New to HTML5/CSS3 etc...

Nobody likes intro videos on a website. They're annoying and drive away visitors.

Just say no.

 

Well, it's not that easy I think. I always thought it makes no sense because I think they are super annoying and make me click the back button instantly. But just because we think it is annoying does not mean everybody elese thinks the same. I did a little testing and I found out that 80% of all visitors were staying 2,5 times longer. The other 20% quit instantly. This is no general rule or something. It just shows that in some cases and on some websites it may make a lot of sense. See also this source about that.

 

"make the website look a bit more professional" is not a good reason to put a video there, just saying.

What you want to do should be possible with Javascript or CSS transitions, but you'll probably need to overlay the video page on top of the next page rather than actually go to a new url. If you want to time it all so it automatically transitions when the video is done playing, that will be a lot more difficult.

 

Every site owner that puts a video up thinks that. Do you really think someone thinks "This video is annoying, but I'm going to put it up anyway"? Every owner thinks that their video is somehow different, and that the users really want to see it.

They don't. Ever.

 

Then don't come on and ask people who know what they're doing. It's a bad idea. It's about the worst thing you can do for SEO or marketing. And in general, it's just a horrible user experience.

 

You should avoid intro videos or let the user choose to proceed to the website.
Those are only useful to drive away visitors if you are not really into the video industry (=video is what you sell and do for living).

 

Well-written copy, with an optional (click-to-start) video on the actual home page. Splash pages (video or otherwise) don't achieve the goals that you're trying to meet. The teacher of the marketing class clearly has no business teaching. Unless the class was taught in 2001 ;-)

 

In general no, but a quick opening trailer or demo reel for a filmmaker's or movie's website would be a time when i think it works.

by the way, the original poster wasn't asking for artistic/marketing critique on whether to put a video on the opening page or not, but rather simply a technical question about how to go about it.

 

No. Even in those instances, it's annoying, arrogant and amateurish. If people want to watch a video, they'll press the play button. Same with background music. There's a reason the entire web has moved away from that type of site design. The user is in control of the user experience, not the web designer. With the move to mobile web + capped data plans, it's even more of a bad idea.

The OP (who admittedly knows nothing about web design) asked how to do something that is a bad idea. The experienced members of the site told him it's a bad idea. That's the correct response. Just like if a first-time visitor to a home-repair forum asks how to do something that is obviously a bad idea. It's up to the more experienced members to share the knowledge that it's not a good idea to continue down that road.

 

You may not have been asking for an opinion but it would be in your best interest to think about the advice that you have been given. It is good advice and it was given to help you. Stubbornness and single-minded focus only works for the truly gifted, not the clueless.

 

Hmm, maybe MacRumors should add an intro video explaining how they are the best Apple related rumors site so that every time you come to this site you see the video. As long as they provide a link to bypass the video as an option, it shouldn't be a problem right? As long as it's "professional" there's no better way to achieve the goal of the video.

/s

 

edit: read other posts

 

d88co88: Have you gotten an answer from anyone yet? I haven't seen a technical response on the thread, so I'll add one in case nobody has responded privately. jPlayer has an "ended" callback where you could fade the video and do whatever else you need to display the homepage. The best action depends on the design, so I can't say much more without an idea about that. How similar is the landing page is to the main page? Note: which player you're planning to use also effects the solution.

For the record, I don't like splash pages with videos either, but I recognize that clients are the ones who make the decisions. That said, I do recommend discussing the video with them. It took me some time before I was confident enough to discuss decisions with clients. As long as they know they have the final say, it adds value to the relationship. Perhaps you already have discussed the drawbacks with them.

The clients you want are the ones who trust your expertise. They're easier to work with, and your experience will be more rewarding.

 

+1000 on this. If you want me to do work for you, it's because of the experience and expertise I bring to the equation. If you're constantly challenging/ignoring that experience, I don't need you as a client.

 

I am not sure how to add a transition, however you could have a webpage with the video on it as your homepage by naming it index.html, then have the webpage automatically go to your website after the video using a javascript timeout. I will not write the actual code for this, but I am sure with this you can figure it out using google searches. Hint, you can use the <object> tag to play the video.

Hope this helps!

 

Malarkey!

 

Hey,

Yes its possible without the use of flash. HTML5 helps you to put up a video without the need to embed it.

Anyway make sure that the video is short so as not to drive the viewers away.

 

Good idea. With a splash page most will probably click straight pass it and go to the main site (thus rendering it pointless - just another bridge for the user to cross). Others will just click off the site altogether, especially if they have a slow connection or computer or are using a mobile device.