I recently discussed the capabilities of the video player with one of our key account customers, during the Project Launch phase. Before the advent of BEML, the primary choice was between adopting an existing template or completely creating a custom video player using Flash and/or JavaScript.
With BEML, the scope of player functionality has fundamentally changed (for the better), as everyone except those with a Brightcove basic account (sorry “basic” people) can easily create a custom template to suit their needs. For most of us, it’s quicker and easier just to duplicate an existing template and modify the BEML code accordingly to create a variant that suits our needs. However, the real power of BEML is that it’s perfectly possible – and indeed advisable – to specify all the features of the video player.
So what are the key points to consider? Here’s a loose list of questions I use to help my customers identify the parameters needed to build a customized player.
- At what point in the user experience does my player appear? In what context?
- What do I want a user to do while watching a video? switch to full screen, read an article
- What do I want a user to do once they’ve seen the video? see more videos in the same player, navigate to a page with similar content, send it to a friend?
- What type of content will the player display? ratio, quality.
- What user interface elements do I want to include? – menu overlay, playlist, control buttons
- What styling considerations do I need to take into account?
- Do I need a specific label? To reach a niche or non-English-speaking market?
- How much space does my player need and how does it resize? elasticized vs. fixed layout
- What display advertising capabilities does my player need? banner, extended banner, background banner.
- What brand marketing capabilities should my player have? Logo, colors, images
- Does my player need to be syndicated or virally distributed? Does it need to look good in a context where I don’t control the environment?
- What specific options does my player need? chaptering, custom buttons, you name it.
- Do I need to step up my skills to achieve the above, or do I need help from Brightcove or a partner to do so?
There are still a lot of questions that can be asked, but the ones mentioned above seem to be a good starting point.
