After delivering a live, one-hour webcast to pan-European colleagues, major brand Kellogg’s is planning to use the technology regularly to facilitate corporate meetings and presentations, and has contracted Dublin firm DV4 to make it happen.
The initial project required DV4 to create an online video presentation, complete with interactive supportive materials, which enabled Kellogg’s senior management in Ireland to deliver a live, one-hour, pan-European presentation.
Now, the major cereal brand is planning to use the technology regularly to boost communication with colleagues across Europe.
“What’s interesting about webcasting technology is the fact that there’s a lot of interactivity built-in,” explained Liam Ward, co-founder of the Dublin agency DV4.
“It provides the ability to watch videos and add in polls into a single experience.”
The project is the latest in a series of similar projects for the firm, which has established an international pedigree in online broadcasting. Webcasting clients include TV3, 98FM, Reading Festival, Fianna Fáil, Leviathan and the Department of the Environment.
“What Kellogg’s found was webcasting amounted to a very positive experience, and it found synergies with the way of working created,” said Ward.
Ward’s colleague Simon Fine said that deciding on content is usually the big challenge when setting out on a webcasting project. “It takes different amounts of time with different customers. People who are new to webcasting want to throw every PowerPoint up on it. The challenge is to keep it specific in order to keep people’s attention. It is a different way of presenting content during a meeting.
“With Kellogg’s, there were detailed slides and a mix of pre-recorded content and interactive feedback. This is a formula we believe works.”
According to Fine, the move to webcasting by business could represent a significant means of cutting costs in these tough economic times.
“We delivered this webcast to executives in 17 countries. Imagine trying to get all those people to one place just for a meeting. You would be spending €25,000 just to get 25 people there. By moving to a webcasting situation, you reduce the costs by 70pc and you have a facility to deliver content on demand.
“When you look at the fact that more people have broadband and most computers come with webcams, you’ll see this route is a lot more cost-effective,” Fine added.
The European programme director for Kellogg’s Europe Trading Limited, Tim Mulcahy, said the webcast proved a successful and cost-effective way of sharing key messages with staff in Europe.
“The DV4 best-of-breed webcast system delivers high-quality video, along with a series of attractively designed slides to an audience who have the capability of interacting with the presenters either live or on-demand,” Mulcahy said.
By John Kennedy
Pictured: Liam Ward, managing director, and Simon Fine, sales & marketing manager, DV4
