I admit that I’m not a big fan of Flash.  I believe it is too often used just for show and rarely does anything to enhance the web site visitor’s experience.

Recently, however, I came across a web site that uses Flash to give their web site visitor a visual, bare bones explanation of what their product does and how it works.

The Flash movie is on the home page for a web design product called “SiteGrinder.”   Here’s why I believe it is a good use of Flash and why it works:

1. It explains what the product does in a very simple, easy-to-understand language. In addition, it uses a couple of basic screen shots to demonstrate how the product operates.  It works because it gives the viewer a good understanding of the product without them having to do a lot of reading.
2. It loads quickly and it’s short. It takes less than 20 seconds to watch it from beginning to end.  It works because it is to the point without any fluff.  After playing through once, the movie starts over and replays indefinitely.  It works because the viewer can watch it as many times as they want without having to diddle with play and stop buttons.
3. It contains a “call to action.” Directly underneath the Flash movie is a large button that says “Learn More.”  It works because it is a call to action – it guides the user to the next logical step in the buying process. The “Learn More” button is available to click at anytime during the movie or after.  It works because the viewer can click it whenever they are ready to move on without having to wait until the movie is finished.

All of these features contribute to a Flash presentation that does an excellent job of introducing the product to the web site visitor while drawing them in.  It is an educational tool and a sales tool wrapped up in one.

Well done, SiteGrinder!

As a side note, SiteGrinder looks like it could be an excellent product to speed up the web design process.  It is a Photoshop plugin that takes a web page that has been designed in Photoshop and slices it and puts into HTML/CSS code, potentially saving you hours worth of work.  Once version 3 is released.. I’ll be downloading the trial version and posting a review.

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