Dyson: How to Succeed Despite Design
This week, Dyson announced a surprising new product: the Dyson Zone - noise-canceling headphones with a built in air-purifying mask.
Given the timing and the way it looks, the Internet thought it was an April Fool’s joke.
According to Dyson, it’s not. Okay. Let’s take them seriously, for now.
Functionally, they seem like a good idea. The growing concern with air quality in cities, especially in places like China (a massive market), means there’s probably a significant user need there.
Even though it’s being met with some skepticism and ridicule online (honestly, it makes you look like a Transformer), I’m willing to bet this is their next big thing and a ton of copycats will follow.
Dyson is interesting to me. They do so many things that I would consider poor design.
I think their aesthetic is garish, the ergonomics are questionable, the materials feel cheap, and despite all that they’re really expensive products.
And yet, they’re one of the most successful brands in the world, with best-selling, premium products in multiple categories. Their revenue has grown pretty much year-over-year for more than 20 years.
If good design is so important to successful products and companies, what the heck is going on here?
Now, I actually own a Dyson cordless vacuum and LOVE it. It works so well it literally changed my relationship to vacuuming. At least two people have visited my place and bought one after using it.
But the moment I unboxed it I threw away the included wall mount because I knew there was no way in hell I was going to display it out in the open. It looks like industrial equipment and a spaceship had a baby and it has no relationship to its context of the home.
So here’s my theory: people buy a Dyson in SPITE of their design.
I never bought the Dyson for its design. I bought it because it was the best vacuum cleaner I could get.
Starting with their first bagless vacuum, Dyson have continuously made functionally excellent products that define the new category they’ve created, allowing them to do whatever design they wanted.
Dyson’s current design language has basically trickled down from their first product, the DC-01. If you look at that vacuum, a lot of the elements seen in their current lineup are already there: geometric, industrial-looking forms, exposed internal parts, brightly colored accents.
The DC-01 was sold as the first bagless vacuum that would never lose suction. It looked nothing like any other vacuum before it. The product worked well and was soon a bestseller. Copycats followed, and there is now a clear pre and post Dyson era of vacuum design.
Because Dyson was first to define this category, they got to own what this kind of product would look and feel like.
Over the years, Dyson has repeated this formula in several categories from bladeless fans to hairdryers:
Use a technological innovation to develop a functionally excellent product and establish a new category
Apply their unique design language to make a product that everyone recognizes
Profit
Their design has stayed fairly consistent over time and consumers now associate that look with something that’s going to perform incredibly well. Perhaps more importantly, the design language is very consistent with their marketing, which is all about innovation and performance.
I think the lesson here is that there are many ways brands can integrate design into their business. Despite my subjective opinions about their design, Dyson’s strategy of making immediately recognizable, high-performing products, combined with a strong marketing message has worked spectacularly for them.
Back to the Dyson Zone. I think this will be an interesting challenge for Dyson. They’ve traditionally operated in product categories where performance is king and design is almost secondary. You can live with an ugly vacuum if it’s the best vacuum ever that can hide in a closet while you’re not using it.
The Dyson Zone is entering a product category that is more about self-expression than performance. Wearables communicate to others about your values and lifestyle in a way that a vacuum doesn’t. And this one is on your face.
Do I think Dyson’s design is good?
No. I would make so many different choices.
But I do think they have a track record of making category-defining, functionally excellent products. And that combined with their powerful brand means these air purifying headphones might be the next big thing. Especially in China and other parts of Asia where aesthetic sensibilities are a little...different.
P.S. For an excellent breakdown of Dyson’s design language, check out one Design Theory’s video analysis below.
Design Theory is one of my favorite design YouTube channels. It’s run by John Mauriello, an industrial designer and professor, who puts out excellent content including design analyses, design tips and techniques, and helpful guidance for students.