AbsolutelyNew Blog

The hottest holiday invention is….

With day-after-Thanksgivings sales now behind us, the cash register sales data is clear on this year’s hot invention for the holidays: the Zhu Zhu.

What’s a Zhu Zhu? It’s an $8 electronic hamster that moves around and makes noises sort of like a real hamster, but doesn’t require feeding or other care necessary with its living, breathing inspiration. What’s more, maker Cepia LLC has created Zhu Zhu accessories including a skateboard and a car… as well as a hamster wheel and tunnel systems for those who are more traditional with their microchip-driven pets.

Many Walmart and Toys R Us stores are now sold out of Zhu Zhus. Amazon too is reporting very strong sales (especially of the Mr. Squiggles version), while re-sellers are jacking the prices to more than $50. And as we write this, we can’t even access the official Zhu Zhu website because it’s being overwhelmed with traffic.

Other than the website crash, we love this! Because it highlights a few good lessons for just about every inventive person out there:

1. Value price. People today are reluctant to spend big bucks on pricey holiday toys. But a Zhu Zhu at less than $10 feels like a real value. Not every invention can or should be priced nearly this low, but definitely consider your target consumers’ spending abilities and value perceptions as you fully develop and price your creation.

2. Think broadly. If you’ve got a good thing, broaden your line—be it with another version (Mr. Squiggles has hamster pals like Num Num) or accessories like the Zhu Zhu skateboard. Going broader often increases your in-store presence, your product appeal and your total dollar sales.

3. Reach out. With its limited marketing budget, Cepia got creative with its marketing—it posted YouTube videos and distributed free Zhu Zhus to mommy bloggers. This went a long way in getting the word out on their faux-furry invention. Remember: if you get clear on who you want to reach, you’ll then be in a good position to think of unique and inexpensive ways to reach them.

Green with Envy from the International Pool Spa Patio Expo

  

The International Pool Spa Patio Expo just wrapped up in Las Vegas. Here are a few highlights from our very own Evelyn Salguero, who was there showing people some of our newest work… and looking for the best new items too:

Whereas last year’s Expo was rather pessimistic, with emphasis on vacationing at home and adding key features in order to maintain a home’s value in a declining real estate market, this year’s Expo was decidedly more positive. Could it be recovery is here, or near?

Energy saving aftermarket and maintenance products were all the rage. Many exhibitors brought solutions they said would reduce pool-related energy expenses and/or maintenance costs.

Also energy related, it was amusing to hear several exhibitors emphasize how adding a spa (aka: a hot tub) is the smart alternative to installing a larger swimming pool or adding an outdoor kitchen with all the trimmings.

What were the top trends?  Anything green, eco-friendly, or solar… far more so this year than last year. My favorite picks:

• Emotron Inc.’s Eco-Flow drive seems to dramatically reduce energy costs on pump consumption. So for people looking to improve rather than overhaul their pools, this looks like one great product to reduce costs over time.
  
• The BBQ Cleaner. If you are looking to make some extra cash, this is a “sizzling business opportunity” for you: it’s a system that safely removes grease, fat and carbon deposits that can build up over time on barbecues and grills. The idea is you drive this thing to people’s houses—it comes on wheels and attaches to the back of your car—and start cleaning up, literally and figuratively, at least during the warmer months (and football season in Green Bay, WI).
  
• Hidden Water Pool. This is SO cool—as the photos at the top of this post show, the floor of this pool raises and lowers at the push of a button, so you can adjust it to be at patio height, a kiddie pool, or a more standard 6-ft pool. It also uses less water and chemicals than traditional pools, making it environmentally friendly in addition to being just plain awesome.
  

A couple final notes: Retail buyers were definitely out in full force, and video poker proved far more fruitful than the blackjack tables several weeks ago (Click here to see Evelyn's notes from the early November SEMA auto show).

Invent this—not that!

This week we read online about two very different inventions from overseas, and we wanted to weigh in because they make for great examples of fundamentally good and bad invention… and thus they warrant a little further discussion.

The good: Mobelform’s Doc Sofa

  

Beautifully designed and engineered, this sofa unfolds to become a functional, fabulous looking bunk bed. It’s clearly not something for the kids’ room. But for the small apartment (and house) dweller who wants to host guests but doesn’t want to create a dedicated guest room, this invention could be a real winner. What to learn from this: you’ll be rewarded when form & function work hand-in-hand; items that serve multiple purposes are often especially appealing to people looking to get the most for their dollars; and giving shoppers different choices (in this case, different sofa styles with different upholstery options) will only help you appeal to more people with different tastes.

The bad: ADE Casa’s Rihanna Kitchen Scale with built-in iPod dock

Just because iPod docking stations are hot sellers, why in the world would these folks add one to their kitchen scale? We’re just not getting it, nor do we think others will. Global sales projection: 19 (including the team of 14 German engineers who invented it). What to learn from this: when you’re combining features & functions in order to add more consumer value, step back and make sure you’re really growing not narrowing the overall proposition and its appeal (because not every combination is going to be as successful as, say, the REECE’s Peanut Butter Cup or Leatherman Multi-Tool); and don’t let the popularity of a hot product like the iPod cloud your overall judgment on a related invention.

Another evolution in barcoding

Regular readers know we love barcodes—for their simplicity and usefulness, they’re such the great invention(s)! It’s why we celebrated their 50th birthday, and how they’ve evolved since.

The one knock people have consistently had with barcodes is that they’re not so nice looking. And when you think about it, it is surprising nobody thought about how to modify or otherwise customize the barcode so it would better suit the product it’s being slapped on… until now: design firm D-Barcode is creating unique barcodes (like those pictured here) that fit and complement products—thus far, mostly for items sold only in Japan.

How cool is that? And when will we be seeing them in the nearby Target stores?

Props to Fast Company magazine for finding this gem. You can click here to read its coverage.

Notes from the Hotel / Motel & Restaurant Show

The International Hotel / Motel & Restaurant Show took place last week in NYC’s ginormous Javits Center. So of course, we had to be there—to show & tell of inventive products… and scout out new ones too.

Here are select highlights from our very own Serena Soo, now that’s back in the office and back on Pacific Standard Time:

- In an industry that’s been especially hard-hit by the past year’s economic downtown, players are seeking creative ways to use their space more efficiently to grow profits. As a result, the show was abuzz in much talk of floor planning and fixtures that make better use of space and/or require minimal expense to maintain.

- Hoteliers and restaurateurs may not be earning a ton of the green stuff these days, but they’re definitely thinking green. We heard lots of talk of ecological footprints and energy efficiency. Many hotels are also moving to organic amenities like 100% biodegradable shampoos and soaps.

- Luxury bedding and accessories never seem to go out to style. People were lining up to check out new bathrobes, slippers, towels, and more.

- As more people take their pets wherever they go, hotels (and restaurants with outdoor seating too) are increasingly thinking about 4-legged guests. So this year we saw a lot of pet product companies pitching their wares to pet-friendly hotels.

- Among the innovative new products that caught our attention:

• IcyDrink from Invent (pictured with this post). A system that makes very cool (no pun intended) ice glasses. Yes, that’s right—the glass itself is ice, so you no longer need ice cubes to keep your beverage cool. Better still, these ice glasses are designed to fit into complementary plastic holders that accentuate the glass’ shape, give a non-slippery hold, and collect drips.
  
• Thermo Hot / Cold Tray from OGGI. This inventive tray features a heat sensitive gel core that allows warm foods to stay warm and chilled foods to stay cool… for up to 2 hours. You simply warm the tray in the oven or chill it in the fridge, then it’s ready for action.
  
• Beach Cocoon from Zerodisegno. These high-concept chairs—which we’ll surely see in some equally high-concept hotel’s lobby sometime very soon—allow people to envelop themselves in giant, comfortable, inflatable cocoons. We’re not buying one for ourselves, but we appreciate all the attention they garnered. And we’ve got say, there were very comfy.
  

Were you at this show too? If so, please let us know what else caught your attention?

Bowling and its ball re-invented

Tired of gutter balls? Want to bowl that perfect 300 every time? Well, we’ve found an invention for you: the RC-900 remote control bowling ball, from 900 Global.

For a mere $1,500 (yes, we’re doing our best to keep our tongues in cheek), you can now buy a 14-pound bowling ball that can be precisely guided down the lane via a battery-powered remote. The remote is small enough that you can manipulate your ball on the down-low… or go to the other extreme and activate flashing lights to flaunt what you’re doing.

The ball comes with a smart charger to power up an internal, rechargeable NiMH (nickel metal hybrid) battery. You’ll need to supply your own bowling shirt & shoes.

For video, click here.

And before you write this off as an invention that should never have seen the light of day, keep in mind that 900 Global is a significant player in bowling products… so the buzz around its new RC-900 will likely bring more attention and sales to the rest of its product line. And in business, that’s sorta like bowling 300.

Some quick Tuesday afternoon wisdom

Here’s a good one-liner for a Tuesday afternoon, from business & marketing guru Seth Godin:

Big ideas... are little ideas that no one killed too soon.

Makes perfect sense, right? Yet too often, people don't think this way. And for more insight from Godin, we recommend his book Meatball Sundae—a great read on what happens when you mix two great ideas without carefully thinking it all through. Enjoy.

RIP inventor Robert Rines

We wanted to pay brief tribute to an inventor you’ve likely never heard of: Robert Harvey Rines of Boston, who died last week at the age of 87.

Perhaps known best for his outlandish pursuits of the Loch Ness monster—not that people would have knocked him had his inventive Nessie perfume actually attracted the mythical creature—Rines is one of those day-in, day-out tinkerers & toilers who profoundly impacted many of us by way of his 800+ patents and other actions in support of invention. Among the reasons we pause to reflect, he:

• Developed electronic gear that improved the resolution of radar and sonar, which in turn has been used in everything from ultrasounds to Patriot missiles to finding the Titanic wreck
  
• Furthered innovation as a patent examiner in the 1940s and later as a member of the Department of Commerce’s Technical Advisory Board
  
• Founded the Franklin Pierce Law Center to train law students on intellectual property law
  
• Helped the Taiwanese and later Chinese governments establish initial patent review processes where there had previously been none
  
• Provided experienced-based input and insight to Congress when it re-wrote patent laws in 2000
  

So RIP Robert Rines. We appreciate your passion, your commitment, your contributions, and yes, your quirkiness too. You did Nessie proud... even if your trained dolphins with cameras never caught the creature on film.

Notes from the SEMA Show

More than 100,000 auto industry leaders were in Las Vegas this week for the annual SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) tradeshow—it’s THE show for new automotive parts, components, tools, and accessories. One of those at this not-open-to-the-public show: our licensing guru Evelyn Salguero, who went to find, and show, inventive items. Here’s her dispatch direct from SEMA:

SEMA makes other tradeshows look like yard sales—whereas many tradeshows are made up of one small booth after another displaying small items on tabletops and shelves, SEMA’s the place to appreciate products put to use in and/or on classic cars (from hot rods to low riders to vintage Ferraris) and the latest rides (like trucks decked out with large flat screens and the sweetest chrome-coated cargo holds). Like you’d expect in Las Vegas, everything’s big, bold and bodacious.

Attendance this year was down compared to last year—some said it was off by as much as 30%—but it was also larger than had been expected. No matter what, I saw a wide array of buyers, manufacturers, shop owners, and others.

For aftermarket products, it looked like the crowds were most interested in three product categories: paint protection, GPS systems and alarm systems. Among them all, I was most impressed by:

• Gold Touch Inc.’s Cosmichrome® paint—it combines quality top coat and base coat in one so there’s no need to apply an expensive, additional top coat. This stuff makes any driver look like a plaaay-yah.
• Elite Auto Tune is a leading U.S. distributor of products for exotic and luxury cars. And they didn’t disappoint at SEMA—in fact, they came to town with some of the most innovative auto accessories of all. The Vario Plus Polar and Vario Plus Sky automotive “smart glass” offer privacy and security by fogging the glass with a touch of a remote control button. The demonstrator told me, ”You can change for the clubs with no one lookin’ in.” And when in Vegas….
• Someone’s got to be practical in Vegas, and the people from LLumar were leading the charge. The company's booth had people crowding around to check out its paint protecting film—film that essentially creates an invisible shield to protect against abrasions, nicks, scratches from insects, small road debris, and winter sand and salt.

Eco-friendly products are also still on the rise. It was cool to see Ford combine green with its muscle car past in showing off a beautiful 1934 Hot Rod with first rear-wheel-drive 3.5 liter EcoBoost V6. You can click here to check it out. It's also pictured with this post.

Overall a great show. The only negative was me losing at the black jack table… but there’s always next year!

Frame your invention wisely

Invention is all about change. But presenting people with too much change can confuse or deter them. So as you work to advance your innovation, do yourself a favor and take the time to frame it for success. What do we mean? Here are a few examples:

1. Automobiles. Early autos were so far-out that few people saw the benefits in them. Then the people making them started to build them in carriage-like shapes and someone coined the phrase “horseless carriage”… and suddenly these vehicles made sense for the masses—now the newfangled machines were a must-have evolution of the horse-drawn buggy.

2. Estate taxes. Years ago, most Americans supported these taxes born largely by affluent voters. This didn’t sit well with the Republican party. So the GOP initiated a campaign to change public opinion. It’s #1 tactic: Republicans started to consistently speak of estate taxes as “death taxes,” and in doing so created a groundswell of concern that every American family could be taxed upon a family member’s death. That new framing changed public opinion ever since.

3. Microsoft Bing. The folks in Redmond recently launched Bing with hopes to steal some of Google’s thunder... and revenue. You’ve likely seen the Bing TV ads. Interestingly, Microsoft is calling its service a “decision engine” not a “search engine,” very intentionally framing it as smarter when it comes to finding precisely what you need. Only time will tell if Bing is Microsoft’s next Xbox (a big success) or Zune (so far, quite the bust), but we appreciate the careful word choice.

So, are you choosing your words carefully too, framing your invention in a way that takes into consideration consumer sentiments, competitive products, and retailers needs? It’s not too late to start doing so.