Brent's Two Cents

Rant: Packaging

I have to get this off my chest. Why is it that most companies have absolutely no clue about how to present their products to customers?

I just opened an MP3 player that I'll be working with. The packaging on this product looked like it was designed by the department of Homeland Security. I opened one end of the box and tried to pull the contents out, but it wouldn't come out because the were sealed in a thick, oddly-shaped plastic package which stuck out through the oddly-shaped box (so that you could see the product in a window in the box). So I opened the other end of the box and wrestled with it for a little while. Finally it came out.

At this point, I faced the daunting task of breaching the tough outer exoskeleton. The only tool that can reasonably be used for this task is a samurai sword, or something similarly very sharp like an exacto knife. Think about this: to access this product you need to have a dangerously sharp utensil. Scissors or other normal, safe cutting tools won't work because the plastic is too thick (I tried it and hurt my hands from squeezing the scissors so hard -- and was unsuccessful). Even the exacto-knife was barely up to the job initially -- I had to use considerable force to cut through the plastic and then get a good slash going. It would have been quite easy for me to have hurt myself or any innocents standing nearby. After it was cut open, the cut edges of the durable plastic themselves made excellent cutting tools. In summary: opening this package was difficult and slightly dangerous. It was not a fun first experience.

Now, I contrast this with the experience of opening my iPod, which was -- quite literally -- a joyful experience. The iPod's packaging is beautiful, functional and obvious. Nothing is difficult. There are no sharp edges. Clearly, designers at Apple spent a fair amount of time considering not just the packaging, but also in crafting the experience of opening the packaging and pulling the device out for the first time. This is a microcosm of how -- as a company -- Apple thinks, and why they inspire such fanatical devotion.

Idea: Buy Music Anywhere

I was in the coffee shop today and -- as as happened many times in my life -- I heard some music playing that I liked and I wondered who the artist was, and the name of the song. This information was, of course, not available. There's an opportunity here. Lots of public places play music for the public to enjoy, often just a radio, but these days more and more I think the music must come from some service or another because the places I've been don't suffer from commercials and DJs.

Here's what I should have been able to do once I realized that I liked the song that was playing. I should have been able to walk over to a console mounted on the wall of the coffee shop, put in my credit card, and bought the song (say, for $0.99). If I'd had my iPod, I should have been able to download it right there. When I get home it should be waiting for me in my account on some web site the next time I'm on the net.

The coffee shop should get a cut of the sales, plus they shouldn't have to pay whatever service they're paying now to provide them with music (assuming that's how it happens). Win-win for them. Who's going to turn down a new revenue stream that replaces a cost?

The console should also be able to act as a jukebox of sorts so that rather than listening to 'default' music, customers of the place can request tunes. That part should be free -- airplay is advertising, after all.

Record companies and artists win because people who like their music but don't know what it is can buy it on impulse.

The losers are "traditional" music outlets. With digitial distribution, all the latest releases will be available as part of the sound system at the nearest coffee shop. What do we need music stores for?

Phileas Fogg's Balloon

I recently finished reading Jules Verne's Around The World in Eighty Days. It was a surprisingly good read -- interesting characters, a little bit of intrigue, some adventure. Quite fun. But there was one thing missing: The Balloon. I don't know where I got the idea, but I had it in my head that at some point on this trip, Fogg and his companions travel by balloon. For some reason I was really looking forward to reading that part. At every turn of the page I'd anticipate a scenario where they'd need a balloon to travel the next leg of the journey, but it never came. At one point near the end of the story, the notion of crossing the Atlantic in a balloon is mentioned, but that's it.

However, it turns out that I might not be completely crazy. Apparently there have been various film and television productions of this story, and at least one of them features a balloon/airship ride. Although I've never seen any of these films, the presence of the balloon ride in film portrayals might explain the association of Fogg with balloons in popular culture and hence my own expectation. (There's even a reference in the Simpsons where Martin pretends to be Fogg while standing in a balloon.) Furthermore, the original cover art on the book (see link above) shows two men looking up at a spherical object. The object is a stylized planet Earth, but could be mistaken for a balloon.

Hyperbole

So, we just got new hardwood floors to replace ratty old carpets throughout most of our condo. Along with the floors, we also picked up a Swiffer, which is a heavily-advertised kind of dust mop. It's no big deal, just a little soft-paper duster thing, but to read the advertising for this thing you'd think it was some kind of cure for cancer or something. "Stop Cleaning. Start Swiffering." says the web page. Please. The ad inside the package for the Swiffer WetJet says it will "Transform your home. TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE." Oh come on. This friggin' dust mop is going to transform my life? Who are they kidding?