Vidyard Unveils Industry-First Hyper-Realistic, Personalized AI Avatars to Scale Sales and Marketing Video Communications

Video messaging leader Vidyard announced the introduction of the industry’s first hyper-realistic AI Avatars – that look and sound just like the user – to the Vidyard Messages platform. Top global sales and marketing organizations, including HubSpot, Microsoft, LinkedIn, and S&P Global, use the platform to increase effectiveness and scale outreach when communicating with customers and prospects. AI Avatars help sales organizations scale all stages of the sales cycle and enable marketers to create high-quality, personalized videos while minimizing the time spent recording and editing. See it in action here.

“AI Avatars will be a game-changer for our sales team, who understand how much more effective video is than text when engaging customers and prospects,” said Matt Green, CRO of Sales Assembly. “Removing the need to sit and record each personalized message, over and over, will not only give our team more time to focus on high-impact sales activities but also gives us the confidence that our message is being delivered and received accurately, consistently and compellingly.”

The use of personalized video in business communications has become increasingly important to sales and marketing organizations, as well as buyers, as it leads to higher click-through rates and more meaningful interactions with customers and prospects. Vidyard research shows that 51% of buyers indicate that they are more likely to make a purchase after watching a personalized video and that personalized videos generate 16 times more engagement than static content. A recent report1 from Gartner Research predicted that, “By 2025, AI avatars leveraging text-to-video using generative AI technology will support 70% of digital and marketing communications, up from less than 5% in 2022.”

Also Read: Rallyware Recognized as Top Distributor Enablement App for Transforming Field Experiences

Vidyard also announced that it has secured $15M in funding led by Export Development Canada (EDC) with participation from BMO Capital Partners, in addition to existing investors Battery Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, and iNovia Capital. The funding will accelerate Vidyard’s innovation and adoption, propelling users into the AI era. This brings Vidyard’s total funding to date to $90.7M.

“Vidyard is changing the game for sales and marketing professionals and how they interact with their customers,” said Guillermo Freire, Senior Vice-President, Mid-Market Group, EDC. “With an equity investment from EDC, Vidyard is creating new opportunities for today’s businesses, enhancing human connections, and providing customers with smart and creative AI-enabled digital solutions.”

“Vidyard’s leadership in this market is impressive, and we believe the application of AI Avatars to the hard problem of high-touch communications at scale for sales and marketing will move it even further ahead,” said Byron Deeter, Partner, Bessemer Venture Partners. “There has never been a better time to bring this capability to market, and there is no team better suited to introduce it than the one that Mike and Devon have assembled. We are very pleased to continue to work with Vidyard to support and help guide it through this next phase of its growth.”

Users of Vidyard AI Avatars need only provide a two-minute sample video to create their avatars, upload a script – whenever they want and wherever they are – and watch the AI Avatar of themselves deliver high-quality, error-free videos at scale. Avatars can be re-used to deliver multiple messages once they have been created. Combining AI Avatars with Vidyard Templates for sales and marketing ensures consistency and accuracy of messaging delivery, even across globally distributed teams.

SOURCE: Vidyard