The Wide World of Flash

Visitors to the Good to Grow! Web site log in to access their personal tree, decorated with a different Flash-animated "sticker" for each healthy lifestyle choice they make.

Flash, it seems, is everywhere. You may know that Flash can jazz up a Web site, but what, exactly, is it and how can you use it to promote your company?

Adobe Flash (typically referred to simply as “Flash”) is a set of multimedia software that is commonly used to create animations, advertisements and other interactive components for Web sites. But Flash can also be used to create traditional multimedia presentations, integrate video into Web pages and to develop Internet applications and games.

Flash bridges the gap between traditional multimedia and the Internet, enabling Web developers to embed dynamic content – such as video, audio and animation – without subjecting site visitors to long waits or extensive downloads. With its dominance in the market – Adobe estimates that 99 percent of U.S. Internet users have a current version of Adobe Flash Player installed – Flash is accessible to a wide audience. Some Web sites are built almost exclusively in Flash, creating an attractive, fully interactive experience for site visitors, while others only rely on Flash elements to lend dynamic effects to their site navigation. Whether Flash is used on a small or large scale, it’s important to remember that search engines cannot always read or search Flash content. This is why many leading Web sites use a combination of Flash and HTML elements to balance searchability with the overall user experience.

Flash allowed Brady Communications to create an animation-rich, interactive Web site for the Association of Children’s Museum’s Good to Grow! family health initiative.

We also used Flash to create an online presentation promoting one of Tippmann Sports’ new paintball products.

With the addition of a menu and user-guided features, Flash presentations can be even more interactive. The online presentation we created for Pittsburgh Paints Manor Hall Timeless allows users to create their own experience, navigating the presentation according to their individual interests.

But Flash is not limited to online applications; it can also be used to produce professional, dynamic multimedia presentations for events, sales presentations and trade shows. Using photos, illustrations, music and text, Brady Communications created a four-minute multimedia opening for Wesley Spectrum Services’ annual gala. Since the event, the same presentation has been used as a fundraising tool.

Twelve years after its introduction, Flash is still revolutionizing the Internet and multimedia. The software is now being used to develop intricate Web applications that allow users to edit their photos online, navigate world maps or even plan out their dream homes using an interactive floor plan.

So when it comes to promoting your company with Flash, the possibilities are endless – and growing each day. Don’t overlook this powerful tool for catching – and keeping – your customers’ attention.