Originally Posted by
labatt
We've always been intrigued by Apple. It's very apparent that they look at HOW there products are used - not just what the product does. Little things like the way the cord wraps onto the AC adapter of the Macbook, or the way the brightness of the Apple logo on the cover of the Macbook changes based upon the brightness of the screen. The packaging they deliver their products in, and many other aspects of their products, are designed to inspire, build confidence and trust, and create fanatical fans.
I'm not sure Apple is the right company to emulate. I'll hold my tongue on some of my reasons, but to your points:
Cord wrap - nice feature, but nothing that would be a go/no-go when making a purchase
Brightness of the logo - What value does this add to the product? It's a gimmick.
Packaging... designed to inspire, build confidence, and trust... etc. This is
marketing, not product
design requirements. Don't confuse the two, or you will fail.
Originally Posted by
labatt
1. What do you wish came with your bike when you bought it? (not components, but accessories)
2. What little things are on your bike now that you find convenient?
3. What little things are missing from your bike that you wish it had?
4. Are there any aspects of bike design that truly inspire you? Shape (what kind of shape?), paint, logos, etc.?
5. Would you have any constructive suggestions for a new company that could create a fanatical following?
1. Nothing. The accessories don't mean squat. Cages, computers, bells, whistles... what colour, weights, features, etc... the wrench monkeys and hard core geeks will all have very specific requirements for these things. Pre-defined accessory packages are more marketing then value added designed requirements. The people that buy accessory packages want an RTR, one-stop-shop experience. They have an idea of what cycling is, and want to walk out of the shop with what they think satisfies that archetype. I'm too much of a geek monkey to do that.
2. I'm going to skip the details, but some of them are so specific to me that I had to custom build them.
3. Chain hook - to hold the chain when I pull the rear wheel... and an all-girl pit crew.
4. Inspire me to do what? I ride because I like to, the bike is the tool, it does not "inspire". "Inspiration", "passion", etc... these are marketing terms that mean nothing in terms of design. Unless you can quantize these things, and design tests to determine if they are objectively satisfied in the final product, the mean nothing to me from a technical point of view.
5. Yes, Don't focus on the packaging, marketing, or how it is used. Concentrate on identifying your target market: age group, casual / hardcore rider? Do you want to create a "boutique" experience (like Apple) - where being seen with the product is just as important as the function to the end consumer? Instead of asking a broad spectrum of users, you can ask the same questions of a more refined target audience and get a much more applicable set of responses. (For example, based on the demo you identified above - I don't think my input would mean crap to you as I don't really fit that group)
Start by writing a DS (Design Specification), ERS (Engineering Requirements Specification, and / or User Requirements Specification (URS).
If you want to create a fanatical fan base... that is marketing, yet based on solid design and engineering. As some one mentioned, look at the Campy guys (I'm one of them). I will gladly share my thoughts on that later, as this post is already getting annoying long...
~Monkey~