Holographic Genie in a Bottle, Innovative optical illusion in marketing

The latest buzz in the optical illusion world surrounds Disney’s newest patent (WIPO WO2008/021605A1) about an optical illusion device that will be used as part of a drinking bottle. This patent is intended to significantly help with shelf appeal of their drink products, by surpassing conventional packaging methodologies.

How It Works

In the simplest terms, the optical illusion device contains a curved mirror and a curved frame. These two parts are like small half-pipes, that when joined together, form a hollow tube that wraps around a bottle. The bottle itself is likely to be transparent or translucent plastic or glass, as one must be able to see through it. The main mirror piece has an image printed onto the mirror which is on the concave side of the piece. The corresponding frame part has a circular hole which provides a line of sight to the image on the mirror. On the concave (inside) side of the frame piece are printed images. These images can be seen through the hole of the frame since they are reflected off of the mirrored surface of the mirror piece. The optical illusion truly takes shape with slight rotations of the drinking bottle. The primary image that is printed on the mirror moves differently than the reflected images on the frame piece. As a result, the device creates a multi-dimensional effect on the entire graphic when viewed from the “window” of the frame piece.

Product Differentiation

In world full of marketing messages from all facets of life, product differentiation is a key to rise above the clutter and advertisement noise. Even children are susceptible to the media onslaught forced onto them through television, radio, and the Internet. Creating a truly remarkable and innovative product is critical in cutting through the noise, and more importantly, in being remembered and talked about. There is nothing more effective in generating sales than this type of word-of-mouth viral marketing.

Competitive Edge

Marketers have always had difficulty in gaining a true competitive edge when it comes to drink products. There are only so many combinations of fruit flavors and bottle shapes to choose from. Creating a unique flavor isn’t difficult, but creating one that actually stands out from the rest is next to impossible. In typical Disney fashion, they have once again created a novel product that inspires and excites the minds of children. Magic and illusions have always fascinated youths (and adults alike) and stimulate imagination and creativity. Applying this kind of strategy to their products definitely gives Disney an edge over their competitors’ more traditional products and packaging.