Chapter 9. Change Is The Secret

People often want change merely for the sake of change, whether they are changes for the better or not. The human animal is easily bored. Furthermore, change is necessary for those in business, as it is the best aid to replacement and profit.

We have also been made aware by such books as Vance Packard's The Waste Makers, that obsolescence is built into much merchandise to make it wear out long before its time. Or new styles are introduced so different from the current ones that one must abandon useful articles to keep pace. Much of this is of course highly objectionable.

We find that many good ideas are abandoned for the sake of change, such as the elimination of pockets in women's clothes, or the use of small purses instead of spacious ones, stiff collars instead of comfortable ones and so on.

On the other hand, an improvement by its very nature implies change too. So whenever you want an idea, consider all the facts and factors involved in your product or your subject, and see what aspects you can change. Some of the possible changes will doubtless seem foolish at first, but you may be able to find a justification for them later on that would permit you to use them. In any case there is nothing to lose in noting down whatever you think of, even if it seems far-fetched.

There are, of course, many kinds of rearrangement. One may use different sizes, different shapes, different materials or colors; or the same for different purposes; or in a different position, and so on ad infinitum.

The idea of interchangeable parts was first used by Eli Whitney in stepping up production for weapons for the War of 1812. Many years later Ford adopted it as part of his assembly line production method. The idea had many other applications, even down to basic dresses which can be used for different occasions simply by the use of other accessories.

You can imagine the familiar thing in almost any new position. Transposition from one place to another gave us the idea of serving meals not in homes but in restaurants. The same process of transposing gives us all sorts of outside services formerly done at home-laundries, hospitals, garment centers, schools and so on.

Which factors from one kind of service overlapping your own, can be applied to yours? A sunroom has a glass roof. In New York, some taxicabs have glass roofs to enable the passenger to look up and see the tall buildings-same idea, different purpose. Bathing caps for the swimmer are transferred to raincoat outfits. An ocean-going luxury liner supplies much more than mere passage. It draws for ideas upon restaurants, hotels, the entertainment field. Any large business can be analyzed for such overlapping of interests and can use them for idea sources.

A writer of articles may find in one magazine or trade journal possibilities for similar articles for another field. How a laundry found new customers may suggest that every business is looking for new customers. The fundamental principles do not vary much, and can be adapted to how other small business may find new customers.

Just as radio has brought music to homes no matter how isolated, beautiful reproductions of pictures can be had to do the same for visual art experience. In the newspaper, prizes are given to camera fans and their photographs are printed. This could be transferred to radio by having contests for amateur composers to play their compositions.

A pretty good transfer occurred when Walt Disney thought that a mouse could play the part of a human being. That idea changed Disney's entire life.

Today people are very aware of the tools and methods of science and technology, and the result is that gadgets have a large appeal. Adjustable features such as three-way electric lamps for bright, medium and dim are of interest, as are stoves with temperature measurements, irons with separate regulation for wool, cotton, rayon or other materials, vacuum cleaners with assorted attachments, pocket-books with unusual interior architecture and other multiple purpose affairs. Children can get a great thrill out of candy whistles that they can blow first and eat afterward.

When Benjamin Franklin was seated lazily in his chair, he hated to get up and climb a ladder to reach a book at the top shelf of his library. He wished his arm were long enough to do the job without his moving. So he got a long stick, attached a couple of metal fingers to the end of it, and was thus able to reach the desired book without stirring from his chair. This is the contrivance that shoe-clerks and grocers now use to get boxes down from shelves near the ceiling.

A method of increasing sales for some products may be to utilize the object in another way, as for a hobby which has nothing to do with its original intended use. Thus Ivory Soap sold tons of its product in a contest for amateur sculptors to make little figurines with it. The same reasoning was behind a two-purpose arrangement my father told of when as a little boy he trudged to school in frigid weather with a hot hard-boiled egg in each hand as a hand-warmer, which later in the day served for his lunch.

A change in material is the basis for many good ideas. Lighter weight materials, transparent materials, cooler or warmer materials, those that are easier to clean, or those like plastic or glass which conserve more valuable ones, are the foundation both for style changes and actual improvements.

Again there are many possibilities in the changing of sizes and shapes. A woman is out walking and wishes she could have a clock along to keep track of the time. A small clock is developed which may be carried around, and thus we have a wrist watch. That is a change of size.

Someone takes the usual 35 mm. motion picture film and does a similar job on 16 mm. film, opening up a new branch of the industry for use in schools, salesmanship and other purposes. Someone else found a wonderful new use in the form of V-mail. From this the idea was transferred to microphotography, a method of reproducing documents. These compact records on film occupy only two per cent of the space required by the original documents to preserve vital records against loss or damage; make duplicates of records, save space by reducing the need of preserving such large bulky volumes as bound newspapers in libraries and giving them the size of rolls of film which can be slipped into a coat pocket. Since they are so small, much material now confined to one place can be sent to scholars and research workers wherever they may be, without requiring them to spend time and money to travel to the original records. Now the original can be kept safe while the duplicate goes traveling. Savings of postage, of time because they can be sent airmail, saving of copying endless documents by hand, and assurance of photographic accuracy, as well as many other advantages can be seen.

Let's look at a few changes of shape. A chair with a single widened arm developed a new type of lunchroom. Classrooms and lecture halls also employ it for students' greater convenience in taking notes. Again, the use of squared milk bottles makes it possible for a milk truck to carry almost half again as much milk due to more economical stacking.

Another device in creating change is to alter the name of a product. One manufacturer had a cosmetic long known as body sachet. Sales increased pleasingly when they experimentally named it dry perfume instead. Name changing may be used either to clarify the use of the product, or to glamorize it, or to mystify the user and appeal to curiosity. For a while, "halitosis" attracted national attention.

In speculating over possible changes, ask yourself also: Can its appearance be altered to add novelty or interest? Color alone can add much individuality to a business. It can identify the packages interestingly, or can be used in saleswomen's uniforms, or waitresses' dresses, and the like, to add attractiveness.

A midwestern cafeteria doubled its sales of salads by serving them on green plates instead of white ones, creating the illusion of bigger and greener salads.

In industry, certain conventions in color have been adopted to signify codes. Red pipes mean fire protection; yellow or orange mean dangerous materials; green is for safe materials; blue for protective materials; purple for valuable materials.

There are also numerous psychological effects obtainable through colours that lend themselves many ideas. When Alonzo Stagg was football coach at the University of Chicago, he made a practical application of colors in increasing the effectiveness of his players. Knowing the exciting effect of the color red, and the soothing effect of blue, he fitted out two dressing rooms for his team. One was painted in flaming red. In this he delivered his pep talks before the players went out on the field, and it acted as a wonderful stimulant. The other was decorated in blue, and was used after the game for rest and recuperation.

The right kind of paint in offices and factories saves the eyesight of the workers and lessens strain and poor work. It also makes the place more cheerful and agreeable to work in. In factories, cheerful yellow walls quicken and warm the spirits of the workers, and it is known that better work is accomplished at less cost when a painting reform of this kind is made. In fact, such is the suggestibility of this sunny colour, that in winter actually less heat is required in public places.

The idea searcher should not overlook opportunities in time changes. Some manufacturers "date for freshness" and we see this carried out in coffee, camera film, flowers, flashlight batteries, candy, milk and other products. Others again exploit varieties in sevens-a change for every day in the week, as a certain fruit juice distributor does it, or seven different colors, again for every day in the week. The Readers Digest has it, "An article a day." An adaptation of the idea is in subscriptions. While subscriptions to magazines, books of the month, opera and theatre guilds are well known, the same can be applied to very different things. People can subscribe to various types of services as long as they have repeat qualities. And for a final time-idea, daylight saving itself is a good example.

The utilization of waste has given many wonderful byproducts which have in some cases built industries greater than the original from which they started. It is said in the stockyards that everything is used of the pig except the squeal.

George W. Carver, an abandoned baby of slave parents, grew up to make such marvelous discoveries in utilizing waste agricultural products that he practically transformed the South. From the peanut alone he built a $200,000,000 a year industry, producing at least some 300 items with no apparent relation to one another, yet all derived from that lowly legume. From the peanut he drew milk, butter, cheese, shaving lotion, breakfast food, salad oils, soft drinks, wood stains, axle grease, insulation boards and about 300 more. From the sweet potato he brought starch, vinegar, shoe-blacking, ink, library paste, dyes, candy, coffee substitute, molasses, rubber, and flour, to name but a few of more than 118 by-products. Other treasure-filled products are the soybean, the castor bean, corn, cotton and many other common everyday farm crops.

Carver's work sounds like a miracle but it shows the pursuit of an idea in action. He took the potato or the peanut apart chemically, separating the water, fats, oils, gums, resins, sugars, starches and other factors, trying endless combinations of the parts under varying temperatures and pressures. This is the same technique that has been stated and illustrated by many instances all through these pages.

It can be applied endlessly to make other new products and develop new ideas of every kind.

The process of "making change" also quite properly involves addition and subtraction. You can add vitamins to improve one thing, or subtract caffeine to make another. Or you can add the salt, which has been humorously defined as that which, if not put in the soup, spoils it.

Or you may perhaps eliminate some factor to simplify a complexity, remove some old-fashioned feature, reduce the cost, or just make it more exciting and modern looking. Removal of a factor is well exemplified in the field of dehydrated foods-a method of removing the liquid content of foods to permit space-saving during transportation-the liquid to be replaced by adding water when ready to use.

Adding, subtracting, combining. Once lead pencils had no erasers. A new convenience was provided when someone added the now familiar rubber tip.

A Hungarian sculptor, Dezso Lanyi of Budapest, became famous by combining caricature, usually done in only two dimensions, with three-dimensional sculpture. And in colour, too. A biographical sketch of Orson Welles describes a useful addition he made to movie technique when movie work first engaged his attention. Observing how the men in charge took turns looking at the action through a range-finder on the camera, he merely added a second range-finder to the camera, enabling two persons to look at one time, and cut the time for this in half.

Adding, subtracting, combining. A practical idea in selling is to watch for possibilities of combination selling. Home furnishing businesses always try to add small pieces when a large order has been concluded. The family who buys a living room davenport and two easy chairs will be prevailed upon to get the lamps, end tables and other "finishing touches". The woman who buys a suit will be beguiled with the correct hat, purse, shoes and gloves to go with it.

Socks and ties, mufflers and gloves; pens and pencils; bath towels and bath mats; perfume and soap; cold cream and powder; rouge and lipstick; pipes and tobacco; playing cards and bridge covers are popular combinations. Desk sets; sets of books; sets of dishes are other examples. I: An object can be combined with some other object or idea to multiply its usefulness or novelty you have a usable idea Like a double picture-frame for two photographs side by side; or a picture backed by a mirror on a swinging frame Again, small chairs were formerly sold only individually now they are often sold in fours with a bridge table.

Sometimes a single unit can be subdivided. For example instead of buying a set of dishes as a whole, one can but; needed pieces from open stock.

Not only is it well to sell combinations of goods when possible, in a "wholesale" fashion, but it is of course also well to strive always for orders as large as possible. Thu if you have a product that can be applied to whole industries or great organizations at a time, do not neglect them For instance, hotels as markets for products logical to their needs should not be overlooked. Millions of sheets, towels sets of cutlery may be mentioned.

Suppose the subject about which you want an idea is soap. Put it down on a sheet of paper. Then go through the questions and suggestions given (herein systematical!) one at a time, and answer them in connection with soap and its various aspects to see whether they offer a possibility you can use. The examples given show graphically and specifically the kind of reasoning applied to ideas that surround us everywhere. Analyze the following easy idea starters:

Easy Idea Starters

1. Change Sizes or Proportions

a) Longer or larger, like economy size packages; dining tables to expand for more guests, etc.

b) Shorter or smaller, like digest magazines; hearing aids; wrist watches; portable rainwear.

c) Thicker, like lather; thinner, like diet bread; removable coat linings.

d) Divide, as a large breakfast food box into individual portion boxes; plates for a blue-plate dinner.

e) Combine, as radio and clock, sell a lamp with a chair; set of tie, handkerchief and socks.

f) Alter shape, as L-shaped room for dinette, stacking chairs.

2. Change Positions

a) Lower, higher icebox shelves. Swivel chairs. Baby play pen. Gardens on the roof. Rumpus room in the basement.

3. Double Uses

a) Mirror on a closet door.

b) Cake mixes with suggested recipes.

c) 4-piece interchangeable coat, suit and dress.

d) Chair-ladder.

4. Change Time Factors

a) Faster with fast drying paint. Faster with pressure cooker. Faster with self service arrangements.

b) Faster with automatic devices. Last longer with reinforcing. Pack to preserve, as in cellophane.

5. Can Noise be Reduced?

a) Rubber flooring, asbestos walls, felt on bottom.

6. Can Safety Hazards be Eliminated?

a) Sharp edges protected.

b) Safety glass.

c) Color contrast.

d) Remove glare.

e) Fire resistant material.

f) More stability.

g) Better labels.

7. Can Material Be Improved?

Wrinkle-proof, drip-dry, no iron, runproof, sunfast. Lighter weight as aluminum. Disposable as paper plates. Burr-type fastenings instead of buttons and zippers.

8. Can Material Be Conserved?

Using inexpensive plastic instead of expensive metal. Eliminate unnecessary pieces of material, metal, etc. Plastic sheeting on kitchen walls to protect same.

9. Can You Improve Its Appearance?

Colour, form, shape, lines, grace, texture.

10. Find an Easier Way to do Something Difficult

Electric hairdryer.

11. Less Expensive, as Paperbound Books

12. Cleaner Way, as Scotch Tape Instead of Glue

13. More Accurate Way

Pre-measured material; electric clock; better directions.

14. Can It Be Used for an Additional Market?

Cigarettes for women.
Cosmetics for men.
Baby foods for invalids.

Consider carefully the who, when, where, why, how, and all the others and see how well they organize your own thinking on your particular idea problem.

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