Just Opportunity: Design and Social Entrepreneurship
Posted on | December 5, 2008 | Katryna | 5 Comments
“A world where each individual has the freedom to address any social problem and drive change” is key to the success of social entrepreneurship. As a parallel to business entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship is gaining increasing momentum worldwide. Yet beyond business, where performance is gauged solely in profit and return, social enterprise must also measure success in positive social impact. We are of a time where half of the people on the planet barely survive on less than $2 per day, and one third of those live on less than $1 per day. They form a large part of the 90 percent of the world’s population who lack the resources to purchase basic goods. So why do 95 percent of designers create for the richest ten percent of the population? Clearly poverty is a pressing social issue, so how can design effectively address this problem? The connection between social entrepreneurship and design has the power to adequately address these questions. The most just relationship between designers and these under-served users is reciprocal, not charitable.Designers solutions should aim for investment and yield for both user and creator as power and agency over oneself and one’s future are key to the fairness and justice aspired to by socially responsible work. We are diminishing the empowerment of the impoverished trying to donate them out of poverty. While charity is an effective temporary solution in dire, disaster situations such as relief missions, it is not successful in getting to the root of problems long term. Often well-meaning charity is unfair because how does one decide who of the needy will receive the donation and who will not? Frequently the aid does not reach those in need at all because distribution is controlled by government discretion and corruption. And in most cases, if a product is given as charity, no one assumes ownership. So when it breaks, no one fixes it. When people invest their own resources in objects, they value and maintain them. We cannot eliminate poverty by throwing things at it, we must create wealth building opportunities. This idea is paralleled in the functioning of the firm itself. Organizations solely dependent on donations have less measureable performance standards and are particularly vulnerable in a down-turned economy such as we are experiencing today. It is not fair to expect an organization to run solely on charity. When profit and purchasing numbers are not a factor, how are we sure our solutions are valuable and people really want and use what we give them? Conversely, in a profitable model, if users are buying the product, the organization can make independent choices and discern whether they are truly serving a need.
In response to this position, many have questioned given those in need have such limited resources, is it not most fair and effective to donate socially responsible products? Must not the efforts of designers working in humanitarian design be charitable because there is no money in this market? The examples highlighted below aim to dispel these arguments, revealing this is about more than sustainable business practice, it is a matter of justice.
Products geared toward alleviating social ills can be evaluated for fairness and long-term effectiveness based on the socially responsible design criteria explained below. One key principle is the design solves an immediate problem. What defines an immediate problem? This is one the target user group has directly identified as a need. Such as one that enables a user to increase wealth. Once an individual or family has disposable income, they have options and can afford to pay for solutions to healthcare needs, access to education, transportation needs, and access to reliable, consistent utilities such as electricity and water. Another key criterion is affordability. There is money here if products are seen as valuable and are sold at a price affordable to the billions of people who make less than $2 per day. Affordability is subjective, but here it is defined as inexpensive in relation to the income of the user. It is a product that pays for itself within the first 3 to 6 months after purchase through the income produced by its use. In addition it can be sold at an unsubsidized price to the user. The next standard is the product stimulates the local economy. This means it targets economic growth in poor communities such as remote small farms and urban slums. It also suggests the design enables new businesses to be created which yield increased profits and wages. The last criterion is that the product accounts for local resources. Here this means it respects the local traditions and people of the community. It also suggests that it uses local materials in production and application. Which in turns means that it expresses an understanding of local technology.
An example of a popular short-term solution is the Lifestraw, a portable water purifying system which functions similarly to a straw. While it greatly solves immediate needs, such as access to clean drinking water and prevention of water-borne diseases, it is not affordable, does not stimulate local economies or account for local resources based on the criteria expressed above. While the straw seems inexpensive at $4 dollars, this amount is not affordable given the average user makes less than $2 per day, and there is no monetary return or yield involved in the use of this product. In addition, the product’s short lifespan of 1.5 years and the use of non-local materials preventing repair reflect its limited use. Consequently, this product is best suited for charitable, short-term disaster relief, not long-term empowerment.
An example of a product which fits all of the criteria stated above is the Money Maker pump, a human-powered, small-scale irrigation pump. The Money Maker addresses income creation by increasing a farmer’s yield of produce available for market. Over 105,000 pumps have been sold to poor rural farmers in Kenya, Tanzania and Mali, yielding over $6 million in sales. The pump’s cost, $35, is an investment which can be financed with micro-loans and earned back through a few months worth of profits. These pumps have stimulated local economies by creating 64,000 new rural small farm businesses and $79 million per year in increased profits and wages. The Money Maker is also in line with local technology as no electricity is needed to power or assemble it. Completely human powered, the pump is mindful of the lack of consistent access to utilities in remote, rural areas. In addition, the components are all steel which is easily repaired or replaced locally. Given this, the Money Maker is an example of a long-term, equitable solution.
This pump has been successful, as seen in it’s widespread use, not only due to its adherence to these criteria but also because of the business model supporting it. Design is key in developing not only the product itself but also the business model of how to pay for production, distribution and marketing. One example of this is the partnering between designers and local organizations, which occurred between Ideo and Kickstart with development of the Money Maker Pump. This method can more sensitively address the marketing and distribution of products in remote rural areas. In the case of the Money Maker pump, Ideo’s design was marketed by Kickstart to help facilitate distribution and demand. Kickstart initiated a brilliant marketing campaign seen in the clip below of a music video/commercial/soap opera featuring Maasai rapper Mr. Ebbo of Tanzania., which helped educate Kenyan farmers about the product. KickStart workers travel around remote rural areas, where the product is most needed, educating farmers about the technology and benefits of the MoneyMaker pump. They perform product demonstrations, project films such as this and perform mini-skits with actors all from the back of a pickup truck to spread the word.
Clearly we as designers must marry our benevolent desire to change the world with clear results and reciprocity. The examples shown above illustrate long-term, equitable solutions and appropriate, short-term answers to the problems we face. What we learn from these case studies is the empathy embodied in this work, must consider the context of the problem faced to provide a just, effective and measurable solution.
Posted by KatrynaTags: Business > culture > Design > Marketing > Social Entrepreneur > Socially Responsible Products
Respect-The ‘Re’
Posted on | December 5, 2008 | Tian | 4 Comments
Sustainable design is quite a prosperity area now, because we can see designers and companies moving towards this field everywhere. Those activities play a role as a model which could draw more attention from the society to the issues of sustainable development. When we are making great effort to re-create a meaningful sustainable world for human-beings, we should not leave out the idea of respect. Different from other ‘re-s’ like recycle or reuse, “respect” provides us with a much higher perspective to solve the environmental problems, which can be considered as guidelines of other “re-s”.
1. Respect the inherent value of products
Respecting the inherent value of products will contribute to achieving the sustainability. A long existed ‘faith’ in human society is to think that human’s well-being can only be obtained by consuming the nature resources by any means. Because of those disrespectful behaviors driven by this ‘faith’, we’ve seen that the relation between human and nature is becoming worse and worse. We have already known that ‘respect’ can make things different, but how? In fact, the attitude of respect here goes beyond the meaning of just stopping harmful behaviors to environment; it is more about how we concern the inherent value of products. For example, how can we understand the existence of the inherent value carried by a letter paper? Usually, after a letter paper is printed, its value as a printable letter paper dose not exists any more. However, the inherent value still remains; one of its inherent values can be presented by the fact that it has been used to serve as a letter paper—all the words on it can prove that. We can actually compare this situation with a similar social scenario: we would normally respect a person who helps us to achieve certain goals. So if we could bring respect to the scenario of users and products, it will generate the emotion of appreciation between users and products. Based on this appreciation, users are more likely to keep the products for a longer time, and find some other ways to reuse it, etc. Also, there are other inherent values carried by the products, e.g., the manufacture process of the product could give it inherent value, too.
As respect could help us to recognize products in a more appreciative way, it also helps us to recognize ourselves. These recognitions can lead us to build a better world where sustainability will be the result of our natural behaviors.
2. Design with respect
Bringing respect into the design process can guide the design to meet the sustainability at the starting point. Nowadays, products are becoming more like a carrier by designing people’s experience, raising people’s awareness, and so on. Sustainable design is no doubt the leading role in the current world of design; numerous designs are concerned about recycling, reducing and reusing. All these activities will bring benefits to environment; however, can we achieve an even higher standard than these? Well, maybe we could start from the very beginning instead of searching for inspirations inside the bins. As a designer, if he/she embraces the idea of respect during the design process, he/she will respect the material and care about how it was obtained—e.g., need to be eco-friendly; he/she will respect the material and care about how it will be utilized—e.g., need to be economized; he/she will respect user’s using scenario—e.g., user should use it in a way that it won’t harm the environment, that is an environmental way…. The more these aspects have been considered, the easier other activities aiming to sustainability can be conducted. At the same time, the product designed with respect could express this spirit to user and raise user’s awareness of concerning about their responsibility to environment. Japanese package design is a good example, which started with respecting product material and expressing this idea to users. According to Yuriko Saito’s article ‘The Moral Dimension of Japanese Aesthetics’, material like paper has been folded, twisted, layered, tore in the process of producing a cord to express its native characteristics. By using these products, users tend to respect them since they can feel the uniqueness of the material and tend to have certain level of cherish towards the products. This emotion could not only prolong the lifespan of the products but also inspire people’s desire to reuse them. Many people tend to keep the package boxes made by special materials (like wood) and use it as a storage box or for other purpose for a long time.
Figure.3 This lunch set is wrapped in natural bamboo sheath, including a bamboo ribbon.
As an industrial designer, we are used to standing at a high position from where we observing users and the circumstances to gain our insights. However, when we are facing sustainable design, we usually locate ourselves into the “re-” circles and forget to push ourselves to a higher point where we may lead the sustainable design instead of following it. Like if we do respect, we don’t need to tell everyone the importance of recycling and energy -saving and etc; because respect is one of the “re-s” to lead all these behaviors to build a sustainable world.
People never lack the motivation to reuse and recycle… we only need to guide them and they will understand and feel it—to respect.
Posted by TianEmotive Branding: Cutting Across Borders
Posted on | December 5, 2008 | JV | 2 Comments
Whether you’re riding the train in Toronto or on the back of a donkey in Damascus, just say, “Coke” and people know what you mean. As the company itself claims, it’s the “universal language of refreshment” and I don’t even have an ounce of doubt to that. Once the topic of global branding was raised in our class, it was the first brand that came to mind. Coke has indeed conquered the world.
What is it with Coke anyway? What made the brand simply transcend across the globe that no matter what language it is translated into; once you see it, you are just sure that it is what you think it is. And though Coca-Cola provides a good example, more brands have proven to be successful the world over such as McDonald’s and even Nestle.
Get emotional.
Digging in deeper into these global brands, I see a commonality among them - a similarity that goes beyond consistencies in logos and Pantone colors that undeniably make them visually recognizable. I realize that emotional connection to its various markets is an invaluable factor in their global pursuit - not only of market domination but of interspersing its values with people.
However, emotional connection, being a mere tool of communicating a brand is insufficient. It needs to be substantiated by the company itself. Adding an emotional facet to the heart of the company is key. A well-founded set of core values that connects to people is what makes a strong global brand. Planting this at the very center helps the company cultivate a brand that is universal and appealing to most countries. Although important, tangible and visible modifications done on a brand will tend not to affect its integrity since the market associates it (the brand) in a deeper sense. This paves way for them to adapt to certain markets accordingly without being caught in an identity crisis. Meaning to say, even though McDonald’s come in very fashionable interiors & exteriors that attracts Manila’s yuppies to a relaxed dining experience while its rigid fiberglass seats in Maine suggest its working class to have a quick bite and go, for both markets, it still remains to be that place that serves great and affordable food that brings about fun and enjoyment to them.
As I go through different global brands, I feel one of the effective ways these companies communicate their values is through their ad campaigns, specifically television commercials or TVCs. It is in this aspect that I perceive how they convey a single message through different expressions and still remain recognizable.
Refresh the world.
Let’s look back at Coca-Cola once more. They launched a TVC entitled “What Goes Around” last 2006 directed by the late Nagi Noda through Mother Ad Agency in London. It shows a girl who is drinking Coca-Cola and offers an act of kindness to somebody. To cut to the chase, this action starts a chain effect which leads one person to help another, ending up with the girl getting good karma. The “Coke Side of Life” slogan appears at the last clip and leaves a pleasant feeling to the viewer.
Halfway around the world, Coke through McCann-Erickson aired their “Sana (I Wish)” TVC in the Philippines. Similarly, it features a girl doing a good deed by giving a bottle of Coke to different people as she walks in crowded Manila. She does this while singing an inspiring song of the same title , a capella. The tag line at the end says, “Kasama Ka” or “With You.” I also learned this came in an English version aired in the UK and the US and a Spanish version for South America. All three had the same infectious theme but were executed distinctively enough from each other.
Just to show that the company has no gender bias, they also released a Grand Theft Auto inspired TVC with the help of Wieden+Kennedy in the US. Without further explanation needed, “GTA” as the young ones call it, has earned a notorious reputation for inciting violence on gamers. In this ad however, Coca-Cola and the agency put a very interesting twist to the game. They humorously turned GTA’s values upside down by showing the main character spread kindness while playing a background song with the lines, “Give a little love and it all comes back to you…”
Despite being aired in different countries employing various styles and techniques, Coca-Cola’s mission and core value of “refreshing the world in mind, body and spirit,” evidently binds all the given examples. It cuts across all cultures and enables them to establish a deeper relationship with their consumers in one sweep. People then start associating that the “Coke Side of Life” is about refreshing society through neighborliness, charity and compassion. I believe that this plays a major role that makes Coca Cola the top global brand.
Think wellness.
Though not as ubiquitous as Coke, Nestle also provides a good example of a global brand that ties emotional connection in their core values. Their slogan, “Good Food. Good Life.” pretty much sums up the essence of the brand. It is inherent in every person to cherish his/her own life and Nestle taps into this by telling its consumers worldwide that their products not only offer preservation of life but even elevating it to a good one.
Once again, ads around the world give a good illustration of how this emotional connection helps the company adapt to any corner of the globe without compromising its brand integrity. Another TVC under the direction of Hadi El Bagoury for Nestle in Egypt serves a good example. The product is water called “Pure Life.” The ad features how the product intersects with people in their lives. But rather than just emphasizing the practical benefits of the product which is what the ad is basically selling, it places it in specific scenarios of the “good life.” It juxtaposes the product and the ad’s various “lifestyle” scenes - suggesting how both exemplify purity. Hence, you have the bottle of water right in the middle of a family that’s enjoying a local Egyptian board game with the text, “Pure Bonding” appearing before the scene ends. The words, “Pure Fitness” also fade in as a group of teenagers is shown taking a break from a casual football game to drink Nestle’s Pure Life. With this kind of formula, I think a company has better chances of translating their product successfully into another market/country. It would just be a matter of tweaking a few details. For example, instead of using football as a scenario it may be better to use basketball if the market being targeted is China.
Lastly, I found a similar Nestle ad that was aired in the Philippines a few years back. However, what I found striking about it is not the similarity between this ad and the one from Egypt but rather their difference. It also illustrates the “good life” in various scenes with the product being shown regularly but what was instead being advertised was not water but Nestle’s line of milk products. Milk may not be a far stretch from water but it just proves that by having core values that truly connect to the market, a company earns the ability to maintain a higher level of consistency even if they are promoting two different products in two different countries.
In this case, Nestle successfully inculcates in its consumers around the globe that their products are not just about good quality; more than that, they result to a life of holistic wellness, whether it be water or milk. And for me, that’s something anyone in this world will definitely fall for.
Break borders.
Even though having something as recognizable as white curved bands against a particular shade of red makes a Coke, a Coke anywhere you put it, one should be constantly reminded that this is not the only factor that keeps the brand afloat in consumers’ minds. Rather, it is also the deeper sense of connection that they have created in people’s hearts.
In other words, one doesn’t have to be Coke or Nestle to achieve global success. To begin with, these phenomena do not happen overnight. The first step would be to simply look back at a company’s core values and see how through these, an appropriate emotional connection can be established with the market. Hopefully, this will create a spark that will eventually lead into consistently and efficiently communicating brands to different countries; effectively, breaking borders.
Posted by Jon VittoThe Designers’ Role in the Medical Device Industry
Posted on | December 5, 2008 | Jin Ma | 6 Comments
For decades, medical device companies have prioritized the improvement of their products around surgical efficacy and regulatory compliance. Now they are beginning to value and integrate “design” into the product development process. The role of industrial designers will be more important in the successful development of next generation medical devices.
The role of industrial designers is becoming more important in the medical device industries. Industrial designers enhance the efficiency of surgical procedures by providing better ergonomics and services, and intuitive user interface. They also improve the capability of companies by providing a distinctive brand image, and enhancing the look of the product. For these reasons, as well as others that I will enumerate; medical device firms should fully utilize industrial designers in their product development process.
Surveys with five doctors and three manufacturers, conducted from October to December in 2008, as well as the journals of medical news indicated that manufacturers rarely consider what their machines look like. Most employees working in the medical device industry are engineers. These engineers focus on new technology and surgical efficacy within a strict time cycle and perceive design as a time and cost consuming task. However, some companies are beginning to re-design their devices to reflect customers’ concerns, and to save manufacturing costs. The benefit of hiring a designer is becoming imperative in the medical device industry.
Today, the market is competitive. The number of manufacturers moving, in particular, into the medical device industry is increasing, which ignites further competition. Global markets around East Asia are growing rapidly, becoming a topic of financial significance. With a number of similar items in the market place, there is a confusion of what products associate with which brands. Increased low-cost products from overseas exacerbates this concern prompting companies to find new ways to cut their costs and make better design decisions. Within this climate of competition, medical device companies are beginning to integrate designers into their product development process.
Seven Reasons Why the Medical Device Industry Needs Industrial Designers
Engineers and scientists who work for medical device companies mostly focus on improving the surgical efficacy of a medical device. They carry out surgical studies that evaluate how well the device performs intended treatments. Managers mainly focus on complying with FDA regulations; ensuring that the company is taking steps to comply with those regulations. As a consequence, efficient functionality and safety of a medical device have always been core values to manufacturers.
The term “design” is commonly thought to only improve the look and function of an object. However an industrial designer considers various aspects of a product, from brand identity, product language, product cost, ergonomics, intuitive usage, services, and environmental impact.
• Companies can secure or define a clear brand identity.
• A product has a more pleasing look. A product language, which defines the color, material, and shape, is developed consistent with brand identity. This helps differentiates the product in the market, and enhances the recognition through customers.
• A product is ergonomically designed and incorporates intuitive interface.
• Designers cut the product cost by using low-cost raw materials and easy assembling.
• Designers provide better service system.
• Responsible designers tend to use materials and manufacturing processes that are more sustainable and environmentally friendly.
To survive in today’s competitive market companies should take an integrated approach to product design.
[Diagram 1] While engineers and managers consider surgical efficacy and regulatory compliance in the manufacturing process, industrial designers consider various aspects of a product from ergonomics, product language, brand identity, product cost, intuitive usage to service and environmental impact.
[Diagram 2] The diagram shows the ideal prototype of the next generation of medical devices. With an integral approach, a medical product achieves a balance of nine factors, including design business, the environment, and social factors.
Laser Star Workstation: How Design Enhances Product’s Capability
The Laser Star Workstation of Crafford Technologies Corp. is a strong product example of how a design can enhance a product’s capability. Laser Star Workstation received market recognition after it was re-designed by Item, a new product development company in Rhode Island. It is a high-precision welding system for micro-sized manufacturing applications that range from dental crowns to jewelry.
Before the product was redesigned, it was not easy to distinguish from other products in the market place. After the product was redesigned, the identity became highly distinctive. Customers now easily recognize this device. Embracing contemporary color and styling with new materials, it looks more attractive than before and easily harmonizes with hospital interiors. The design team ensured successful realization by improving their manufacturing process.
Item was able to cut assembly time and the cost of materials by about twenty percent. The investment in a re-design made the product easier and more efficient for employees to assemble, and for customers to maintain. Human factors research pinpointed several key ergonomic improvements such as expanded hand-ports and a new control panel configuration that would ensure optimal operator efficiency regardless of the operator’s physical size. Crafford also succeeded in providing service consideration to the clients by regularly checking updates, and promising fast repair.
Conclusion
High competition in the medical device industry as well as clients’ elevated expectation will begin pushing the companies in a direction of better “design.” Device companies that choose to work with designers will likely see economical benefits as their products show a distinctive brand identity, an intuitive figure, ergonomic shape, better service and sustainability. Although complying with regulations and developing better efficacy are still important, companies should also prioritize factors that are supported by good design. They should implement “design” at the start of development. A successful medical device that balances efficacy, service, brand identity, and social factors benefits not only the business, but also the hospital and society.
Myoung Jin Ma
Masters of Industrial Design Seminar
Fall 2008
[Participants]
Dr. Mickey Rosenberg ( Physician ) , Dr. Julianne Mann ( Resident physician in Dermatology), Dr. Stacey Lendener ( Physician, Interventional PLain Management), Dr. Eugene Louie-Ng ( Obstetrician, Gynecologist), Dr. Robert Kum ( Chiropractic Physician ), Joe Gordon ( Medical design corporation manager), Choi joongman ( Medical design corporation manager)
Posted by Myoung JinUndressing the Teapot
Posted on | December 5, 2008 | Joyce | 2 Comments
Click to download Undressing the Teapot (.pdf)After all the research, concept brainstorming and discussion, the design process has finally reached the styling stage where the decision for the product aesthetics needs to be made for a new born product. Even though we can all agree that the appeal of a product is largely influenced by its appearance, the question of whether the final design is the most suited often remain difficult to analyze.
Semiotics, the study of how meaning is constructed through signs and symbols is an important tool for understanding this cognitive process. This topic however has currently remained focused in graphics and is less discussed in physical objects. Working in the field of design we strive to be “visual people,” but in reality there should be a greater understanding of how semiotics is applied.
To further investigate the way product appearance communicates to our vision, I used teapots as an example and looked at the broad range of its various designs. Each visual element is embedded with messages. And even though they can be subjective and often unconscious, the “look” of the product ultimately controls how the user determines the attractiveness of a product. By interpreting the visual data response as a formulated process, designers are then capable of applying this method for their ideas.
The process of perception: How semiotics works
The human mind works at a fast speed. As soon as our eyes receive visual signals the analysis process takes off. The incoming data is transformed into what we call perception, or a personal value that is put on the product from the viewer’s evaluation. In short, the entire process can be described as: Visual Data + Semiotics = Perception. Semiotics here represents the transitional stage between the period of optical observation and the user perception.
You may ask, how does this relate to the field of industrial design? One of the responsibilities of designers is “to design the right product for the right user.” From knowing the user type of whom we want the design to appeal to and efficiently applying semiotics, we can create the correct visual appearance that will create the correct product value: Design (Visual Data) + Semiotics = Product Value (Perception).
Deconstruct perception: Product semiotics
To begin the process of understanding perception we need to first deconstruct the product by its individual components. Taking the Chantal Jasmine Teapot for example, it consists of a body, a lid, a handle, and a spout. Then for each component begin to verbalize its physical appearance while recording your response on paper. This first step may seem a little obvious but should be done thoroughly for it is the base for your analysis which will later translate to how our mind unconsciously views the product.
From the first round of listings we can then look deeper into these words by relating them with perceived associations. This step is the beginning of uncovering how one is interpreting visual information about an object. For example, it is clear that the body of the teapot is round. But in our mind however, this may really be observed as being “full,” bloated,” or “pregnant.” Also the handle has a much taller height compare to the body, which “the teapot is perceived to have a small body.” Double check whether your second layer of description cloud has been built up to be as wide range as possible, then make a new category called “overall” and examine the teapot repeating the two steps previously discussed. This is to cover the missing aspects such as overall materials, gestures, etc.
Lastly, connect your associations with emotional characterization. From the previous example, the word “pregnant” is associated with female and therefore would appear feminine. Moreover, “small body” is a physical character if children or young animals, which leads to the feeling of “precious” or “delicate.” Much more can be explored as the list goes on.
By this time the underlying meanings of the physical appearance have been extracted. These are the hidden interpreted values that guide our mind to our conclusion of why certain products are more appealing to certain group of users. The outcome of this exercise shows that the Chantal Jasmine Teapot is likely to appeal to female audience. In addition, the combination of the porcelain and the brush stainless finish creates a collaboration of the tradition and the contemporary and can represent the user’s view in tea drinking. The minimal surface also conveys the peacefulness that suggests a quiet atmosphere for the tea drinker.
Using the same methodology for the Connox Mono Filio Teapot, a different set of messages is found. For example the transparent glass allows a clear view of the contained liquid. This makes the teapot a display piece and is also likely to appeal to users who are collectors. Moreover the suspension of the body as an unconventional structure portrays the teapot as a show-off object. The smooth high-glossed surface gives the teapot almost a toy-like feel which incorporate a playful attitude for the tea drinking experience.
Reconstruct Perception: Semiotics as a design tool
Semiotics is a powerful instrument for designers to apply style for the mind. Once we have deconstructed perception, we can then utilize the pieces of information we know and reconstruct these visual data to fit the targeted user group. The new created object will consist of multiple layers of visual language that leads our user in making the association that creates the product appeal. In mastering this thinking designers will be able to gain a clearer read of the motives behind our user’s decision when choosing a product, and to make our design more purposeful and persuasive.
Product semiotics is applicable for any three-dimensional objects from the most simple to the highly-complex. By familiarizing in thinking visually we can affect how the mind perceives. Perception can be designed, and we can influence what a product means.
Posted by JoyceSporting Green
Posted on | December 5, 2008 | Flavia | 3 Comments
Each generation has seen advances in technique or equipment that changes a competitive sport slightly, always with the hope of improving the athlete’s performance capabilities and comfort. A new trend is now beginning in the sports world that could have lasting effects not only on the athletes but also the spectators, the wannabes and the environment.It’s been a slow process but sports are also “going green,” and it’s about time. Athletes tend to be the ones that get the greatest pleasure out of nature and it seems only logical that they would care to protect their habitat and their bodies from the outside in.
Various studies have shown the adverse effects of toxic chemicals in the very materials we surround ourselves with. Side effects such as cancer, asthma, diabetes, and obesity have all been linked not just to the air we breathe or the food we eat but to the things we touch. As athletes sweat through the materials they are wearing they expose themselves to the added chemicals in their clothing.
Much of this research is just starting and it is a fact that we do not yet know the possible side effects of the majority of the materials currently used in our everyday products. The Bisphenol-A (BPA) scare with Nalgene earlier this year is a great example. Change has already taken place and there are already BPA free plastics readily available.
Materials science is now booming as the search for cleaner technologies is just beginning. New developments not only address what happens to a product at the end of its life (i.e, landfill, recycled or repurposed), but how the material is sourced, treated during manufacturing, and its effect on the user.
We are witnessing a logical development of the environmental movement. The surprising growth of the sustainable architecture field has created a heightened awareness among consumers about their surroundings and in turn increased the demand for equally sustainable products for those homes or offices.
Looking ahead, both the Vancouver Winter Olympics of 2010 and the London Summer Olympics of 2012 hope to achieve new levels of sustainability in their venues and are seizing the opportunity to educate the spectators as well as their respective cities.
Major sporting goods companies have already started to implement new methods of design and production to reduce their environmental impact.
Adidas, the official sponsor of the London 2012 games, has already pledged to improve their environmental impact overall and has been actively removing harmful PVC plastics from their products since 2000. Adidas also has the added pressure of being a German company and needs to adhere to the strict new codes their government has placed on manufacturers. Their first line of lifestyle products with sustainable ideals, like the ZX500 shown here, came out this past Spring and has been appropriately named Adidas Grün, the German word for Green.
Over the last 5 years, Nike has also been exploring various methods of shoe production without using toxic glues, synthetic materials and non-recyclable construction. They have also released a new line they are referring to as Nike Considered. This past October, they released the last of the Air Jordan line, XX3, which is made with “considered” principles but not marketed to draw attention away from the Air Jordan trademark. They have publicly announced goals to transform their products to follow this methodology of design by 2015.
In the US, the National Resource Defense Council (NRDC) has teamed up with pro-sports leagues to help improve their carbon footprint however, most of the changes are on the biggest issue, the venue. The Philadelphia Eagles have come up with an interesting tactic to voice their plans for “going green” by sexing it up with a 16-month cheerleader calendar where the bikinis are all made from organic cotton, bamboo or recycled polyester. It would be nice if the athletes could do the same and still be considered tough.
Although it makes perfect sense to tackle the biggest problem first, it does not mean that the product world should wait. They are, after all, the objects closest to us. Part of the problem is that sustainable, wearable and durable materials are still in small production or in the process of being developed. Perhaps it is in part because we trust our sportswear outfitters to have our health in mind or maybe we still just prefer to wear now and ask later.
Posted by FlaviaHealthier Swimming Outside In
Posted on | December 5, 2008 | Flavia | 3 Comments
Much attention is given to keeping your body in top shape from the inside out but in swimming there are many factors that affect our breathing and overall health beyond the surface of our skin.
Have you ever considered that chlorine-resistant suits should be a signal of the harmful effects of chlorine? If it’s doing that to your suit, what’s it doing to you?! We’ve all experienced the dry and/or green hair, the itchy skin, the indefinable taste, and the lasting smell that follows you around like a skunk’s. All of these are signs of its potency and the likelihood that it’s having an adverse affect on your swimming in the long run. Many studies have directly linked our favorite foe to diseases such as asthma, which is detrimental to your development as a competitive swimmer.
Even though these adverse affects have been known for over a decade, most people I spoke with didn’t know there were alternatives to chlorine or if they did, it wasn’t a high priority to change it. Finding a chlorine alternative for your pool, saves quite a bit of money in the long run, not only on chlorine costs but on treating health issues you or your teammates may have to face in the future.
The next generation of swimmers is growing up with parents that are hyper-aware of the toxicity levels surrounding their children. Studies have shown that competitive swimmers ingest toxic levels of chlorine during a regular season. Not changing the current accepted method of sanitation could reduce the number of new swimmers and the length of time they participate in the sport.
The American College of Sports Medicine has found that reducing chlorine levels to .5 parts pre million (ppm) significantly reduces asthma incidence among swimmers. Most states currently mandate a minimum amount of chlorine in public pools for sanitation purposes. Although this minimum varies from state to state, alternative sanitation methods such as UV filtration, Copper-Zinc Ionizers, and Ozonators can be used in conjunction with chlorine. By adopting a secondary sanitation device, the state minimum can be met and help reduce exposure to chlorine among swimmers.
The organizers of the London 2012 Olympics are pushing for sustainability in as many aspects of the events as possible. If competitive swimming facilities insist on continuing the use of such toxic chemicals as chlorine, swimmers won’t be able to join the efforts towards a more sustainable future. As our sport, more than any other, asks us to be advocates of water, we should be leaders in assuring its purity. Most racing suits, bathing caps, kickboards and goggles involve plastic manufacturing process that results in the release toxic materials into the atmosphere when they are made, used, and disposed of. If competitive swimming can move beyond its chlorine dependency it could create an opening for equipment manufacturers to consider products that don’t need to be “chlorine-resistant”, eliminating the need to fight chemicals with chemicals. There’s been a rise in the search for more sustainable materials in the leisure-swimming world and bathing suits made from cotton, bamboo and recycled polyester are already available for surfers and sunbathers alike. Hesitation to experiment with these less damaging materials in the competitive world could stem from their visible deterioration when used in chlorinated pools.
Swimming, in particular, is a sport where the greatest benefactors of a more sustainable approach are the athletes themselves. But if pool directors don’t see the need to opt for reduced chlorine or chlorine-free alternatives the manufacturing world cannot respond with products that perform as well as the current, environmentally unfriendly ones. Swimming should not fall behind on the global effort for a healthier environment because of a reluctance to accept or search for new sanitation methods. After all, the athletes’ health and performance can only improve.
Posted by FlaviaMarketing the Addiction
Posted on | December 5, 2008 | Hakan | 2 Comments
Marketing the Addiction
A night on fire, music flows through your veins, every joint in your body aces with the rhythm. Adrenaline sweats through your skin and the very air you breathe becomes the night itself. You feel like breaking out to rest your cracked ears for a second and catch your breath. Just as you step out the door you see two hot ladies with their addiction in their hands, then you see another guy holding the same objects, there is a circle of people talking, but hey*, they have the same stuff in their hands, even the bouncer has his habit in his hand. What the hell? Is it a new hype? Why everybody has the two same stuff with them, right there; a mobile phone and a smoke.
It was the first smoke companies who found the secret door to our personality. They marketed a deadly, irritating and smelly product as cool, slick and rebel. They nailed it so good that burning a dead plant became an identity object, and a sign of rebel spirit and even nobility. Self expression, rebel, identity became the polished mottos of smoke companies and flagship of their marketing tactics and the eventually key to that little door.
Then mobile phone companies’ marketing departments started to follow the cigarette companies lead. They had the same target market ; easily addicted young users. They had the same mass media tools, their products were almost in the same size and both were tools of social habit. Even more bad news; both were addictions which were likely to be harmful.
Addiction is defined and used in many contexts to describe an obsession, compulsion, or excessive physical dependence or psychological dependence. But check this out, in Spain, a country of 41 million people which has nearly 35 million cell phones, users are estimated to spend more than €500 million ($A824.33 million) on unnecessary mobile phone costs annually and an addict can easily pay up 1320 dollars per month (DPA 2003) . 15 percent of Spanish teenagers sleep with their phones in their hands. It pretty much sounds like we can put mobile phone usage as an addiction right next to the smokes which are defined as another addiction.
If we take a look on the scientific explanation, given by Professor Khurana – a top neurosurgeon, there is an increasing amount of evidence of a connection between mobile phone usage and tumors, and soon we will be able to classify mobile phones in the same box with smokes as hazardous habits.
Moreover, the public usage restriction of both mobile phones and cigarettes provided a habitat of fusion in common zones where people use these two objects side by side. That is why you see small gangs and loners standing in front of clubs, schools, bars, restaurants, etc all smoking as they bug other with their noisy chat boxes.
Using common denominators like public bans, and social nature of the product’s jumping point, mobile phone companies are following the path our friendly smoke producers paved for them decades ago. Just like their pioneers, they sell a social, likely to be a hazardous addiction as cool, rebel and stylish, to the easily addicted, young target market.
So my fellow potential addicted consumer friends beware. There is a backdoor to our wallet through our little emotional world. That door was found and exploited at the cost of peoples health in return for profit, and now someone else is about to knock on that door.
Posted by Hakan
The Subconscious Sale: The Semiotics of Wine Labels
Posted on | December 5, 2008 | Emily | 4 Comments
With the immense growth of the wine industry in the past 20 years, there are now an estimated 3,000 commercial vineyards in the United States alone and over 27,000 wineries in France. Wine has been demystified and is a drink not only for the grape educated, but for everyone. Wine bars and wine tastings have taken over the social lives of young professionals replacing the Italian tablecloth and bottle of Chianti of our grand parent’s generation. With fierce competition at restaurant tables and on the shelves of the local liquor store, the question becomes how does each winery develop a brand that stands out among the crowd? How do they get the juice to pass through the lips of millions of new consumers and differentiate themselves from one another. Make way for the graphic designer!
The wine label has become the single most important advertising factor for the wine industry. Label designers create alluring visual stories that sell not only the wine inside the bottle, but also the experience of drinking it, the recommendation of that bottle to a friend, and the memory of the experience. Most importantly, the label is trying to connect with the customer to create a long lasting relationship. Chuck House, famed label designer for Bonny Doon and Frog’s Leap describes the label this way,
“I think it’s a relationship…you want people not only to buy it once but to come back and buy it again, and share it with their friends and to bond with it in a sense, to see it as an extension of their own personality. For that to really work, the wine needs to have an inherent character and personality of it’s own.
(http://www.winebusiness.com/html/Printer Version.cfm?datald=44322) p2.
How do these small pieces of advertising real estate make such an impression on us, and what ultimately are we being sold? Semiotics- the study of signs and symbols- can be used to decode the powerful cultural messages that are being used in wine label design and help us understand how we are being visually told what to buy.
Ron Beasley and Marcel Danesi, co- authors of Persuasive Signs The Semiotics of Advertising write, “The ultimate goal of creating an appropriate image for a product is to embed it into social consciousness.” (p.17) The use of signs and symbols is a way for a designer to reach a consumer through conscious and unconscious cultural codes. There are three main categories in semiotics that we can use to decipher these visual messages: indexes, signs and symbols. Indexes are behaviors or rituals related to the product; food pairing, the type of stem ware used, how to order, how to taste, or how to unscrew a cork. Icons are visual signals used on the label that resemble what is in the bottle or where the wine is from; fruit, landscapes, vineyards, seals, maps, crests and chateaus are examples of icons found on wine labels. Symbols are signs, letters, characters, numbers and concepts that are visually portrayed on the label. Examples of symbols include brand names, colors, numbers, fonts, characters and artwork.
( http://www.packagedesignmag.com/issues/2008.09/front.panel.shtml) Simplicity of Semiotics Wine Labels Illustrate the Complex Ties Between Consumers and Symbols By J. Duncan Berry
A classic example of a French label is Chateau Leoville Barton. This label contains the typical indexes and symbols that the French wineries use to sell their products. In this case the icons of the Chateau, the crest of the winery and the grapes hanging on the corners are letting the buyer know that this wine comes from an
established vineyard that stands for quality and tradition. The picture of the Chateau is flanked by an iron gate, a symbol of privacy and elitism. The words CRU CLASSE EN 1855 refer to the classification system requested by Napoleon lll to rank the best wines of the Bordeaux region in 1855.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bordeaux_Wine_Official_Classification_of_1855)
This qualification is saying that this wine has passed the highest standards of the wine trade. The lettering is done in a traditional style shown entirely in capitals implying history, respect, and tradition. In France the Terroir or land of origin of the grape is a very important aspect of the wine and the appellation, Bordeaux, is an origination system that tells the buyer where the grape is grown.
“ The whole premise of the AC is that terroir, the site selection and ecology of the vineyard has more to do with the flavor and the character of the wine than does which grape variety is used.” (http://www.winepros.org/consumerism/varital.htm) p2.
This is another symbol of the history and quality that the French value. Just below the name of the Chateau is the year the grapes were harvested. For those who follow wine vintages, the year can be very important to the quality and taste of the wine and lead to a decision to buy or not to buy a bottle. As a whole, this label is communicating to the wine enthusiast, someone with some knowledge of the French appellation system, someone who understands quality and tradition and values the same. This buyer feels he or she is a member of an aristocratic and exclusive club sharing in the coded language of the French Label.
Les Heretiques is a modern take on a French wine label. It consists of some traditional elements of the French system but the imagery and concepts conveyed are straying from the expected, attracting a different type of buyer. The name Les Heretiques is French for The Heretics or those who are non-conformists and dissent or reject religious traditions. The font used for the name resembles writing from the Middle Ages, which refers to the time of the crusades and the fall of the Roman Empire. The T is shaped as a Greek cross and symbolizes Christianity. Pictured above the name is a celestial map. This is an icon of another world beyond our earthly one. It implies the possibility of a metaphysical world – a place beyond the corporeal, the heavens the study of astronomy the study of objects outside the earth’s atmosphere, the laws of the stars and the cosmos. This is the heretical world challenging the church. The icon on this label is the appellation listed as Vin de Pays de L’Herault. This geographical designation classifies this wine as a country table wine, not as high of a standard as the specific regional identifiers but telling the buyer what type of region the grape is grown in. The deep color blue signifies the mysterious heavens and the rich hue found in the calming night sky or in the deep waters of the ocean. The customer interested in Les Heretiques is an individualist or a person interested in ideas outside the norm of tradition. The targeted customer is not afraid to try different things and to look for an interesting experience. They are people who break rules and go beyond the boundaries of everyday living.
Les Heretiques commemorates the massacre of Minereve in 1208. Inhabited by members of the Cathari religious order, a pacifist Christian, non-conformist group that prospered during the Middle Ages, the destruction in Minereve was only one of the many Crusades led by the Roman Catholic Church, who, calling the Cathari ‘heretics,’ persecuted them in town after town. The Cathars’ story, one of the unquenchable spirit of man, juxtaposed with the inhumanity of man, imparts new significance on Languedoc’s ruined towers and castles, some sitting high and seemingly inaccessible, on mountaintops." (http://winelibrary.com/reviewwine.asp?item=40017)
Many modern American wine labels focus not on traditional elements of the French or European system but on imagery and concepts that have very little to do with the wine itself. An American label called “Wine that loves Roasted Chicken” has virtually no traditional information represented. There is no vintage, no grape variety or place of origin. The label is actually screen printed onto the bottle and shows only the name with a think bubble rising above it as if the bottle is dreaming of its favorite dish. This is a great example of an index- a behavior related to the product. The entire label is geared toward buyers who are looking for a good wine that will go with chicken. The designer has taken any stigma out of the process of wine buying and whittled it down to a simple need and desire to have a great tasting wine with a certain kind of food. This winery has several bottles with similar names, “Wine that loves Pasta”, “Wine that Loves Pizza”. This line of wines creates a comfort for the buyer who may not have much experience picking out wine. They create an easy shopping experience letting the customer know that they don not have to be an expert and that the difficulty of choosing a wine has been taken care of for them. The symbols of the chicken and the heart are supporting the behavioral index. The label is rendered in a cartoon-like fashion. This disarming style eliminates any idea that wine is only for the educated. The think bubble is reassuring the uninformed customer that thinking about what goes well with chicken is a perfectly fine reason to buy a bottle of wine. The lettering of the brand is also a symbol supporting the average buyer who may not understand the language of wine. It seems inexpensive, written in a handmade font as if it is part of a shopping list that anyone may have written. The graphics are simple and straightforward; the color blue relaxing and calming. All of these attributes help to attract a particular buyer. This consumer is someone who may not know very much about wine, but who is cooking and is looking for an inexpensive bottle that they can pair with their meal. For someone who might be intimidated by other bottles because of regional jargon, fancy lettering, this bottle would appeal to them as it makes their experience in the store an easier less stressful one. Ultimately, the label works in opposition to the perceived exclusiveness of the traditional French label.
“The Fire in Her Eyes by Some Young Punks” is a wine from Australia. At first glance this label is telling us little about the wine or the vintage. Instead, pictured is a voluptuous redheaded woman who is scantily clad. The figure is seated with her leg slightly raised exposing her thighs and garter belt. The red head is a symbolic figure representing a highly sexualized female. Redheads have long been viewed as exciting women full of fire and the fact that she is wearing little clothing is suggesting that she is sexually available. The alcohol content pictured larger that on most wine labels is 15 percent. This is intentionally shown to attract a buyer who might be interested in altering their state of mind. The brand name is a symbol, communicating a specific message. Fire connotes heat and desire. Eyes are used as signals for non-verbal communication. Some young punks may refer to the buyer, the ones that want to drink down this luscious red. The overall style of the label is representative of 1950’s pulp fiction novel, which are
“best remembered for their lurid and exploitative stories, and for their similarly sensational cover art” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulp_magazines.
These low quality soft cover books were made of very inexpensive paper pulp and sold for a dime. This style in conjunction with the highly sexualized woman leads to a quick subconscious understanding of the story of this wine. If you are a man, without a lot of money, drink this wine and you too can get a good buzz, get the girl and have an inexpensive, good time.
Duncan Berry Phd., Director of Applied Iconology Inc. a research firm that specializes in neuromarketing research analysis states in an article for Package Design Magazine, that most shopping decisions for household goods take a whopping 2.5 seconds. He calls this the “moment of truth” in purchasing. When buying wine however, he says that it takes the average shopper six minutes to pick out a bottle. This tells us that wine is perceived to be a valuable purchase, that it is important to choose the “right “ bottle even though more often than not, the purchase is made without much pre-determined knowledge. The label is the salesman here, vying for attention on the shelves next to hundreds of others out to make a statement and a connection. The label designer using the language of semiotics is choreographing this six-minute two-step, activating our subconscious understanding of symbolic cultural meaning. The personalities of these labels reach out from the isles and try to take us for a spin around the dance floor, making connections with our desires and values that lie in our subconscious cultural identities Hopefully, the experience lives up to the label and a relationship is born.
Emily Steffian
Masters of Industrial Design Seminar
Prof. Aiden Petrie
Fall 2008
Tags: Design > graphic design > semiotics in package design > the psychology of marketing > wine
Less is More
Posted on | December 4, 2008 | Stephen | 5 Comments
Here is my social commentary on the issue of how we deal with ‘less’ in our society. Very often you hear the expression "that in times of less we can expect more."During the course of this semester I have thought very deeply about this topic. I tried to communicate the basic message of ‘less is more’ in a linear way. However, for every rosy example of less leading to more, I uncovered several additional ‘mores’ that seemed to honestly reflect the times that we live in.
This piece is designed to be viewed as a printed book. I have printed a softcover version of the book, and I will be printing a hardcover version as well. Please keep this in mind when you view this online version. The images are meant to be viewed side-by-side, so try to envision how it would read in book form.
Thank you for your comments and criticism.
Link to photos (if you haven’t seen them yet)
or you can download a PDF version HERE
Posted by Stephen keep looking »