Thirsty for knowledge, Leesburg, FL-based Waterwise agreed to subject itself to the scrutiny of this month’s tag team of creative consultants. With the tagline “pure water made simple,” Waterwise markets its steam-distillation and carbon-filtered purification systems to health-conscious consumers, most of whom are over 50.
Reviewers Rhonda Cohen, executive vice president/chief creative officer of catalog agency AGA in New York, and Monika J. Shourie, account manager of San Francisco-based consultancy Character, pored over the late 2004/early 2005 edition of Waterwise to determine which layouts are sparkling and where the mailer may need to clean up its act.
RHONDA COHEN: It is obvious from the front cover that Waterwise places an emphasis on educating about health-related issues pertaining to drinking water as well as on technology and science. The full-bleed cover photo, which depicts a woman about to sip a clear, clean glass of water, is cropped in a dynamic manner, providing ample white space for cover lines. Surprisingly, though, only one out of the seven cover lines refers directly to a product.
What’s more, it is not immediately apparent that this is a Waterwise catalog. The phrase “pure water made simple” is more dominant than the company name. And the dot whack displaying the message “Discover why Waterwise is so essential to your health” is an inappropriate vehicle for presenting the catalog title and company name. Customers expect dot whacks to house promotional messaging, a highlighted product, or a special offer. It is not clear that the word “Waterwise” is a company name, primarily due to its position and generic typeface. A logo doesn’t appear anywhere except on the back cover, as a return address!
It is important for branding purposes that the catalog display the logo prominently on the front cover. The lesson here is that an esthetically pleasing cover is not enough when trying to create a compelling brand presence — the use of the brand logo is essential.
Inside the book, the first six pages — a third of the catalog — present content to educate the consumer on the importance of pure drinking water. A prominently displayed letter from the founder on the opening spread serves as a welcoming element. The visual table of contents with photos of products and page numbers is executed in a clear manner, but I would suggest adding product names as captions under each product photograph. A strong call to action communicating the “4 ways to shop” is appropriately designed as an element that’s easy to find. A blue circular icon supporting the guarantee message strengthens the fact that complete satisfaction is the company’s goal.
The four-color illustrations reinforce the focus on purity. The drawings are simple, with soft shadings, yet retain a modern, graphic esthetic. The illustrations and the charts successfully separate areas of information, and the “ticker tape” subheads such as “Think Before You Drink” that span across pages 3 through 7 delineate the feature stories and additional information such as a timeline on the history of water purification.
Waterwise achieves consistency of design throughout by using color bands as navigational elements. It also uses a consistent template for the pages in the middle of the book, which sell the core, larger-ticket products: These feature a prominent product photo on each left-hand page accompanied by a concise description of its usage and main benefits. On each right-hand page, bold text highlights product benefits, supported by smaller silhouetted photos with captions to explain the parts of that particular product. Colored text in a shaded curved panel calls out the product name, the price, and accessories. Icons identifying organizations that have endorsed each product assure the consumer of each product’s claims to meet industry standards.
The bottom of every right-hand page in this middle section features a testimonial from a satisfied customer with a photo of the person. I would eliminate these photos because of their low quality; besides, the customers’ positive statements are compelling enough on their own.
The “Did U Know?” sidebars in the margin of every right-hand page also provide consistency. The text and visuals offer valuable information on the subject of pure drinking water. Another bonus: The circular rainbow-swirl icon accompanying the sidebars adds color to these spreads, which feature predominantly white, clear, and translucent blue products.
Pages selling product accessories use silhouetted photography and copy blocks arranged in a well-organized format. Additional spreads toward the back of the book include articles titled “Don’t Swallow the Myths” and “Pure Drops of Wisdom from Health Care Professionals.” Again, Waterwise’s consistency of design plays a strong role.
The catalog’s inside back cover — typically a hot spot for key products or best-sellers — does not sell any products but uses silhouetted photos of items such as saucepans, houseplants, and coffee mugs to support the theme of “practical uses for pure, 100% steam distilled water.” It’s a nice wrap-up to the catalog but could have been condensed into a half-page for a more efficient use of space. Perhaps a product comparison chart could have been designed as a quick-shop reference tool to summarize the product line.
The entire back cover is used to promote the company’s 100-day 100% money-back guarantee and includes a listing of “no risk” tips to put the customer at ease about ordering. Again, Waterwise could have used this valuable real estate to sell key items, but the design does present the institutional copy effectively. The logo, the guarantee icon, and the toll-free phone and fax numbers are nicely anchored in the top left-hand corner.
On a final note, although I am typically not a fan of using visual patterns as backgrounds to other graphic elements such as text and photographs, I must admit that the use of water droplets as a background is a good choice for the Waterwise catalog. The pattern is subtle enough that it does not interfere with the readability of the text, and it adds dimension to pages that might have otherwise appeared too stark.
MONIKA J. SHOURIE: To be successful, a catalog must sell products. A company must earn the customer’s trust, be relevant, and above all create desire.
Waterwise is jam-packed with important information, editorials, customer testimonials, and facts from health professionals, as well as product information. Beginning with a letter from the founder and continuing on with editorials about the health benefits of water and facts about the purification process, this catalog at first appears to be a magazine rather than a mail order selling tool. It’s a clever strategy, though the execution could stand some improvement. For while the catalog definitely earns the customer’s trust and is relevant to anyone interested in health, it doesn’t excel at creating desire.
The people behind Waterwise obviously have a mission to promote the benefits of water purification systems. The testimonials give voice to the customers. Even the sidebars and editorial elements, such as the “Did U Know?” sections on such topics as the real cost of bottled water, offer important information in a friendly, approachable way. Less approachable is the design and creative of the catalog.
It’s difficult to discern when editorial ends and product description begins. There is a hierarchy problem within the pages of the catalog. Perhaps this was the intent, but it’s a problem when selling copy is difficult to find due to the amount of information on the page. The editorial should support the products, not overpower them. When a testimonial is meant to support a particular item, it should be visually treated in a different manner from the merchandise. A testimonial on page 14, for instance, is given as much importance as — if not more importance than — the Waterwise 7000 purifier/distiller it’s endorsing.
This catalog could benefit from editing. It contains much useful information — perhaps too much: two letters from the founder (one on page 2, another on the back cover that promotes the company’s guarantee), three quotes from health professionals, and more than 20 customer testimonials. It’s all well and good to include customer testimonials, but they could have been contained on one page as opposed to the constant sprinkling throughout the book. Also, there’s something to be said about letting the products speak for themselves.
Too much information is the overall problem. Waterwise would be more successful in creating desire for its products if customers had an easier time finding the merchandise within all the editorial packed in the book.