YCN - Thinking about design outcomes

Problems to solve:


- Appeal to young, working class families
- How do we entice / motivate families to leave the house for a picnic (if thats what we are trying to achieve)
- How we stay in keeping with M&S branding and style
- Try to appeal to range of ages, sex and interests
- How do we communicate a season in the form of food and packaging
- How do we avoid cliche's, M&S standard audience, Target our new audience


Target Audience:


- Young families
- Working Class
- Those who wouldn't normally shop at M&S


Tone of voice:


- Fun
- Fresh
- Seasonal
- New
- Special
- Treat
- Sweet
- Exciting 


Competitors / Similar Market:


- Sainsburys meal deal: Offering a main, side and drink for a small price. Sainsburys have a wider market than M&S, its associated with the people we are trying to target. They also offer picnic like platters for lunchtime - a wide selection of sandwiches within one box at a very reasonable price.


- Asda : Offer oriental, Mexican ect style platters and selections you can purchase - The packaging reflects the style of a metal dinner tray; dividing the food into sections.


- Tesco: Offer seasonal fruit lunches, not very solid as only one type of seasonal products exists. Again, targets audience we aim to direct our product at.


Design outcomes / Processes:


- Eco-friendly
- Biodegradable
- Hand rendered type
- Slick layout
- Using recyclable materials
- Possible screen printing
- Die cutting
- Infographics

Design outcomes in detail:

Packaging


- Quirky, informative, playful packaging. Designed to allow a person to select a range of different products, for them to fit appropriately into our sectioned packaging box.
- Needs to evoke the picnic idea and culture
- Appearance will depend on season
- new design brought out seasonally 
- Easy to use
- Convenient
- Quick to select and place products in box
- Consistency between food product packaging
- Info graphics clearly communicating how the picnic pack works
- Available
- Fun
- Informative


Logo


- Must use M&S logo
- WIll adapt colours to season


Serviette


- 'Family friendly' - of good quality, must be able to do its job, not just to look 'pretty'
- Screen printed within logo and slogan
- Recyclable
- Consistant with packaging
- Simple

Cutlery


- Recyclable 
- Re-usable (not plastic, strong enough to be used again)
- Simple
- In keeping with packaging

Digital promotion


- M&S TV Moving image
- M&S Tiny TV instore promotion - Moving image

Print promotion

- Series of posters communicating picnic idea and tagline

- Placed in suitable areas relating to the idea of a picnic. E.g A riverside
- Photographs of 'the perfect picnic' setting, visually promoting idea
- Pricing labels
- In store banners

In store promotion


- Typographic Murals?

Tagline


- Fun, convenient, ethical, bringing families together

Store dividers


- Large dividers within aisles sectioning off the picnic pack food products, to easily communicate to customers the foods which can be chosen from.
- Array of selection boxes, of different sizes and shape showing the range of food products you can choose from to go in your pack - Visual selection
- Moveable, recyclable, Large stands, holding either the baskets themselves or food products. Consistent with packaging design and existing M&S stands


Campaign


- Create a campaign to promote our product, using a similar direction as that of existing M&S Campaigns.


Mailshots


- To promote picnic pack
- In keeping with packaging design

OUGD203 - YCN - Concept boards and feedback

Boards

Feedback

1st Sheet

Problem Analysis:

Good research - Found out a lot in terms of ways to go about answering the brief become of the available market.

Conceptual Development:

M&S dining deals are usually for some hint of event - Valentines ect. Do you think they would have deals with no events. Seasonal is a great idea. Sustainable, will keep people coming back.

Design Proposal:

The branding and packaging of products to push it as a continuing idea. Something that will be different next time. Think of ways that could promote it in a store - baskets like picnic hampers. Think about ways to bundle products into a picnic format.

2nd Sheet

Problem Analysis:

Analysed and Researched how people eat - perhaps encourage people and families together rather than a dessert?

Conceptual Development:

Needs to be good quality to go with M&S brand - Don't use the word budget - Also can't be too high end as that type of market are unlikely to have a picnic. Great idea about seasonal Packaging - would appeal to a wide range of people

Design Proposal:

Use elements of each season, Christmas, Easter.

Think about mixing and matching a meal deal rather than an entire box set.

Action plan:

• Look at meal deal and the options it gives - do we want to sell just dessert or give the option of savoury, biscuits ect
• Target Market - don't mention budget how can we get around this
• Do we want to give customers a selection to pick from in accordance to taste - What would be in the selection
• What do people recognise within seasons - base our content on this? - Easter - Eggs - Spring
• Age restricting including alcohol? Or have a soft drink alternative? - Look at alternative available
• Primary Research - Play on colour regarding season, look at calendar
• Look at Eco Friendly ways to package products
• Create 1 season - mock up others?
• Primary research - Visit M&S - Food, Promotion, TV, Take pictures

5 Questions we wanted answering within the crit

Top ten things - Boards

Good is...? - Progress tutorial

Concept to take into tutorial:


'To design and promote flat pack housing, by producing a promotional event for an existing company.'


Potential products include:


- Pop up catalogue / book
- Pop up mail shot
- Pop up business card design (including display packaging)
- Event banners (hoarding)
- Free standing pop up wee houses (to life size scale)
- Magazine spread holding event ticket
- Promotional stickers for event and packaging




.....




Comments made


I need to wittle down the amount of products i'm producing, i'm pick the most relevant, it was suggested my main focus was the pop up catalog


I must remember this module is about print


Develop logo - looks too much like the male anatomy 


Don't look at just at wood packaging, look at other elements the weehouses are made from


Don't make it all about 'pop up' remember its flat pack


Explore flat pack more


Look at packaging more for post - metals- tins- plastics etc

Good is...? Design sheets - Event - Open house event

Open house event promoting 'Weehouses'

Products:

Pop up catalogue showing Weehouses available

Packaging for catalogue to be posted to potential buyers

Pop up mail shot promoting event (inc envelope design)

Stickers for promotion and packaging

Large standing banners for event

Life size 3d wee house structures
Ticket for event - Which can be found as a 'push out' within a magazine spread

.....

Finalised mock ups

Initial Mock ups

Possible ways to package the catalogue, book and business cards

Good is...? The plan of action

Finalised concept:


To design for and promote an event promoting 'weehouses' - an open house event.

• Using life size pop up models of weehouses
• Pop up catalogue to give to those who attend - Visual aid
• Standard catalogue outlining the company and what its about
• Pop up mail shot to promote event
• Stickers to give to those who attend
• 2nd 3d mail shot - boxed pop up weehouse
• Packaging for catalogue to be able to post

Plan of action:

- Research pop up shop

- Begin designing

- Look at ways I can approach print within my designing

- Mock up

- Research pop up books, how to construct them, what I'm going to use for content

Good is...? Identifying a concept

After having a progress tutorial with Lorenzo I soon realised I didn't have a solid concept, thus resulting in me very much needing to come up with one, quick time! He suggested I came up with 10 possibilities, did a mass sum of research on each, to result in me picking a few to take further into the design process. 

1. Packaging for 'weehouses' building materials (wood, nails etc)
2. Popup catalogue book for 'weehouses'
3. Catalogue
4. Environmental promotional graphics
5. Packaging design - push out parts to create a 'weehouse' mock up
6. Transportation vehicle graphics
7. Magazine spread 
8. Tool kit design (the sort which comes with flat pack furniture)
9. Company introductory Mail shot
10. Estate agents products 

I intend on researching indepthly into these possibilities to get a real grounding for what I want to do. This will be available on my design context blog.


Action plan:

• Research

1. Examples of Ten concepts
2. How I could approach each of these
3. How they I could design them in relation to print

• Mock up

1. Produce mock ups of concepts
2. Focus on  a few, produce more mock ups and templates
3. Possibly research templates (looking at books within studio)

• Time 

1. Plan it
2. Do - To do lists
3. Think realistically how long things take

OUGD201 - Good is..? Lateral thinking - Work shop

A serious attempt at some lateral thinking, a workshop to get us thinking about the approach we want to take. To help us refine our concept and rationale and the possibilities and approaches our project could take.

I found the session really helpful, a couple of hours of brainstorming has got my creativity going. Thinking about a lot more approaches and ways I could take this brief.

We had to answer several questions, each to have five answers in accordance to our ' what is good '

The finalised answers, one answer for each question.

To take away from this session:

To come back tomorrow with reviewed answers and an example of a brand, identity or logo for each of the answers given.

Personal development -

I intend on brainstorming the answers, to get new idea's and design decisions. To understand and note down why I think my answers were a good interpretation of 'What is good'

For tomorrow - 9:30 - On walls - A reviews / final version of the answers from this session.

.....

Reviewing my answers and asking 'Why':

'What makes it good? - It's environmentally friendlier than regular housing"

Why - I have researched and found facts and figures relating to the little environmental impact flat pack wooden structures have in comparison to regular brick or concrete housing.

"What is it better than and why? - Large sheds, it's a lot more comfortable"

A lot of people buy large shed / large wooden structures as another room or guest house within their garden. The structures aren't as big, nor as comfortable and don't have good heating. Thus a flat pack house, once built is a better option.

"Who would find it good? - First time buyers"

Its the cheaper option, than buying a regular house, which you quite possibly will need a mortgage for.

" If my good was a profession what would it be? - An architect"

Due to the structures complexity and beautiful and outstanding a features, a real thought process has gone into the designing of it, especially as it comes flat pack. Which I feel an architect would be the main consultant for such a building.

"Who wouldn't find it good? - Those wanting to live in the city"

For a flat pack property, you need land / space. A bustling over populated city doesn't offer this.

"If my good was a celebrity who would it be? - The presenter from grand design"

Such product as 'Weehouses' has appeared in the program, and the program itself specialises in following the building of some amazing, different structures. Perfect for a flat pack house.

"If my good was a place, where would it be? - Switzerland"

The capital of log cabins, I felt it appropriate and befitting to the environment.

"If my good was an event, what would it be? - An open house event "

Its a house after all, such events take place to attract potential buyers.

"If my good was a product what would it be? - A flat pack house"

Speaks for itself really...

.....

REVIEWED ANSWERS

MY answer for : "If my good was a product what would it be? - A flat pack house" I thought was a bit too obvious. So I thinking changing it to 'wood' would be a better option. Something I can research into further

"Who wouldn't find it good? - Those wanting to live in the city" - I think this is wrong, those wanting to live in the city may want to buy a plot of land, or use their garden, as a place to build such a thing I feel I need to be more specific with my answer. Possibly changing it to 'Those who lack the money, time and effort to design and build a property of their own.'

Examples of brands and identities in relation to answers:

Good is...? Examples of concept and rationale

Examples of idea's I would like to take forward.

An example of what looks like a manual, page by page. I dislike the style and content, but the layout and book size and shape I like.

An example of a logo relating to woodwork. Its a bit hard to understand as it's focused on an image of mining, but the writing states 'chipping and chopping'. But overall I like the vector imaging and typeface layered on top of an old desaturated image.

I really like the amount of materials the brand has been printed on. Its consistent and works throughout each. It explores a range of printing methods to be able to achieve this. I really want to do a similar think, even if its simply to explore print and learn and improve my knowledge of the topic.

I like the styling and approach to stock within these designs. The yellowing ageing paper, array of stock size and material is quite nice. Especially the smaller pieces, they have a real sense of detail.

Clever packaging, something I want to look into. The content effecting the styling of the design.

A typical yet modernistic approach to cardboard packaging. Considering my materials, I think cardboard would be the most suitable thing to use within my packaging design.

I like the styling and binding used within this, it could easily be used as a manual. I have a bit of a liking for square books too. 

The book sleeve here is a really nice touch and adds a bit of interest to the product. Without it, I feel it would be a little plain and boring. The material of both the book and sleeve is quite nice too.

Beautiful typography screen printed on cardboard, absolutely stunning! I love the quirky design and relevance the styling has to the product it holds. I would really like to try something like this in relation to  flat pack housing, somehow!

An industrial design for tiles, which is really quite nice. Simple, big, bold lines, with the needed information, using a duotone.

Just quite clever really. I like clever packaging. 

Good is...? More concept development

What are you trying to communicate? (An idea, a concept, a message, a lifestyle...?)

That tree houses aren't just for children.

That tree houses are good.

Wee houses are the way forward.

Living in a wooden home can be super cool.

Who are you trying to communicate to? (Why and what do you want to achieve?)

Adults

Those who enjoy the outdoors

Tourists

Those with a little money to spare

Tree house enthusiasts

Those living in the alps

How will you use print design and production methods to achieve this?

Creating a step by step manual

Creating packaging

Re-branding an existing tree house selling company

Merchandise for a tourist attraction holding a tree house

What is already out there and how can you adapt, modify, reuse or respond to it?

Re-branding existing companies

Re using and adapting existing packaging