Marketing = Design = Marketing

If caskets can be made sexy and interesting, well, maybe there's still room for innovation in the realm of vacuum cleaners:

The Ball

If you're Dyson, how do you make a better vacuum cleaner?  You can't make it lose less suction, because it doesn't lose any to begin with.  Instead, you break the existing paradigm of maneuverability, producing something that broadcasts its unique value proposition loud and clear. 

Does The Ball need mega advertising to succeed?  No way, because its marketability is embedded in the remarkability of its design. 
Marketing = Design = Marketing.

Comments

[Ryan Jacoby]

From Richard Dreyfuss' Designing for People (circa 1955): "...design is a silent salesman, an unwritten advertisement, an unspoken radio or television commerical, contributing not merely increased efficiency and a more pleasing appearance to their products but also assurance and confidence." I would definitely pay more for a Dyson. Just read Thoughtless Acts, pretty cool.

[Bruce DeBoer]

Thanks for putting this concept out front. Great marketing without a product to back it up will only make the product fail faster, or compete based on price faster.

I like Dyson's ads. He's a good spokes person but then I'm a sucker for the testimonial style presentation.

So, have you tried the vacuum? Does it work well?

[Diego from Metacool]

Ryan, I LOVE that quote! Wow. Plus ca change...

[Vero]

I can vouch for the Dyson as being not only a product of amazing design, but a product of very high quality.

It has to be the best vacuum I have ever used.

* It doesn't lose suction EVER, as advertised;
* If a part breaks (which seldom happens, it's so sturdy), the product is so modular, the specific part can be ordered directly from Dyson and replaced, allowing it to feel brand new forever;
* It cleans in depth: I nearly gave my mother in law a heart attack when I talked her into buying one. She claimed she had vacuumed that very morning and it wouldn't pick up anything. When she saw a mountain of fluff accumulate in the transparent container, she almost fainted!
* It looks absolutely fantastic :)

Overall, great design, great product. Quality speaks for itself.