• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, April 29, 2022

Allison Kent-Smith, CEO and co-founder of Giide, describes the company as an interactive audio unit -- one that does not remain still.

As the audio plays, the visual continues to scroll through slides, keeping the attention of the viewer.

Think audio mixes with a content feed like a storytelling application that turns the technology into a performance marketing unit -- “the best of a podcast and an Instagram feed,” as Kent-Smith said.

Built by former executives at Crispin, Porter Bogusky and Goodby Silverstein & Partners, the platform supports applications across areas including entertainment, education and internal communications at companies such as Ameritrade, Cannes Lions, CBS News, and Vayner Media, according to the company.

In a 20-minute interactive guide, for example, Jim Stengel, CEO at The Jim Stengel Company, used Giide to walk through events at the Cannes Lions CMO Accelerator in partnership with ViacomCBS.

Jeremiah Owyang, founding partner at Kaleido Insights, at the time, used Giide to explain how major brands use non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to give customers collectible virtual goods that generate brand engagement through links, and add a revenue stream for brands.

The company’s developers started building the mobile app in 2018, and then raised a couple of rounds of financing to build the content-creator platform, which allows users to quickly develope the content themselves.

The user records the audio and attaches interactive feed cards. The most popular audio units link to content.

Kent-Smith spoke about an author linking a book they wrote to Giide to tell the story, which would allow people listening to click on a link and view an interactive visual. “People have been asking for longer Giides,” she says, adding that this is something the company has just launched.

Publishing, workplace content, and distribution are a few areas where the company is placing its focus.

Giide comes in a mobile app to consume the content and listen, but the core product is the content creator platform where an individual business can sign on and make audio guides.

Substituting a Giide for a podcast or newsletter allows marketers to match the unit with a clickable link or screen to analyze use.

The platform enables marketers to analyze interactions and to track every click.