Waitrose has selected cloud content provider Brightcove to run a new online food channel.
Designed to help inspire a nation of cooks, Waitrose TV, launched in Autumn last year, is the first purely food-related online video channel from a retailer, according to Waitrose, and is available across multiple devices including desktops, tablets and smartphones.
Powered by Video Cloud with an innovative click-to-buy functionality, Waitrose TV is designed to provide engaging, interactive video experiences.
Waitrose TV features six channels, including a weekly-updated ‘highlights’ channel, plus channels dedicated to food, drink, health, ethical sourcing and seasonal events and holidays. It also features how-to guides, interviews and exclusive recipes from experts including top celebrity cooking talent Heston Blumenthal, Lisa Faulkner, Dhruv Baker, Sam Stern, The Fabulous Baker Brothers and Silvana Franco.
Commenting on the adoption of Brightcove Video Cloud, Courtney Freedman-Thompson, Digital Editor at Waitrose, said: “With our customers increasingly consuming video content online, we wanted to develop an engaging means of providing shoppers with inspiration for new recipes and dishes to try out for themselves. Using the Video Cloud platform has enabled us to deliver a high-quality user experience with smooth playback and engaging calls-to-action within video content, allowing viewers to easily buy ingredients for recipes they wish to try out at home.”
In addition to its ‘buy ingredients’ functionality, Video Cloud also enables Waitrose TV viewers to find and watch additional related videos and share their favourite videos via Facebook and Twitter. Using Brightcove Video Cloud, Waitrose is able to deliver engaging, interactive online video experiences that help build and strengthen the Waitrose brand, drive audience engagement, increase website dwell-time and repeat visits, and ultimately convert that engagement into positive, measurable sales results.
Sue Thexton, Senior Vice President, EMEA Sales, Brightcove, said: “Consumers are redefining the nature of online shopping by demanding richer, more sophisticated user experiences, which in turn provides online retailers with a highly compelling means of boosting their customer relationships online. What’s more, the growth of connected devices has opened the floodgates of opportunity for retailers to engage far more effectively with their audiences, converting online shoppers into loyal buyers. We are delighted to be able to participate in such an innovative, visually-rich online television project which has the high-quality look and feel that is unquestionably Waitrose.”
Waitrose launched its first live cookery show via the Waitrose TV channel in an hour-long episode aired in the run-up to Christmas 2012.
Powered by Brightcove Video Cloud, the programme showcased festive recipes, from party food to producing a flawless Christmas dinner, as well as offering viewers the opportunity to have their questions answered by the experts.
http://www.brightcove.com
