Special Projects | Whirlpool

  • My Life. My Duet.

    Students: Shu Ting Liao, Mei-wen Sun, Morgan Phillips

    Consumer focus: The 24/7 Professional Persona

    Banners hung above the Duet washer/dryer will direct the consumer to the products on the sales floor. Activated by sensors, the screen (touch-screen) will turn on (audibly and visually) and engage the consumer in an interactive experience. Taking a consultative approach, the consumer is guided through the steps of selecting and customizing the appropriate Duet model.

  • The Eco Duet

    Students: Xuege Jiang, William Bridwell, Ray Safronoff, DerRick Turner

    Consumer Focus: The Activist Persona

    This solution focuses on the savings and efficiency benefits of the machines through low-tech takeaway cards housed in a customized container on or in-between the machines.

  • A Day in the Life

    Students: Cynthia Naughton, Troy Baker, L. Scott Vallee, Carlito Alo

    Consumer Focus: The Über Mom Persona

    Sensors will activate the start of a short, 30-40 second video which highlights activities of ‘a day in the life’ of an ‘über mom.’

    Four scenes of ‘accidents or spills’ are visually captured in slow motion and key benefits of the Duet System are highlighted in response – all against the musical backdrop of The Blue Danube Waltz. The video transitions to a series of interactive screens where the consumer can learn more about the product and make a purchase.

MFA Projects

During the fall 2009 semester, the Global Consumer Design group from the Whirlpool Corporation sponsored a project to develop a differentiated, interactive shopping experience for the unassisted sales floor.

MFA Design students worked in teams to identify market opportunities and define consumer or user behavior patterns that could be translated into a successful design framework. They focused on the importance of market analysis, research, testing and the use of storytelling techniques – and were introduced to the fundamental concepts, methods, and practices of experiential design where content, interface and experience intersect in the context of business solutions.

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College for Creative Studies MFA Program

in partnership with the University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business