“Rise & Shine” is a series of three magazine advertisements designed for Bella Housewares and their Linea Collection, to be printed in O Magazine (also known as The Oprah Magazine). In the Design Matrix, we can break down the advertisement from the physical form, the concept form, and the form of communication driven by three voices: sender, designer, and receiver. the process in which the “Rise & Shine” series evolved in its final form is influenced by each part of this matrix. Here, the design through this design matrix template is analyzed as each variable creates different perspectives.
Data & Information: Information was gained by learning about the Bella Housewares company, their message, and their products. Data collection and note-taking on important characteristics of the sender is a large part of the research phase of the design process, a point in the matrix that takes the mess of the infinite data and information matrix and organizes it into a visual message. The Linea Collection of coffee makers comes in 8 colors, Bella’s target audience is predominantly younger women, estimate age range about 25-30, and their message for their products, “The kitchen should be fun. With BELLA, it can be.”, implies that their products are to help the user enjoy the kitchen, not to hinder or create a boring, typical kitchen experience with their housewares, including their coffee makers.
Within the Data & Information frame, this answers the question of who the client is, along with the audience. The client is Bella Housewares. The audience is young, professional yet lively women, as learning through combining both the target consumer of Bella products and target consumers of the O Magazine.
Keeping in mind both the target audience of the product (Bella Housewares) advertised and also the separate target audience of magazine reader (O Magazine) establishes the receiver of the visual message. If the design is composed and clearly communicates well, the sender will successfully reach out to the established receiver and appeal to them through this form of visual communication. The sender is O Magazine as they will be hosting, or, in this case, broadcast the printed advertisements, but Bella Housewares can also be considered a sender in the matrix. The sender is the "input", and the audience can be said to be an "output".
Keeping in mind both the target audience of the product (Bella Housewares) advertised and also the separate target audience of magazine reader (O Magazine) establishes the receiver of the visual message. If the design is composed and clearly communicates well, the sender will successfully reach out to the established receiver and appeal to them through this form of visual communication. The sender is O Magazine as they will be hosting, or, in this case, broadcast the printed advertisements, but Bella Housewares can also be considered a sender in the matrix. The sender is the "input", and the audience can be said to be an "output".
Design Parameters: These were mostly decided by the media kit for O magazine, including trim, margins, how large the file should be, four color/black and white, and other established guidelines for advertisements to be printed. In this case, this ad would fit on one page to be 8 ⅞” by 11 ⅛”.
Visual Message/Concept: After the research phase, taking the newly learned content and narrowing it down from the data and information given. A concept begins to form through word associations, image research, and consideration of the sender and receiver combined. The design has to act as a point between point A (the sender) and point B (the receiver). From the research, using the colors that make the Linea Collection unique to the Bella brand became the color palette. Using visual cues of bright bands of color and bold letter forms, the concept begins to form, pushed by Bella’s products that are “trendy, stylish, and modern”. In this case, the design for the “Rise & Shine” posters are meant to be bold and the coffee pot is the dominant focal point to hint at the product being sold.
Analysis of Design: Before getting to ahead of the process, let's begin to analyze elements of the design and break down signs and what elements signify. So, beyond the coffee pot being the object itself, what else does this design say or express?
The coffee cup is nested within the coffee pot to express the benefit that the Linea Collection 12-cup coffee maker gives: with a coffee pot, you can "rise & shine" after brewing a bright bold pot of coffee, ready to be put in your mug. The Bella logo rests at the end of the item description to help associate the coffee pot and the company, the producers of the product. The hierarchy begins with the pictograph silhouette of the coffee pot as the dominant element, then the text and coffee pot as subdominant. Breaking the margins with the color bands also asserts itself as the focal point. The five color bands are bright and direct the eye towards the center of the coffee pot to read the words "Rise & Shine" that are its own element. The bottom of the pot directs the eye diagonally to the introduction of the product, and then the product description, creating a natural read down towards the centered Bella log and their tagline. Although the page contains negative space towards the left corner of the design, but it is still activated space rather than creating a distraction or a "hole" within the composition.
The term "Rise & Shine" conveys a message of action: "rise" up to the morning and "shine" with your new coffee maker can be an interpretation of the slogan. Both words "rise" and "shine" each can hold their own connotations. Rise: to rise up, to get up from a rest or lying down, or from a bed. Shine also has multiple definitions: "to give forth or glow with light; shed or cast light", to be bright with reflected light; glisten; sparkle". To shine can be a verb or a noun. The strength of the combination of words was important to pair with the imagery and elements.
Summary: The design goal was to create an advertisement for the sender, Bella Housewares, that wanted a design published in O Magazine of their work. The idea is to emphasize the color choices of the stylish, trendy Linea Collection 12-Cup Programmable Coffee Makers to appeal to the target audience of young professional women, age 25-30 and readers of O Magazine and express a benefit to be gained from their fashionable "fun" coffee makers. Keeping in mind the design parameters of the magazine, a series was created with the slogan "Rise & Shine". The visual message ties in with the word message: rise and shine with your coffee maker. Start your morning brightly, boldly, and with a bit of fun.
Audience: It is up to the audience to interpret how they take the message, and is beyond the control of the designer, which is why it is crucial to perfect the visual message before the audience creates their own meaning through social, cultural, and personal influences. Even the brand and the magazine broadcasting this ad series will influence the audience.
