During this time of ever changing technology with the new release of the iPad, iPhone4, the Android, and obstacle course games you control with your brain, it’s no question that websites are becoming more technologically integrated with things like java, flash, and multimedia. Multimedia, especially in the journalism world, is becoming so common, that they’re creating emphases in universities solely devoted to multimedia – I should know, it was one of mine. Adding multimedia components to your website could be a positive way to catch your audiences attention, however, too much multimedia could cause the completely opposite effect you were going for.

Creating Proper Multimedia For Your Wholesale Website

Why use multimedia, and what is its downside?

Studies have shown that multimedia is a very effective way to catch your customer’s attention. Multimedia ads have a 71% higher impact on customers than say text alone.  It has been shown that multimedia adds to websites and can also clarify whatever it’s trying to portray rather than something that is static. The reason multimedia is so appealing is its ability to reach more senses than say text will. You hear something, you see something moving, you can click something and move it – it’s a lot more interactive. However, as great as multimedia sounds, if you don’t have the skills to produce your own high-quality products, it means you have to find someone who will, which can be expensive.

The Basic Stages Of A Multimedia Project

Whether you want a really nice introduction to your website (a good example of this is photography websites), or want to create an advertisement video for one of your products or business, they all start relatively in the same place.

1. Creative Development

This is where you want to figure out what type of thing you want your multimedia to do. Do you want to make a nice flash slideshow that has clickable arrows and music in the background? Do you want to have an interactive room for your custom baby products, so the mothers can see what things would look like when finished? It’s all possible. You want to always think of strong ideas opposed to getting as much sensory overload as possible. Some of the most compelling multimedia products are simple, clean, and don’t attack the customer – they present a strong idea. This is where most of the money is going to be spent if you hire a team to do this for you. Keep in mind if you do decide it’s in your budget to have a design team take on a project for you, the best way to get the most innovative creative ideas is to get a team or firm of designers, rather than just having one person figure it out themselves.

2. Actual Production

Depending on the parameters of your concept – the amount of animation, complexity, quality of the design, etc. – will greatly depend on how much you’re going to spend at this stage. One trick to saving money in this stage, and really the whole production, is to create a fixed price that the team has to work under. This way they won’t charge you over what you’ve established and you won’t have to worry about going over your initial budget.

3. Revision Stages

There is going to be revision in each stage. In the creative development, this could be changing concepts, then a draft of the final should be developed in the production stage, and ultimately a final review before they turn the product to you. To save money in the area of revisions, make sure to have only one contact point in your company. If you have four people the designers have to go through, then it could get drawn out and only minor revisions will be made. If this is the kind of project you want to oversee directly, have the designers only come to you. If it’s something you don’t want to take on and you have enough staff helping you out, delegate that responsibility to someone who shares the same kind of vision for your website.

Whatever you decide to do, multimedia is an investment. You’re going to want something that not only is high quality and achieves the goals you set out for it to do in an effective manner, you don’t want to break your bank doing it. If you’re not in the financial stage to do it right now, then just hang tight – as your business grows and progresses, so does your opportunities to add bigger and better things to your website. Just like any growing business, it takes time and finances to create something big.

Uncategorized, website design / help