Making Pop-Ups Work
When designed and produced properly, a “pop-up,” or as we call them, dimensionals; can evoke a wide range of reactions. Common to all of them is recognition and memorability. That is, after all, the path a good marketing tool takes to drive results and ultimately increase sales. The path of producing a dimensional, however, can be a challenging one for even the most seasoned production professional-loaded with critical, time-sensitive decisions and many idiosyncratic steps. Having seen everything that can and does happen with dimensional projects over the past twenty years, we have a pretty good sense of the when, why and how’s involved in making sure they’re a success. Following is a short list of the most critical considerations you should take into account when approaching such a project.
Concept (Literally anything is possible, so think out of the box) As with any promotion, the first step in creating a dimensional is to conceptualize the piece in a way that will best serve the message. The choices of dimension type are endless-a conventional “childrens book” pop-up, a changing picture, a three-dimensional constructed object, lights, sound, scent, holograms, lenticulars, uncommon materials. Naturally the choices become narrower as you add boundaries such as timing, budget and other parameters. And with dimensionals, the impact of those boundaries can be more profound than with traditional flat promotions. That’s why it’s important to plan carefully and well in advance of the project, with an eye to aggressively managing all aspects of production.
Design (A dimensional needs to be designed for production efficiency as much as for its impact and marketing effectiveness) While it appears obvious that the design stage is crucial to the success of a dimensional, the reasons aren’t always as clear. Consider, for example a “one stage” design (one where opening a fold activates a platform to rise). It’s simple enough for many art directors to construct one themselves for presentation purposes – and many do. It is unwise, however, to presume that simplicity in actual production-with volumes ranging in the thousands-to-millions. Much can change when a design’s “simple” mechanism needs to be produced cost-efficiently in large quantities.
Postage (Consider the post office as one of your suppliers from the very start) Postage is a manageable part of your cost. Don’t treat it as an afterthought. At the start of your project, consider machinability, weight and shape and factoring those considerations into your overall budget and planning.
Postal concerns always come into play with oddly shaped products. The less like a letter it is, the more it’s going to cost to mail (independent of weight). Square mailings are more expensive that rectangular ones, boxes of any type more expensive than flat pieces, etc. The paper stock you use can also impact postal costs. Since dimensionals are paper engineered to perform (do something other than simply carry a readable message), stock selection is crucial to the project’s success. However, as “higher performance” stock is usually heavier, it can cost more to mail.
Magazine inserts, as well, not only need to meet the requirements of the publication, but can actually increase its mailing cost. That’s an added fee that 10 out of 10 advertisers would choose to avoid.
Testing, Testing, Testing (You really can’t test enough) It is rare that a flat printed piece requires much testing. Not so with dimensionals where testing can be critically important to a project’s success. On every piece we produce, we build and examine numerous comps-even construct the blue into its dimensional form before going on press. When creating direct mail pieces, we will build exact-to-spec samples and mail them to numerous locations to see how they survive. We recently produced an electronic piece which was mailing in the winter, so we froze and thawed the electronics. If producing a magazine insert, we will bind hundreds of samples into actual publications and mail them to test for performance and durability. You need to know anything and everything that could-and will-happen during the life of the promotion.
Knockouts are critical to a dimensional piece. Test the accuracy of your knock outs. Many glues won’t adhere to certain inks or even paper stocks for that matter. Test the glues. Test them in different temperatures. If the product is rubberband-activated, test the rubberbands under any conceivable conditions they may encounter. Skipping any of these steps could mean the difference between your dimensional arriving to its recipient correctly or in pieces. Few advertising messages are less effective than a pop up that doesn’t pop.
Die Cutting (To the chase) Once printing is completed, the next phase of the process is die-cutting. The importance of the accuracy of your die-cutting builds exponentially when creating a dimensional. Paper that performs; moves, expands, slides, glues, etc. will only do so if cut accurately. Angles become more critical, sizes as well.
The decision of using perforations versus scores can also be an important one for many projects. For example, many of the highly complex pieces we produce-particularly those involving a lot of multi-directional movement-will only work with perforated paper. Others will work fine with scores. Think about it and test it in advance.
Hand Assembly (What you can and can’t get away with) It may sound archaic, but we find hand assembly (sometimes machine-assisted hand assembly) to be the best method of manufacturing dimensionals. Hand assembly is just what it sounds like; individuals assembling the products by hand. This concept may be hard to envision, especially when dealing in multiple million piece quantities, but we do it each and every day. A good hand assembler is no less a technician in his/her field than a good designer is in theirs.
Hand assembly can be the ultimate in quality control assurance. Simply by its nature, each and every piece of every project is tested by a person. This is the most effective way to weed out any less-than-perfect pieces that may have been constructed. Keep in mind however that as assemblers can compensate for a number of production sins, they cannot perform miracles. It is far more costly to have a hand assembly line correcting mistakes than it is to catch them in earlier phases.
The other unique aspect of hand assembly, one which needs to be planned for, is the inherent learning curve. The assembler has to become familiar with a particular piece’s construction (called ramped up). Once ramped up, an assembly line can move quite fast-millions of complex pieces created by hundreds of workers in a few short weeks.
So there you have it, the Readers Digest version of a dimensional promotions. When we undertake any project, we find it helpful to always adhere to this very relevant quote:
“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”
- Albert Einstein
Small Advertising Campaign Launched for “Naked in a Fishbowl”
92 West was contacted by What Women Talk About to create a small campaign that highlights their Unscripted, Uninhibited and Wildly Entertaining Improv-Comedy based on the lives of four women in New York City. Our efforts included designs for prints ads, direct-mail as well as a website which all focus on informing the public on the upcoming shows to take place this August at the New York International Fringe Festival!
Please look below or visit Naked in a Fishbowl’s website for details and showtimes.
This exciting improvised play is a unique theatrical event that eavesdrops on the lives of four young women in New York City. Audiences watch a new story unfold every night as the actresses are given a new location and scenario. The lives of Bonnie, Jean, Sophie, and Sara are completely exposed in original nightly performances full of raw humor, startling honesty, and infectious comedy. Unlike anything else on the New York stage.
For additional information on website design or to request a quote please goto www.92west.com and request a quote.
Design Samples :: Print, Web, CDROM, Logos & Identity
Hello Everyone… or just me… I had a client request information today on my print samples and it took a bit of time to put them together so I figured I’d share the results since time = money you know :)… might as well make the most of it you know.
If you have any questions, comments or thoughts please post :) to let me know.
92 West’s Branding & Portfolio Book
D&J Motorsports Tri-Fold Brochure
HDR Leave Behind – 8″ x 8″ Booklet
