Victoria's Secret Plugs Swimwear With Video

Victoria's Secret, a division of Intimate Brands, has long been regarded as a Web marketing pioneer. They were among the first to attempt a massive webcast, and lure of women in underwear created a stronger audience response then predicted. The name Victoria's Secret still rings sensitive in the ears of many a webcaster.

Nonetheless, the retailer has moved to continue innovating its online presence by integrating an interactive video presentation into its swimwear site, Top Trends for Swim 2001. The site www.victoriassecret.com/html/swim is "virtually" hosted by supermodel Heidi Klum.

The interactive video portion of the site was built using Interactive Video Technologies' (www.ivtweb.com) VirtualGuide application, which is generated using IVT's Internet Video Operating Platform.

According to Mark Lieberman, chairman and CEO of IVT, one of the most marked advantages of using IVT's platform is the cross-browser and player compatibility. Lieberman also points out that by seamlessly integrating the video into the background image, the illusion of full-screen video is presented.

Underneath the "Behind the Scenes" tab, there are videos of the model's tracking around all duded up in Victoria's suits. While this section does not offer any e-commerce enabling links, it will undoubtedly drive up traffic.

For the ladies that prefer to view their future swimsuit displayed on a two-dimensional supermodel, there is the interactive "Mix and Match" section of the site. Lieberman states that using its platform, IVT was able to turn the video and audio provided by Victoria's Secret into the online sales presentation in about a week. IVT also provided technical consultants during the shoot to ensure that the video would be optimized for Web delivery.

"The sweet thing about this deal is that we were able to synchronize the streaming video to the presentation and bring the site alive," says Lieberman.

"Victoria's Secret's customers expect a high quality experience whether shopping in our stores or on our Web site," said Ken Weil, Victoria's Secret vice president of New Media. "IVT's VirtualGuide application gave us the ability to present our fashions in a way that uniquely combines glamour and style with the latest technology."

Lane Bryant (www.lanebryant.com), a division of Intimate Brand's parent company — The Limited —is also presenting a live webcast on Tuesday at 4pm EST to highlight their latest fashions. The webcast will be presented on Lane Bryant's homepage.