How to make a welcome video for a new hire
Last updated: October 2026
You can make a welcome video for a new hire in under an hour, with no camera and no editing skills. Start from the Meet the Team template in Biteable, fill in the new person’s name and role, collect one line from a few teammates, add a voiceover and your branding, then send the link before their first day. The copy-paste script below gives you the whole thing to fill in.
Key takeaways
- A welcome video runs 30 to 60 seconds and puts faces to the names before day one, so the new hire walks in already recognizing people.
- Starting from a template and the script below means you fill in blanks instead of writing from scratch.
- Build it once, then reuse it for every hire by swapping the name, role, and photos.
How long does it take to make a welcome video?
Under an hour, and most of that is collecting a few lines from the team rather than anything technical. Here is the pace to aim for.
| Step | What you do | Where in Biteable | Rough time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pick a welcome template | Meet the Team | 2 min |
| 2 | Add the new hire’s name, role, and photo | Editor | 10 min |
| 3 | Drop in a short line from a few teammates | Text scenes | 15 min |
| 4 | Add a voiceover | AI Voice-over | 5 min |
| 5 | Apply your logo and colors | Brand kit | 2 min |
| 6 | Share the link | Export and share | 2 min |
The team lines are the only part that depends on other people, so ask for them first. One sentence each from three colleagues is plenty.
What should a new-hire welcome video include?
Five things, in about a minute. Each one does a specific job, so skipping any of them leaves a gap the new hire will feel.
A clear “this is for you” open. Put the person’s first name on screen in the first two seconds. It signals the video was made for them, not pulled off a shelf, and that difference is the whole point.
A short welcome from their manager. One or two warm sentences in the manager’s own words. This is the line that tells the new hire they made the right choice, so it should sound like a person, not a policy.
The faces of their immediate team. Three to five people they will actually work with, each with a photo, name, and role. Recognizing a face in the first meeting takes the edge off day one more than any onboarding doc does.
One practical detail for day one. Where to be, what time, and who to find first. A new hire’s biggest Monday-morning worry is logistics, so answer it here and you remove the one thing they will actually lie awake about.
A warm, specific close. Not “we look forward to your contributions.” Something human, like “we’re really glad you’re here, see you Monday.” End on the feeling you want them to start with.
Anything beyond these five starts to feel like training, and training can wait until they have logged in.
A welcome video script you can copy
Drop this straight into the Meet the Team template and replace the brackets. It runs about 40 seconds at a normal pace. Keep each line short, because on-screen text and a voiceover both read better in small pieces.
Scene 1 - Title card
Welcome, [First name].
Scene 2 - Manager
Hi [First name], I'm [Manager name], [manager role].
The whole [team name] team is really glad you're joining us.
Scene 3 - The team (photos)
You'll be working closely with:
[Name], [role]
[Name], [role]
[Name], [role]
Scene 4 - Day one
On [start day] at [time], [head to / log in to / find] [place or person].
[One thing to have ready, e.g. "Your laptop will be at your desk."]
Scene 5 - Close
We can't wait to see what you do here.
See you [day].Record the lines yourself or let the AI voiceover read them. The same words work on screen for anyone watching with the sound off.
What to actually say, and what to skip
Keep it in plain, spoken language. “We’re really glad you’re here” lands. “We are pleased to welcome you to the organization” does not. Read your script out loud before you record it, and cut any line you would never say to someone’s face.
Skip the mission statement, the org chart, and the benefits overview. None of that welcomes anyone, and all of it is already waiting in the onboarding docs. The video has one job: make a nervous new person feel like they are walking into a room full of people who are glad they came.
Name specifics wherever you can. “Priya will grab coffee with you Tuesday” beats “your buddy will reach out.” Concrete plans feel like care. Vague ones feel like a form.
Where and when to send it
Timing does as much work as content. Send the link the Friday before they start, so it is waiting over the weekend and sets the tone before day one. Email works, and so does a text if you have their number and it fits your culture.
Some teams play the video at the top of the new hire’s first team meeting, so the whole group shares the moment and the new person sees the room react. Others drop it in the team chat the morning they start. Any of these beats a silent inbox.
The Biteable watch-page link plays anywhere, so you are not wrestling with file sizes or attachments, and you can see that it was watched.
How to reuse it for every new hire
The first one takes under an hour. Every one after that takes about ten minutes, because the structure never changes, only the names.
Save your finished video as your welcome template. When the next hire is confirmed, duplicate it, swap the first name, the team photos, and the day-one details, and you are done. Over a few hires this becomes one of the most reliable warm touches in your onboarding, and it costs almost nothing to keep up.
If you hire in groups, make one per person rather than a single generic clip. The whole value is that it feels personal, and a shared video quietly tells everyone they are interchangeable.
FAQ
Does everyone need to be on camera? No. Photos with a name and role work well, and the Meet the Team template is built for exactly that. Nobody has to film anything.
How long should it be? Aim for 30 to 60 seconds. Long enough to feel personal, short enough that they watch to the end on the first try.
What if the new hire is remote? It matters even more. A remote hire gets no hallway introductions, so the faces and the day-one logistics in the video do work that would otherwise never happen.
Can I reuse it for the next hire? Yes. Duplicate the video, change the name, photos, and details, and the next welcome is ready in minutes.
Who should record the voiceover? The manager is the natural choice, since it is their welcome. If that is not practical, the AI voiceover reads the script cleanly and the words carry the warmth.