Flimpbruary Day 2: Digital Asset Best Practices

Making a flimp video landing page (VLPs) is extremely simple.  The FLIMP Platform was designed for individuals who may not be interactive developers or even interactive designers.  The drag & drop WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) lets flimp makers design custom VLPs withing their own brand standards.
Two types of digital assets may be used to create a flimp:  digital images and audiovisual content.
Digital Images:

Images are a great way to liven up a VLP.  Logos and photos naturally comprise most digital images, but body/text copy can be saved as an image and used on the VLP.  Images provide an added benefit: they can either link directly to a web page, link to an email address and they can link to the “Send to a Friend” or “Default Response Form.”

Any digital image that has been saved as either a .jpg, .png or .gif file can be uploaded to an account’s image library.  If a flimpmaker is creating the flimp solely using the drag & drop WYSIWYG, image best practices include:

  • Sizing the image to the size that it needs to be used on the flimp VLP will provide the greatest clarity.  If a logo needs to fit in a 210 pixel height by 39 pixel width space, save it as that size before uploading it into the Image Library.
  • Saving the digital image in a specific format may provide greater design flexibility.  PNG files can have what’s called an “alpha transparency,” where parts of the image can be partially or completely opaque.  This enables images, especially logos, to appear to be “floating” on top of the flimp VLP.  This is especially beneficial if you are using a background color and your image normally appears within either a white or color box.  The “alpha transparency” eliminates the box around the image.
  • GIF files have limited transparency, meaning parts of the image can be either completely transparent or completely opaque. 
  • JPG files cannot have transparency.  If an image, especially a logo, has been designed to sit on a color, that color will be apparent in the background of the VLP.  Many designers will convert an image to have a white background, offering design flexibility.
  • Images used on a flimp VLP can be placed on top of design elements, including text, shapes and even other images, by utilizing the layering tools, located in the WYSIYG toolbar.  Layering images can give your VLP some design complexity.
  • Consider an “advanced” flimp making approach.  Create a full template, save it as a digital file, upload it to the Image Library, then save it as a Background Image in the “Flimp Settings” area.  While an image uploaded to a background is initially static, you can turn any area on this image into a live web link by utilizing the Image Overlay located in every Image Library.  Add the overlay, set it to the invisible transparency and your static areas are now live web links.
Audiovisual Content:
Online video is the reason for a video landing page!
  • Sizing the video to the dimensions it needs to be on the VLP will provide the greatest clarity.  The flimp’s video player can support video up to a 640 width or up to a 500 height in size.
  • The FLV (flash video) files added to your Video Library should be saved at a 400 bit rate. 
  • A thumbnail must be saved for every video loaded into your Video Library.  The thumbnail is the video image that is captured with the flimp snapshot and it is also the final frame of the video displayed after the video stops playing.  Place consideration to which frame of the video becomes your thumbnail.  If you don’t like your thumbnail, no worries, you can always change it.
  • Once video has been placed on your video landing page, consider adding design features including rounded corners and/or a drop shadow.  This may enhance the design of your VLP.
  • In “Flimp Settings” consider adding a video play arrow to your flimp VLP, especially if you are going to be distributing your VLP via email or embedding it into a website.  The play arrow is a visual queue to the viewer reminding them that there is a video to watch.
Here is an example of a flimp video saved with rounded corners, a slight drop shadow and the ever important play arrow feature:
Tomorrow’s Best Practice is “Viewability.”

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