In order to boost consumer confidence at the point of purchase online, the web marketing team proposed to created a series of videos that summarize, differentiate and confirm features and functionality for each flavor of Sage 50 software.
Each video targets a specific customer profile, from single-user to enterprise-level businesses.
After gathering input from several teams including sales, marketing, user experience, product and legal, I developed four scripts. Once finalized, I roughed out visuals, animated in Flash and edited voice over and music.
The iconic illustrations are mostly original with a few simple modifications from a set of stock icons to speed up the production, including a few tool icons (screwdriver, wrench, saw, etc.), the forklift, the tractor-trailer, a stop watch and a pad lock. The line elements drifting in the background were part of the Sage brand, along with the color palette.
Sage 50 Complete
Sage 50 Pro
Sage 50 Premium
Sage 50 Quantum
Sage Advisor: Personalization
Sage Advisor is a proprietary system of personalized user assistance created for Sage 50 Accounting software. Upon encountering a task that might be performed more efficiently, customers may trigger tutorial videos from within the software. By tracking customer usage within the software and purchase history, Sage Advisor also recommends relevant partner services, thereby monitizing the user experience through big data while also measuring change in behavior, encouraging customer retention and reducing support call volume. More about the UX strategy by the creator of Sage Advisor here.
The video below was originally an interactive presentation created as an alternative to a Power Point, used to explain Sage Advisor (that's why the separation of sections is choppy) - faint interface controls at the bottom, the user can trigger animations as they speak.
Sage Advisor: Example Show-Me-How Videos
Working with the subject matter expert, I created a library of branded, animated videos for explaining specific tasks. I also edited scripts and recorded and directed voice over with internal voice talent. I designed the player skin, the intro graphic branding treatment (the character was designed by an agency), and I typically animated the character at the conclusion of each video. The musical chime at the beginning of each video was extracted from a song by my friend, Pat Strawser. The usability team identified which features should be addressed with a video, and a trainer developed the scripts which I edited for mechanical errors/improvements. I then worked with voice talent by phone using a studio in New York, and I edited and added audio to each video. I added WebTrends scripts to the html pages that contain each video for tracking purposes.
I also created designs to support Sage Advisor, including a landing page, YouTube channel, custom video player, in-product launch pad, and interactive map created for enrollment into Sage University courses. The landing page showcases the 'Show-me-how' videos, and also includes other videos created by an agency. The page design meets corporate branding guidelines, and I also wrote the descriptive copy for each section.
