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Comment by ttrmw | Hacker News Reader

Dunno that it's awkwardness so much as the discomfort of watching someone with pretty messed up teeth forcing too-large ID brushes in between them

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Thank you all very much for the feedback, it gives me a new perspective on things. We wanted to show a real case, rather than animations, because we thought it would be clearer for our patients; but we are probably desensitized to watching stuff like this. Would you prefer to see a 3D animation instead, or something else?

I actually really prefer the videos of real people doing the thing! I've literally never seen a video of how to floss - even at the dentist they show you how on a little model.

Thanks for sharing these!

I'm glad they were useful to you.

I watched all the patient videos and found them helpful. There's no substitute for seeing examples with a real mouth.

The interdental brush video is a bit more "intense" than the rest. Can't be helped: you need to show someone with teeth gaps. Perhaps move that one down in the list so newcomers start with a more gentle video?

Thank you for the feedback, I'm glad you found them helpful!

I wanted the interdental cleaning part to come first, because it usually gets neglected and it's just as important as tooth brushing.

But I like your suggestion to change the order, as that would indeed give a gentler introduction.

We want clean, healthy and attractive teeth and mouths to stare at. Rather than the e.g. inter-dental mouth that triggers disgust even if realistic. Use the attractive models in the video if they have healthy teeth ideally.

Thank you for the feedback, that's a point that several commenters have brought up.

The problem with the interdental brushing video specifically is that we can't show how to use larger brushes on young healthy patients, as they don't have the spaces for it. But I will think about how we can improve that video (the comment above suggested moving it down in the page, to start with the 'gentler' videos).

Another perspective, I don't mind the real videos. They are helpful. It might be easier to for some watch if the subjects had fairly nice teeth. I think animations would be less helpful.

This exactly. I don't think the average person is as comfortable as a medical professional at starting at videos/images of messed up teeth, injuries, disease, etc. It's not exactly what we want to stare at when learning.

Also, while I'm at it, I'd suggest maybe putting an hour or two of research into how to make content… exciting? I know you're a dentist and a software engineer, not a YouTuber, but it's worth looking up a bit about what YouTubers and entertainers know about how to hold an audience's attention. Just a few small changes can probably result in a 1.5-3x improvement in the number of people who make it to the end of a video.

Another perspective, I don't feel like these informational videos need to be exciting. For this, I feel like 'just the facts' are a breath of fresh air.

Maybe exciting is the wrong word, but compelling is a better one.

For example, just the order of how you present information matters. Compare these two approaches:

1. "If you don't floss enough, then <BadThing> may happen. Here's tips on how to floss: A, B, C."

2. "Here's tips on how to to floss: A, B, C. Btw, this can help prevent <BadThing>."

The first is better. "Boring" information ceases to be boring and instead becomes compelling when you have a strong reason to want to know the information. Thus, it's important to hook people by giving them that motivational reason to watch/listen before you jump right into a video or article. Otherwise, you will likely only retain viewers who already arrive with their own personal motivations.

The very first video, pinned to the top, is titled "Why is oral hygiene important?" and lists both <BadThing> and <GoodThing>.

The site follows approach 1 as you suggest (at least it does today).

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