4. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In order to gain traction, revolutionary ideas require meticulous planning,
exacting deliberation, and flawless execution. When the stakes are as high
as the introduction of a fifth mode of transportation, the client needs to be
confident that their ideas will be made tangible, feasible, and desirable to
the marketplace. That is the role of the creative agency. Design thinking is the
hallmark of some of the most powerful brands on the marketplace today.
What makes these brands truly remarkable is their seamless transition between
marketing objectives and design outcomes. This proposal attempts to identify
the consumers’ real needs and expectations for the Hyperloop brand from a
marketing perspective, translating those insights into a design solution.
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6. ENVIRONMENTAL SCAN
DEMOGRAPHIC
SOCIAL
ECONOMIC
California has a population of 38.3
million. It is a minority–majority
state, 40% non-Hispanic whites.1
1out of 3 Californians has attained a
college degree, and 2 out of 3 have a
high school diploma or equivalent.2
Los Angeles and San Francisco,
the proposed first ports for the
Hyperloop, are amongst the
nation’s most populous cities.2
Approximately half of the population
is married. The average household
consists of 2.87 people, and 40% of
households have children under 18.4
Both cities rank in the top ten most
ethnically diverse metropolitan
areas in America, with a 79.6 and
an 85.3 on the entropy index.3
English is only the primary language
in 3 out of 5 households. Spanish is
the primary language spoken in over
a quarter of Californian homes. 4
Annual median household income is
$47,493. California currently sits at
107.9 on the Economic Health Index.6
TECHNICAL
LEGAL
competitive
The California High Speed Rail is one
of the most expensive per mile and
slowest bullet trains in the world. 8
Many other groups have attempted
to solve this problem before, all with
fatal flaws or without any working
prototypes operating in test pilot. 8
1 Califormia Dept. of Finance.
2 U.S. Census, 2013 estimates.
3 Lee, Iceland & Sharp (2010).
4 Infoplease U.S. Census Data.
The technology needed to build the
Hyperloop is already in existence. 8
The Hyperloop must overcome the
Kantrowitz limit, operate within a
comfortable g-force threshold, have
expansion joints for earthquake
resistance, and be self-powered. 8
5 Florida, R. (2012) The Atlantic.
6 Bloomberg Visual Data (2013).
L.A. is one of the country’s most
substantial economic engines, a
center for media, business, and
international trade, ranked 9th in
the Global Econimic Power Index. 5
57.5% of Californians 16 and up
are employed. 86% drive to work,
and 5% utilize public transportation. 4
Construction of the Hyperloop would
involve the construction of pylons
on privately-owned property.8
Security check procedures, liability,
insurance, and various other legal
issues would need to be addressed
prior to the Hyperloop’s launch.8
7 Rasmussen Partisan Trends (2013).
8 Musk, E. (2013). Hyperloop Alpha.
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7. SWOT ANALYSIS
internal
STRENGTHS
WEAKNESSES
economical to build & operate
made using extant technologies
safe and eco-friendly
inventor cannot complete alone
no working prototype for testing
infrastructure will take time
positive
W
OPPORTUNITIES
THREATS
more efficient than air under 900mi
ideal for frequent travelers
open source model, collaboration
negative
S
societal resistance to change
califonia’s high speed rail
established modes of transit
o
t
external
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9. SURVEY
MEASURES
SAMPLE
1
2
Travel Attitudes & Preferences
3
Hyperloop Assessment
4
Resistance to Change Scale
5
*
1
2
3
Science & Technology Scale 1
Demographic Information 3
for more information, see the Supporting Documents.
Xiao, C. (2013). Attitudes Toward Science & Technology Measure.
Oreg, S. et al. (2003). Resistance to Change Scale.
Items retrieved from Survey Monkey’s expert question bank.
Amazon MTurk 4
Non-probability
U.S. Residents
Sample size = 152
CODING
2
Open-ended questions
were manually coded into
categories by synonimity,
correcting for capitalization
or spelling inconsistencies.*
4 Berinsky, Huber & Lenz (2007) found that Amazon’s Mechanical Turk
respondents are often more representative of the U.S. population than
in-person convenience samples, but modestly less representative than
subjects in Internet-based panels or national probability samples.
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10. SIGNIFICANT FINDINGS
Controlling demographic features,
age is strongly predictive of interest
in the Hyperloop & attitudes towards
the Hyperloop’s safety, convenience,
eco-friendliness, and desirability.
Those who have achieved higher
levels of education view advances in
science & technology more favorably.
People living in suburban areas are
more likely to be interested in the
Hyperloop than those in rural areas.
People who embrace advances
in science and technology are far
more likely to be interested in the
Hyperloop than those who don’t.
The amount of travel by airplane in
one year is negatively correlated with
one’s resistance to change, and with
one’s interest in using the Hyperloop.
Those who are highly tolerant
of change are more likely to be
interested in using the Hyperloop
than those who are more resistant.
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11. ASSOCIATIVE INSIGHTS
interest in the hyperloop
common descriptors
LOW
MID
HIGH
1
futuristic
futuristic
futuristic
2
scary
fast
exciting
3
dangerous
exciting
innovative
4
claustrophobic
innovative
science-fiction
5
science-fiction
claustrophobic
aerodynamic
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13. MARKET SEGMENTATION
connexions
SELECTION PROCESS
Nielsen ConneXions is a household segmentation system that groups consumers into 53 segments
The characteristics of early adopters from
based on voice, video and data consumption, as well as consumer technology adoption, or
the Innovation Diffusion framework were
Nielsen Technodoption. The 53 ConneXions® segments fit within 10 Lifestage Groups based on the
referenced against the Hyperloop survey data
combination of technology adoption, age and family structure.
for similarities. Those points of overlapping
data were then used to determine which
INNOVATION DIFFUSION
ConneXions segments would be most likely
In Everett Rogers’ seminal work Diffusion of Innovations, he outlines some of the defining
to use the Hyperloop in the early stages of
socioeconomic and psychographic characteristics of those who are early adopters of innovations.
the product life cycle. All segments selected
While age was not significant in his studies, higher education levels, income, empathy, for others
were also classified as “High-Tech” on Claritas’
tolerance for ambiguity, and openness to change were all positively associated with early adopters.
proprietary Technodoption scale.
early-adopting elite
suburban spenders
young & wireless
Technovators
Calling Circles
You & iTunes
Plugged-In Families
Smart Gamers
Generation WiFi
Tech Nests
Bundled Burbs
The Pragmatics
Kids & Keyboards
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14. MARKET DEMOGRAPHICS
of the u.s.
population
= 21,881,813
1
Income
Education
Families
Career
2
5,3
$7
College Graduates
With & without children
Professional & Managerial
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16. INNOVATION DIFFUSION
lo
ists
g
te
o
chn
n
io
vis
s
ive
t
rva
e
s
s
e
ari
st
ati
m
rag
p
s
con
tics
p
ske
To mobilize both the technologists and visionaries, communications should emphasize the
benefits of the product. According to studies by Taylor, Moore, and Amonsen (1994), the
benefits model is more predictive of consumer behavior along the technology diffusion scale
than is the psychographic model, originally proposed by Everett Rogers in the sixties*.
Thus, while technologists will be motivated to ride the Hyperloop by nature of its novelty
alone, visionaries will need to be convinced that the Hyperloop is a superior mode of
transportation for their needs before they will be interested in using the Hyperloop.
*Rogers, Everett (2003). Psychographic Model of Innovation Diffusion.
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17. MARKETING MIX
Commuter rewards program
Separable luggage pods
Willingness to pay:
15 minute deaprture intervals
Mean = $89.50
Electronic baggage tracking
IC
E
ce
s
Referral discount: 10%
Efficient digital check-in process
s
On-site or on-line ticketing
PR
PR
o
Hyperloop staff unloads cargo
95% Confidence Interval
$74.74 – $103.40*
*Computed based on 1,000 bootstraped samples.
Primary: innovative & fast
San Francisco to Los Angeles
O
N
Expanding to cities 900 mi apart
Heavily branded environment
Streamlined flow of foot traffic
Tertiary: affordable & spacious
Internet-based advertising
Emphasis on travel websites
O
Straightforward interior layout
PR
PL
AC
E
Minimalist, practical stations
M
O
TI
Routes adjacent to highways
Secondary: simple & safe
Ambient advertisements:
bus stops, airport terminals
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19. BRAND PERSONALITY
According to preliminary research,
the Hyperloop product already is
very evocative. An entirely new
mode of transportation, consumers
have no extant cognitive schema
upon which to base their attitdes
towards the product.
seductress
Thus, consumers who were open
to change and had positive views
of science and technology were
significantly more likely to embrace
the Hyperloop, and subsequently
the Hyperloop brand.
While the model to the right
illustrates the archetypes most
closely associated with the
Hyperloop already, the brand
should aim to be seen as more
straightforward and trustworthy to
appeal to the broadest audience.
Millward Brown (2012). CharacterZ Attributes & Archetypes.
* Developed using semiotics combined with quantitative and
qualitative data collected from over 500,000 respondents.
HERO
Dreamer
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20. PROCESS SKETCHES
OBJECTIVE
Inspired by the cursive “H” glyph, the mark
contains an “H” an “L” and two loops. The stems
are italicized to evoke a sense of dynamitism.
The elongated feet of the “H” create sharp 60
degree angles, and fade into the distance as a
subtle reference to speed and transit.
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22. MARK & VARIATIONS
v1
v2
GUIDELINES
v1 : should be used whenever layout allows.
v2 : alternative configuration of the logo.
v3 : intended for use in larger collateral.
Isolated Mark & Logotype: the Hyperloop mark
and the logotype should only be used in isolation
when the full mark is present elsewhere.
v3
Minimum Width: 1” or 108px
Minimum Distance: 1 “H” perimeter
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23. COLOR PALETTE
PRIMARY
86-00-09-00 Pantone 638 P*
20-14-12-40 Pantone Cool Gray 7 CP*
SECONDARY
30-22-17-57 Pantone Cool Gray 9 CP*
99-01-05-05 Pantone 639 P*
62-00-08-00 Pantone 637 P*
39-00-07-00 Pantone 636 P*
Blue is one of the most predominant hues in logo design, especially in
the travel & technology sectors. Emprical studies have shown that people
associate blue with security and comfort1, and that it yields a highly positive
emotional response in young adults, more positive than any other color2.
As cited in Lang (1993), Grandjean made observations about the effects of
color on perceptions of room size and psychological response, noting that
cool colors make a space seem restful and increase percieved spaciousness;
while warm colors make a space feel smaller and increase stimulation3.
Furthermore, people exposed to red and yellow colors reported higher
levels of anxiety than did people exposed to cool blue and green colors4.
For an offering as potentially anxiety-provoking as transit at 700mph in a
small steel tube, a cerulean blue was selected both to capture the energetic,
modern, vibrant nature of the Hyperloop and to help ameliorate feelings of
claustrophobia by making the capsules feel more spacious and comfortable.
*PANTONE® and other Pantone, Inc. trademarks are the property of Pantone, Inc.
1 Ballast (2002)
2 Kaya & Epps (2004)
3 Kwallek, Lewis, & Robbins (1988)
4 Mahnke & Mahnke (1993)
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24. TYPE HIERARCHY
HEADLINE
Venera / 500
SUBTITLE
Akko Pro / Thin
HEADING
Venera / 700
Emphasis
Akko Pro / Medium
Body Copy
Akko Pro / Light
VENERa
Named after the spacecraft sent on the Soviet expedition to Venus,
Joe Prince designed Venera to capture the futuristic forms of the space
race, while harkening back to the past. An all-caps typeface set in five
weights, Venera is a versative and attractive display face.
Its curvilinear appearance complements the softened forms of Akko,
while its extended width provides a stark contrast from Akko’s condensed
letterforms. With its sleek appearance and vintage undertones, the face
is both pioneering and familiar, futuristic and nostalgic.
AKKO PRO
A striking balance between austere industrialism and organic softness,
the Akko family by Linotype’s Akira Kobayashi are a stylistic blend of two
extremes: functional and rectilinear, yet curved and approachable.
The characters are attractive at large sizes, yet compact enough to be
economical for body copy. The careful attention to detail in the counters
and the junctions between strokes ensures that no dark areas are
produced within the text, resulting in a homogenous, straightforward
appearance in large bodies of text.
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