Zubrin: Unleashing Flash video

Seamless video clips of a presenter provide summaries and help with navigation.

The Site

Zubrin, a pain relief treatment for dogs, uses seamlessly-incorporated video clips of a presenter to provide summaries and help with navigation throughout the site.

Zubrin is a treatment for canine osteoarthritis produced by US group Schering-Plough. Its brand site is designed to help dog owners recognise symptoms of the disease, as well as promoting the drug.

Many pages, including the home page, load a Flash image in a space at the top. This is filled by a video of Patricia and her dog Sonny, who ‘walk into’ the screen as Patricia starts talking. She gives short marketing messages and demonstrations (for example, showing how to administer treatment) or provides a guide to the page – pointing to links around her. The video is frameless, so that the woman and dog appear to be moving within the web page.

The Takeaway

Flash video is increasingly used on websites. One of its advantages over other forms is that it can allow images to move within an otherwise static web page. Zubrin’s implementation is particularly slick.

Patricia’s scripts are short, complementing or replacing the often lengthy text beneath. The clips are used not just for promotion but also to aid navigation and are sufficiently well done to avoid appearing gimmicky. With broadband widespread in developed countries, they make for an effective and attractive alternative to short text introductions.

First published on 22 January, 2008