Create a family of inhalers with a strong and distinctive brand identity.
Remaining within the constraints of existing platform products, we developed a consistent brand language and form across a family of three products.
A harmonious brand experience with a focus on functionality, robustness and consumer needs.
Over the past few years, many pharma companies have chosen to deliver their therapies through ‘off-the-shelf’ platform devices rather than developing their own technology from the ground up. This approach offers huge savings in development costs, timescales and can reduce risk dramatically, but we are often asked the same questions about what we can do to improve the products.
How can we help make the product stand out from other brands who may be using the same platform? How can we make it feel like it’s from the same family as other products within the brand? How can we ensure we deliver a premium brand experience when we are so restricted in what we can change?
MoreAt an early stage, we needed to understand the attributes of the user experience that were hoped to be achieved through the products. What is the company trying to communicate about itself and the therapy that its product provides? How does it want its product to be perceived compared to competing devices? What does it want its customers to feel when interacting with its products? What are the core brand values?
To help build a clear understanding of the intentions for the product, we reviewed brand guidelines and other assets that may drive the brand image, such as websites, corporate literature and existing products or services. Knowing the parameters helps to ensure that we work in line with any other design programs that may be underway.
Once the key attributes of the experience were understood, we created visual language boards to help everyone have a clear shared vision. Each board explores different aesthetics, values and feelings through the careful use of form, color, materials and finishes. We evolved a range of solutions, from minor surface changes to more radical component modifications, to optimize every possible interaction. We looked to implement common signature details, brand colors and surface treatments across the three platform products to make them instantly recognizable as part of a family of products.
We not only attempted to tie the products together visually but looked for opportunities to enhance usability. For example, we developed a novel piercing mechanism on the capsule inhaler which removes a number of potential use-related errors without changing the established sequence of use.
Product packaging was another opportunity where we could optimize the user experience. For many users, packaging is the first physical touchpoint they might encounter with a new therapy, therefore it’s a great opportunity to create consistency across various other elements of the system.
In addition to the look and feel of the packaging, we considered the layout and unboxing experience, all while fitting within the tight regulatory guidance on packaging and labeling. We questioned things like: How is the critical information presented? Can we improve the ease of opening? Can we incorporate instructional information in a format that is easier to digest?
By making incremental improvements, we moved closer to a design that met all aspects of the brief, staying within regulatory boundaries, reducing impact on cost of goods and enhancing the user experience.
For this family of inhalers, we created a strong, distinctive brand identity which was harmonious across the full range of products. The design sees each of the individual products featuring a signature subtle ribbed texture and a bold two-tone color palette – shown in black and white – but easily translated into brand-linked colors or regulatory influenced color schemes. The soft organic forms, cut with clean geometric lines, create an honest visual language which focuses on functionality and resists the temptation to ‘dress up’ the product.
The two-tone colorway and linear rib detail are also used in the product packaging, helping to further tie together the various elements of the system. Consideration has been given to the layout and robustness of the pack, ensuring each element is presented in a logical order and the pack can survive its intended lifestyle.
The tactile texture makes the devices easy to grip, while providing a recognizable signature detail which can be easily applied across the various different devices to give a family feel. The softened forms provide a less ‘clinical’ feel while remaining ‘familiar’ to other consumer products the user may interact with.
This shows us what is possible within the constraints of a platform product development program and working creatively within it. This project pushed us to think beyond the physical product. Every touchpoint was used to influence the consumer’s trust with the brand and building consistency throughout the experience was a key part of this. Understanding these considerations helped us to inform, engage with, and ultimately, create a positive user experience.
