CM&D

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the digital strategist at Sherry Matthews Group.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Chocolate Milk & Donuts?

One of our clients needed virtual reality (VR) development, so we hired the team for support.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The client wanted a VR experience for a campaign to increase drivers’ awareness of the parameters of where a motorcycle might be. Based on client data, we knew that the most crashes occurred in certain problematic instances like intersections or changing lanes. We went through a process to determine the three most common scenarios and gave it to Chocolate Milk & Donuts. They were tasked with creating an interactive VR experience of driving a car down the road and identifying motorcycles in those scenarios.

Chocolate Milk & Donuts produced a 3D asset with live video. In the transportation space, everything needs to be done exactly right. Aspects like lines on the road will be scrutinized if you try to redraw or rebuild them in an artificial interface like a video game interface. We took the opportunity to take footage of an actual road with lines and signs set up legally and properly, then put a 3D motorcycle into various scenarios. The gaze indicator gives users a vantage point from which to view the motorcycle in each simulated situation.

It was very much a turnkey engagement. Our lead on the project attended meetings to set up the parameters. Afterward, they came back with estimates and proposals for the client to review and decide to move forward on.  Our design team helped create the interface, but for the most part, Chocolate Milk & Donuts produced all of the gaming mechanics, 3D assets, and filming.

What is the team composition? 

We worked directly with the team lead. We didn’t interface with the coders or developers.

How did you come to work with Chocolate Milk & Donuts?

Chocolate Milk & Donuts pitched us at several points. We saw their presentation on best practices in VR and AR several years before we worked with them. As we considered different options, we bid with multiple organizations. The idea of applying a game interface to live footage was presented to us in a case study years before we accomplished it with Chocolate Milk & Donuts.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $10,000–$25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from March–May 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The client was very happy with how the deliverable turned out and with the level of engagement it generated. We were equally pleased. Chocolate Milk & Donuts completed our project in a timely manner. There were no surprises because we received exactly what we expected. If I were to do this project again, I’d do it the same way with them.

How did Chocolate Milk & Donuts perform from a project management standpoint?

The team is located in the same city where we live, so we held frequent face-to-face meetings. We mostly communicated via email and occasionally had phone calls together that included the client. Project management went very smoothly.

We had a very pleasant experience with Chocolate Milk & Donuts. They anticipated many issues and came up with preemptive solutions before they occurred. It’s nice to have a partner with that ability. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Chocolate Milk & Donuts is very responsive and solution-oriented. It was really nice to work with them. They sent us responses the same day, or even within a few hours.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

We knew what we were trying to accomplish and had an established scope. Having those steps prepared worked well for us.