POP Pics of the Week


               





               




Press Release




Artios Cad 7.6 Announces New Software Enhancements
- Cape Integration
- New Hatch Catalog
- New Nudge Options
- Improved 3D Graphics & Performance
- VRML Assemblies Support
- VRML Textures Support 
- Collada 3D Import/Export
- CAD/Graphics Auto-Registration
- New Keyless Licensing System




Point of Purchase Marketing Case Studies

 
           


           






:: Design Survey Results ::


1. When your organization hires creative staff, what are the most important factors in that decision making process?

 1 = Very Unimportant , 2 = Somewhat Unimportant , 3 = Neutral , 4 = Somewhat Important , 5 = Very Important. Response scores are averaged on a scale of 1-5

Salary - 3.6
Overall skill sets - 4.6
Experience - 3.9
Award recognition - 2.9
Length of time at previous jobs - 3.3


2. How does your creative department/s seperate your company from the competition?

A few comments of interest chosen from survey

- Hire designers with multiple levels of experience in retail display and print design.
- We are highly strategic in our brand graphics. Always looking to differentiate from the competition, establish appropriate category linkage (or create new categories), comparing in real life shelf sets, seeking unique consumer insights, etc.
- Consistent brand imagery in product presentations.
- Maintain current versions of software platforms and constantly push their limitations
- With partition walls and dark windows. :)


3. Does your company encourage the creative staff to attend design related events?

Yes - 80.0%
No - 20%


4. Of the events listed below, which does your company attend or participate in?

Design of the Times Awards - 66.6%
Outstanding Merchandising Achievements - 66.6%
A.R.E. Retail Design Awards - 16.6%


5. If you could develop the ideal design event, what would you consider to be the most important criteria?

A few comments of interest chosen from survey

- Mixing creatives with non-creatives in a way that would communicate to each group what the other is all about.
- Concept, engineering and does it help sell product.
- Allowing design ideas to be reviewed by all entries, instead of just ideas from members of the organization hosting the event.
- Fairness, I've been hearing alot of complaining over the last 3 or 4 shows that the big sponsor companies get all of the awards. That statement is pretty general though.
- Design an event just for designers. Industry seems to be trending to commodity based solutions. Multi-faceted POP designers are a rare find.


6. What impact do you think Walmart's new style guide will have on suppliers and consumer product companies?

Alot - 70.0%
Very Little - 10%
Undecided - 20%

A few comments of interest chosen from survey

- Walmart has disappointed me in recent years going generic with their POP displays. It makes it difficult for the customer to find their favorite brand. Not all socks are created equal. Also their selection of goods has reduced dramatically.
- Alot is not a legitimate word.
- I think it will force companies to look more at display structure, instead of a basic display with high end graphics.
- Could cripple POP suppliers whose primary products and services are mass merchant based.


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Challenge Analysis
By Jamie Bauer

I've been thinking a lot lately about something I'm calling "challenge analysis", which is a service of GiraffxDesign. When it comes to, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", my question used to be "Why?" Recently I realized why I often question authority and the status quo of doing things the same old way, but "Why?" or "Why not?" are the wrong questions. The real question should be, "Who gets to decide what's broke?" and "By what criteria is the decision made?"
 
One of the reasons that our industry niche has gotten so diluted from ad agencies, promotion companies, incentive businesses, marketing agents, market researchers, fixture designer/mfrs., etc. etc. etc. is because, when the marketplace began to change back in the late 80s and early 90s, display company sales and management continued under-responding to under-analyzed creative briefs from clients who didn't even know what their problems were, much less be able to properly identify them to designers. Business people who were already in arenas where question asking was the norm were better positioned to respond to mediocre creative briefs with insights and suggestions.
 
For example, ad agencies in particular are perceived as more creative than us, even though they are usually over-budget, design things that cannot readily be mfd. and/or underestimate timelines, because they are in an industry where they create design briefs rather than receive them. They get to decide what's broke, and/or what the challenge(s) at hand are because they're historically positioned to do so in their markets. So, even when they're out of their element, they're good at bluffing their way through.

Designers should be meeting directly with shoppers, retailer associates and supply chain mgrs. to mine data, should be trained to subsequently identify bigger picture challenges and should further be trained to incorporate such data which they receive from such sources into solutions for the real challenge(s) at hand rather than to ONLY the one or ones which are identified in a creative brief. Now that's a value-added proposition between designers, their employers' and their customers that will lead to much greater successes long term, more reliance on our industry as a creative and information source and the return of more business back to the producers who know how to build the stuff.

If you wish to participate in this discussion then join our POP Displays Linkedin Group. Click here to sign up.


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The 2008 POPAI award winning Grain Waves Modular Display, designed by Creative Instore Solutions for their client PepsiCo Australia, is a design success story. The results speak for themselves, as after initial tests, Grain Waves has hit record levels for repeat purchases for a new snack product, and the unit will be adopted as the template model for displays across all the PepsiCo flagship brands in Australia. Rolling out in January 2009, all Smiths, Red Rock Deli, Doritos and Grain Waves displays will adopt this universal design, with only the graphics and colours changing according to the product..... read more

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After seeing this great system at the In-Store Expo, i thought it would be a good one to share with you. Brad Flaherty demonstrated this unique locking system which can create an infinitely reconfigurable modular display system. The thing i found most impressive was the ease of use and the load bearing qualities of this system. If your interested in learning more, click on the banner above or contact brad directly. Contact Brad via email or at 262-565-6348

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According to Allen Buchholz, Executive VP of Sales at FMA, "The SlideBuy Shopper Information system will revolutionize the digital signage industry. The innovative design takes product information directly to the shelf without displacing existing product." ..... more

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Currently rolling out in convenience and petrol locations throughout Australia, this wonderfully fun display unit for Twisties has again pushed the boundaries for design in point of sale display, and has again successfully kicked a goal for Creative Instore Solutions and their client PepsiCo Smiths.....  more

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The main focal point on this display is the large product replica tip-on which serves as a great visual centerpiece and conveys the message that this product can facilitate great, thick lashes... more

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When the Medical Research Institute was looking for the right environment to set-off their new marketing campaign for Black Powder, they found a prime location with General Nutrition Centers, a leader in the health and wellness supplements industry...  more

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Iams Creates a Simple Approach to Shopper Engagement and Education 


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Click here to see How They Did It

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| Click Banner to view Displays | Watch the beans grow |


Magic Bean Wishes using Sustainable Counter Unit In-Store

Just when you think you've seen it all - how about laser etched beans that have images on them which grow as the bean does! A couple from Pittsburgh came up with this novel idea a few years back and are finally getting the exposure they deserve due in part to their hard marketing efforts and the POP counter displays they are using to merchandise their unique product in...click on banner now...As you can see, these 2 counter displays, each intended for a different demographic, complement the magic bean products well. The eye-catching two sided spinner display, with its colorful graphics, was developed to appeal to children and was placed in gift shops throughout the United States.

The sustainable counter display was used to promote the earthy bean products by using predominantly brown corrugate. The angled front lips on the product trays enabled consumers to easily select the category type they wanted, while the litho laminated riser was the vehicle used to draw them into the display. Says Jeff Zehner, inventor, " the idea of using a sustainable substrate really ties into the product well and conforms to the current green retailing trends in the marketplace". The units were produced by Packaging Specialists of Cheswick, PA.

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Sustainable Endcaps - Doing More With Less

Having participated as an OMA judge a few months ago , I was very impressed by the variety of sustainable endcap submissions entered this year. One might think - an endcap is an endcap is an endcap - not true anymore. Designers are now being challenged to create clever ways to use less paper while not affecting the structural integrity or shelf presence for the brand. There are a myriad of ways to accomplish this and each approach is somewhat unique to the situation at hand. While conducting a store walk-through, we recently found a super example that combined all of this criteria with an end-result that is second to none. Click on the image above to view some of our observations.

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Eye See :: Cosmetic Field Observations :: 


         


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