Friday, July 15, 2016

Packaging Sells

There's no questioning the indisputable fact that if there are two products side by side in a shop, the one that looks more appealing is going to be picked off the shelf, even if the second product was better. So, let's talk about how good packaging sells products.



There are principles to design in general to differentiate the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, though when it comes to low price products those principles seem to be chucked out the window and then run over for good measure. It doesn't help when different regions across the globe seem to relate to one aesthetic style more than another; for example, in Europe at the moment, minimalism and clean design seems to be a key focus on the majority of work, whereas in the majority of Asia it's all about grabbing attention before your neighbour does, creating loud styles that are quite different to those of Europe. Of course there is a bit more variety than these two different styles, including sub-styles that specify more on certain elements than others.

And aesthetic isn't the only avenue that you've got to go down; the design of the packaging as a product itself, is just as important as the look, and the packaging above made for sugar cubes has done this incredibly well by allowing the consumer increase the size of the box once at home to allow for easy access to a single cube instead of a half dozen. It's simple tricks like this that innovate packaging and allow for continued development by companies to find the perfect packaging for their product.

Now lets take a glance at what bad packaging looks like; maybe one of the most complained pieces of packaging across the globe is that of scissors, which require scissors to open. This destroys the fundamental idea of buying the scissors in the first place and also makes a lot of fuss out of something that should take a couple of seconds to open and instead takes minutes, longer if you don't have a sharp utensil to help with the process.

From a simple pair of scissors to the more extravagant (and expensive) iPhone, it's clear to see that packaging plays an incredibly important role. People are going to be paying for those scissors that can be easily opened compared to the ones pictured above with cause years of surpassed rage to surface. So if you're designing packaging for a product, don't be the Scissor packaging, be the Cube Sugar packaging.

To create the perfect packaging to sell your product, contact us at Mindsparkz where we can design your next best design packaging. For other forms of marketing strategies, visit The ODM Group for case studies to find out more about https://www.linkedin.com/company/mindsparkz-design/


Friday, July 8, 2016

Innovation in China: The Apple of Drones


China has been doing pretty well over the last few decades, with the economic reform in the late 70s bringing about what is known as the Chinese Economic Miracle, but it seems that time is coming to pass very soon. It seems that there may be a savior though, the first company in China - focusing on innovation - to dominate a new and hot market, and they're making drones.
DJI, or Da-Jiang Innovations, has become one of the coolest companies ever just for the fact they make RC Drones, but they are also a monolith in the industry with over 70% of the industry, measuring in at around $8 million, belonging to them. No wonder they're being called the "Apple of Drone".

It's probably due to the fundamental truth that China is an industrial giant, manufacturing products day after day at an incredibly fast pace, that has allowed DJI to flourish; without quick turn-around from the factories in Shenzhen, and such short distances between their headquarters and the factories themselves, the process or designing and producing new iterations of products would take a substantial amount more time.

It's amazing that over just 3 years the CEO of DJI went from a student at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology to starting a company from his dorm, and then moving to Shenzhen. Wang is now worth $3.6 million, according to Forbes.

DJI is pushing boundaries, reaching into new areas before competitors reach where DJI just was, allowing them to gain ground pretty fast and creating some really neat tech to help with search & rescue, surveillance, science, and agriculture; with the help of their development kit, it has been used for some nifty stuff, such as the 'SnotBot' that helped with the research of blowholes of blue whales, and some more questionable as well, like the 'KillerBot' which was equipped with chainsaws by farmers and used to decapitate snowmen.

It's safe to say that these guys at DJI are going to continue doing what they do best and creating some amazing technology for us to all enjoy, but will this perhaps push other people within China to endeavor into the world of innovation to help keep their economic boat afloat?






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