How Socialive saved VMware $100,000 in a single video project

Introduction

VMware is a leading provider of multi-cloud services for all apps, enabling digital innovation with enterprise control. The cloud computing company solves its customers’ toughest challenges through disruptive technologies, like edge computing, AI, blockchain, machine learning, Kubernetes, and more.

VMware leverages Socialive for both internal and external video communications across multiple business units for internal comms, field marketing, and marketing webcasts for demand generation. VMware includes Socialive in its partner ecosystem — internally referred to as VMware TV — to provide internal content creators with the best-in-class tools to use at every step of the video creation and file transfer workflow. Additionally, VMware creates on-demand video content around its annual hybrid conference, VMware Explore.

Challenge

Creating the “Holy Grail” of automated video creation

When Craig Chapman joined VMware as the senior manager of broadcast and live events, he faced a fragmented video ecosystem. With more than a dozen video distribution platforms in place and multiple remote production tools in use, it was a bit of a disjointed environment for video creation teams across the company.

The lack of interoperability cost VMware time and money on each video project.

Chapman had a vision for the future of VMware TV: a suite of video production tools connected to provide a cohesive video experience for guests, editors, producers, and content owners. He wanted to keep all parties inside the VMware TV ecosystem by providing best-in-class tools at each step of the video journey.

Chapman was in search of the “Holy Grail” of an automated video creation workflow.

Chapman had to find a way to consolidate and integrate all the tools in use to create video, implement a consistent workflow that would create internal buy-in, and continue to support the video needs of teams across VMware.

One of the largest internal projects for VMware TV, and a litmus test against Chapman’s pursuit of the “Holy Grail” status, is VMware Explore. VMware’s multi-day global conference features hundreds of live and recorded sessions for an in-person audience that is then stored in a central recordings library for on-demand viewing. Producing VMware Explore is a massive endeavor, and in 2022 the event owners challenged Chapman’s team to find ways to reduce video production costs for the event.

Solution

A scalable, cost-effective video environment

VMware turned to Socialive as its recording platform at the front of its video creation workflow. The enterprise-ready integration that allowed cloud transfer between tools and ease of use for video creators — and non-video experts — stood out to the team.

Socialive fit Chapman’s vision to set up creators in an environment where his producers handled the production elements, and then talent could remotely contribute their content to create a final product. Once the brand assets are shared with creators, they can create and fit VMware’s high standards without there needing to be tons of enablement across the organization.

As he vetted other platforms, Chapman found Socialive unique as an easy-to-use platform with high-quality output. But the real game-changer for Chapman: Socialive’s enterprise-ready integrations.

With Socialive’s out-of-the-box integrations, security measures built for enterprises, the platform’s flexibility to fit into many places of the content workflow, and its ability to replace some of the formal tools in use across VMware, Chapman’s vision of a cohesive production environment was becoming a reality.

To truly put his vision to the test, Chapman placed Socialive at the beginning of the production workflow for VMware Explore and found that his team could create more video for less.

Outcome

Savings of $1K per video in a faster workflow

Chapman was excited to switch from a cloud capture and screen share type software for virtual video creation to a true studio in the Cloud, where his team can build a run of show and scenes to have a flow ready for significant events like VMware Explore.

For VMWare Explore 2022, his team created more than 150 branded recordings in a live-to-tape production ready for the event.

VMware did all of their recordings in Socialive using a live-to-tape strategy, recording as though live producing the show, and getting a finished product to use and distribute without requiring much editing. First, the assets were transferred via standard API integration to Frame.io for a touch of trim and polish. Once each asset was approved, the final video was transferred to the endpoint, a combination of the RainFocus event platform and the Brightcove video distribution tools. All of this done via cloud-to-cloud transfers.

The end result — VMware saved around $100,000 in video creation costs and reduced the time to produce each video.

The ability to improve quality while reducing time and costs around production has Chapman closer to his ideal “Holy Grail” of video creation and VMware TV in a position to truly provide the best workflows and tools for VMware. The time and cost savings that VMware experienced are typical for enterprise video teams that transform their studio-bound production to a remote environment with Socialive.

Want to see how Socialive solves a number of video creation challenges? Request a demo to learn more about our cloud video creation platform.