product shows the next door. Free Basic to audition; a paid plan is where a clean welcome-email download starts.
A 30–60s welcome script is the hello, then the next door
Do not write a handbook and hope someone cuts it down. Open the invite email, the first-login screen the customer will actually use, or the Day-1 note People already sends: the greeting as they should hear it, the one thing they will do after the last line. Those sentences are the script. If a first button is still in review, that clip waits. An avatar pointing at last year’s Start workspace is worse than a written note, because it sounds finished.
Four beats, in this order. Say hello in the first sentence. Name who it is for in one line. Point at the one public screen or the one reply path against the one picture. Close on one action they take after they watch: open the invite, start the first workspace, reply to the Day-1 note. Second person. No joke about “onboarding being fun now.” Time it out loud: 30 seconds is a tight hello; 60 seconds is a hello plus one “what this is not” beat. Longer than that and you are making a handbook or a lesson.
A first-day customer hello that fits the window sounds like this — about 45 seconds when you say it, not when you skim it:
Welcome. You are in. After this clip, open the email we just sent, click Start workspace, and name your first project. That is the only door this file cares about. This is not a how-do-I and it is not a product tour. If the invite is not in your inbox, check the address you used to sign up, then use the resend link on this same page. We will see you in the workspace.
A new-hire hello uses the same skeleton, not the handbook:
Welcome to the team. After this clip, open the Day-1 note your manager sent and reply there with the time you will be at your desk. This file is hello and the next door. It is not the handbook, not a lesson, and not a policy. The handbook is a later file. If you do not have that note yet, ping your manager in the channel printed under this video — do not wait for a second welcome.
A “your trial is live” or a “your first ticket is assigned” hello uses the same bones. Name the greeting, name who it is for, point at one public screen if the product shows it, close on the door they use after the clip. Do not stack a culture speech, a six-slide handbook, and a how-do-I in a single file. One hello, one next step.
Do not write a learning objective with a quiz. Do not write a Friday Slack recap. Do not write a handbook acknowledgment. Do not write a shipping list. Do not ask the avatar to “sound like the founder.” These presenters are narrators: blink cadence, micro head-tilt, a looping hand. On a head-and-shoulders framing that is enough. Full breakdown of what the avatars actually do is in our Synthesia review.
Pick one welcome host. Keep that face.
Select the Avatar tab in the top menu. Choose one stock presenter and keep that face when you recut the series so the first-day page does not look like a new hire every hello. A welcome host says you and this first day. It is not a lesson host walking an internal SOP, not an FAQ host answering a how-do-I, not a policy host reading a handbook, not a comms host reading Friday’s brief, and not a release host reading a changelog.
A custom founder or CSM likeness is a later decision, not the first invoice. Prove the script on a stock presenter. Personal avatars sit on paid plans — confirm the current count on synthesia.io/pricing. Synthesia’s pricing grid lists a Studio Express-1 avatar as a $1,000/year add-on that can take up to ten days. Clone a voice only with written consent. The consent rule is the same one in How to clone your voice for YouTube.
One slide if the public product shows the next door
People watch these muted, on a phone, above a welcome paragraph. The voice is not enough when the next door is a public screen. Pick one visual the avatar can point at for the whole cut: the hello card, or one pass of Start workspace. Not both. Not a tour. If the next action is a reply with no public screen — a manager note, a channel — skip the upload and put the hello in Text.
If the welcome is a slide you own, select Media at the top
of the canvas and choose Upload media. Synthesia’s media
help lists images as .jpeg, .png,
and .svg, and videos as .mp4 or
.webm. Export one hello card from the invite
draft as an image and upload that. Import PowerPoint is a
home-screen path for a full .pptx — useful when
you already have the deck, easy to overshoot when you only
need one frame. We do not invent a “welcome video” control.
If your workspace has a saved layout, use it. If it does
not, this upload is the whole move.
If the next door only makes sense on a live public product screen — the invite confirm, Start workspace, the first project name — select Record at the top of the canvas. Synthesia’s screen-recorder help lists Record Screen (Full Screen, Window, or Browser Tab) and Upload screen recording for an existing MP4. Crop the chrome you do not want on a first-day email. You are showing the one next door, not walking the whole account console.
Optional on-screen label: select Text at the top of the canvas and pick Title 1 or Title 2 for the hello, Subtitle or Body for the next action. Type the same words the avatar will say. Drag a corner to size it; keep it readable on a narrow welcome column. Do not stack the whole handbook on the card.
Captions: Synthesia’s help lists closed captions, dynamic
captions (Captions in the top menu), and a Burned-in
captions toggle in the Generate panel. For a muted welcome
tile, turn burned-in captions on before you generate. After
generate you can also download .srt or
.vtt from the video menu if the page builder
wants a separate track.
Generate, then export onto the welcome email or first-login page
Generate sits at the top right. Title the file the way the welcome email or the first-login heading is titled. Watch the first second, the one visual, and the close that names what they do after the clip. Proper nouns, button names, and channel names are where these reads go wrong — fix the script, generate again. That loop is the product. A founder re-book is what you are not buying.
A logo-off download starts on Starter. After the render, open the three-dot menu and choose Download, then the MP4 (Synthesia’s help lists Full HD 1080p). Or open Share, create a link, and copy the link or the embed code. The share link is the better shelf when you will recut the same series; the MP4 is the better shelf when the email or page editor wants a file. Interactive buttons and branching cannot go out as an MP4 — leave those off a welcome you need to download. If a last scene still points at a “next scene” instead of ending the video, Synthesia’s download help says the MP4 can stay locked; set that last scene to end, generate again.
Paste the embed, or upload the file, above the written hello on the welcome email, the first-login page, or the Day-1 note. Put the same next-step line in the note intro that you put on the slide. A viewer who cannot play video still needs the sentences. Those destinations are ordinary shelves on this page, not hops — use whatever control that editor already has for an embed or an upload. We do not invent a “Synthesia app” inside that inbox or that login page. SCORM export sits on Enterprise; buy that tier when L&D asks for a package, not for a single English hello you can upload as an MP4.
Name the object so the next person can find it:
welcome-first-workspace_aug_v1,
welcome-day1-reply_sep_v1. When the button or
the first channel changes, edit that line, generate, bump
the version, replace the file or the link. Leave the clips
that are still true.
Which Synthesia plan ships a welcome video in 2026
The live pricing page (August 2026) lists Basic at $0 with 9 avatars and 10 minutes a month. Downloads and logo removal start on Starter at $29/month, or $18/month billed yearly. Creator is $89/month, or $64/month yearly, with more minutes and personal avatars. Languages and voices are published as 160+ on every tier. Confirm the current grid on synthesia.io/pricing before you tell CX or People the download is included — we do not invent a checkout total or a commission rate.
For a first hello, start on Basic with a real invite sentence, not a placeholder greeting. Move to a paid plan when you need a logo-off file or a link you will actually send. Buy Creator for a personal welcome-host avatar or more minutes — not for “more cinema.” Buy Enterprise when brand asks for a kit, IT asks for SSO, or you are ready to localize a locked English master. Confirm commercial and customer-facing terms on the plan you will export from. Ten minutes a month is a handful of 45-second hellos, not a year of recuts.
Localization and other desks are next steps, not this brief
Ship the home-market hello first. A second language is a translation of a signed invite, not a reason to start in Enterprise. When you are ready, lock this cut, then follow how to localize training videos — same loop, different packet. A multi-chapter Day-1 handbook is the HR how-to. An internal how-we-do-this lesson is the training how-to. A public how-do-I is the customer-FAQ how-to. A handbook amendment is the policy-update how-to. A shipping-notes cut is the release-notes how-to.
First-day people still deserve a plain-language note when the presenter is synthetic. Say it on the welcome email or the first-login page, above or under the player: this is a welcome-host avatar reading the current first-day hello. If you later publish the same file on a public platform, you also need that platform’s current disclosure for synthetic media. That is separate from the vendor license. You need both.
The comparison of presenter platforms — including where Synthesys sits as a different company — lives on Synthesia vs Synthesys and Best AI Avatar Video Tools 2026. This page does not hop there. The only Try button here is Synthesia.
HeyGen, a Loom, and a filmed founder — editorial only
Those names sit in the same “AI welcome video” search. HeyGen is the usual Synthesia alternative in reviewer write-ups: faster custom-avatar turnaround, punchier social presenters, less of the LMS/SSO shelf. A Loom or a native screen recorder is the right tool when you do not need a face. A filmed founder is the right tool when the face has to be that person and the file will not be recut. None of them have a live hop on this page, so there is no Try button. If you need the first-day hello we can route, it is Synthesia.