Solution #246

Training Within

Featuring: Wheeling Through Handtruck Safety
Client: National Beer Wholesalers (NBWA)

The Idea:

The National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) needed to create a training video that could be distributed to its member companies for internal training. The subject was how to properly use a hand truck while making deliveries. Its purpose was to help reduce on-the-job accidents and personal injury.

The Challenge:

The challenge was that the video needed to appeal to a younger audience, mainly focusing on a 21 to 30-year-old age range. This meant the video had to be entertaining, as well as informative. It also had to be effective. 

And not only did it have to provide the necessary information to adequately cover the basics of hand truck safety, but it also needed to be effective for both English and Spanish-speaking audiences. Plus, it needed to comply with the advice of legal and insurance professionals.

The Solution:

Video Solutions began by hiring a dual language narrator for both English and Spanish tracks. We then hired a comedian to act as a mime. The mime performed the wrong techniques (in an exuberant and outrageous manner) as the narrator explained the proper ways of using a hand truck. Once the mime was realized he was doing it wrong, he corrected himself. The video then switched to show footage of actual delivery persons on location doing the maneuvers correctly. Adding the comedian added some levity to the otherwise straight-forward training video. It also worked for a younger audience. 

The video was distributed on CD-ROM to include additional information, such as weblinks and additional resources, as a reference for the viewer. The video is still in use today four years later and continues to be well received.