SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES THE INTERNATIONAL DESIGN EXCELLENCE AWARDS® (IDEA) INDUSTRIAL DESIGNERS SOCIETY OF AMERICA “Supporting IDEA® allows us the unique opportunity to actively engage at all levels of design. Dow Corning shares the vision to foster widespread understanding of the importance of industrial design excellence as a critical element to quality of life, economy and sustainable development.” — Kevin Shinn, IDSA, Dow Corning WHAT IS IDSA? As a key voice of the profession, IDSA advances the positive impact of design on business and society while directly benefiting members by evolving into the world’s most effective design organization. MISSION To advance the profession of industrial design through information, education, community and advocacy. MEMBERSHIP With its roots reaching back to 1938 and founded in 1965, The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) is the world’s oldest, largest, member-driven society for industrial design. IDSA represents professionals in product design, interaction design, human factors, ergonomics, design research, design management, universal design and related design fields. Nationally headquartered in Dulles, VA, IDSA maintains 17 special interest groups and local chapters in 27 US cities as well as China. IDSA’s membership is 3,000+ and growing. US-based design consultants, corporate designers and design educators comprise 66 percent of IDSA members, students 28 percent, affiliates 4 percent and international members 2 percent. INNOVATION IDSA’s award-winning quarterly design journal, Innovation, is the voice of the industrial design profession and a key vehicle for promoting dialogue within the design community with a reach and readership estimated at 12,000 per issue that includes corporations, industrial design firms, design educators and others. CONFERENCES IDSA hosts an annual international conference and five annual regional conferences that engage design students, design educators, business and design professionals in key educa- tional and inspirational design dialogues to promote excellence in design practice and address issues central to design and its future. IDEA The International Design Excellence Awards® (IDEA) is IDSA’s flagship program. Now in its 32nd year of honoring the best in design, IDEA has been called “the Oscars of Design” and for good reason. The extraordinary group of judges, stringent judging criteria, international entrant pool, and winners’ circle made up of design and business elite all serve to underpin IDEA’s position as the preeminent design competition in the US. Each year IDEA winners are honored in the media, IDSA’s online gallery, showcased in the fall issue of Innovation and their designs displayed at IDSA’s annual International Design Conference. 1 www.idsa.org ABOUT IDEA Started in 1980 by The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), the International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) fosters business and public understanding about the impact of design excellence on the quality of life and the economy. The IDEA program is considered the preeminent design competition with entries from over 39 countries, such as: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Belgium, Botswana, Canada, Chile, China, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, Romania, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and United Kingdom. IDEA winners are considered outstanding examples of design excellence and innovation that The Henry Ford deems them an integral part in telling the story of American innovation and has chosen to include IDEA award winners in its permanent collection. THE CATEGORIES Industry Segments Design Segments Bathrooms, Spas, Wellness Kitchens Design Strategy Commercial & Industrial Products Living Room & Bedroom Interactive Product Experiences Communication Tools Leisure & Recreation Packaging & Graphics Computer Equipment Medical & Scientific Products Student Designs Entertainment Office & Productivity Research Environments Personal Accessories Gardens & Outdoor Service Design Social Impact Transportation THE JUDGING The IDEA jury is made up of international design experts from design consultancies, corporations and universities. They adhere to a rigorous judging criteria that includes: • Innovation (design, experience, manufacturing) • Benefit to the user (performance, comfort, safety, ease of use, usability, user interface, ergonomics, universal function and access, quality of life, affordability) • Responsibility benefit to society, environment, culture and economy • Benefit to the client (profitability, increased sales, brand reputation, employee morale) • Visual appeal and appropriate aesthetics • Design Research Category Insights (usability, emotional factors, unmet needs) testing rigor and reliability • Design Strategy Category (internal factors and methods, strategic value and implementation) Judging from IDEA 2011 2 www.idsa.org WHY SPONSOR IDEA? No matter what your focus or industry– IDEA sponsorship provides your company with an exceptional opportunity to align your brand with excellence, reach an international community of designers shaping tomorrow’s future and showcase your corporate commitment to social responsibility, cultural diversity and improved quality of life for your target market. IT’S WHAT YOU STAND FOR IDEA sponsorship highlights your dedication to good design, commitment to the profession, and provides broad avenues to grow relationships and open doors to businesses, design leaders and innovators who influence trends, represent buying power and influence most industries. IDEA’s excellent reputation and high standards draw the top design professionals, consultancies and corporations from across the globe to present their designs as candidates for the coveted Best in Show, Gold, Silver and Bronze awards. An IDEA is considered to be the highest award a designer can receive. STAND OUT FROM THE COMPETITION Reaching your target market and maintaining consumer loyalty is critical in today’s economy. Today’s consumers have more choices than ever before. They are more adept at making informed decisions and more closely attuned to corporate brand identity. How do you stand out from your competition and engage consumers on a whole new level? Quality and value are key, but affinity, brand identity and subtle brand impressions and associations exert a strong influence over much of consumer spending. How do you as a company dedicated to excellence and sustainable, responsible, innovative products convey that message to your consumer base most effectively and for the least investment of resources? As an IDEA sponsor, you underscore your company’s commitment to design excellence and the entire design profession to align your corporate identity with all that the IDEA program represents! • Excellence • Social Responsibility • Cultural Diversity • Consumer Usability 3 www.idsa.org MAKE AN IMPRESSION ON THE WEB IDSA.org is the largest website in the US dedicated exclusively to industrial design. The website receives 1.2 million visits and 4.5 million unique page views per year. A large portion of those visits are to the IDEA gallery. For years to come, your permanent presence IDSA.org receives on these highly trafficked pages serve to: 1.2 million visits • Expand your reach • Maximize your brand recognition & • Expand your market share in the design community million page views 4.5 per year As an IDEA Sponsor your permanent visibility on IDSA.org in the IDEA Gallery provides a unique opportunity to engender good will and engage key demographics in the design community for pennies per impression! REACH THE MEDIA Consider the cost for just one paid advertisement in a publication or other medium with top-tier reach versus the value of widespread positive editorial media coverage and the association of your brand with the IDEA awards. IDEA sponsorship offers you the best kind of visibility. Engage the media with interesting and culturally relevant stories that emphasize your company’s link to excellence and innovation. Highlight your commitment to a cooperative relationship between business and design that encourages and integrates cultural diversity, supports social responsibility and sustainability and offers consumers extraordinary products. A sample of past coverage for IDEA highlights the unparalleled international media coverage received in magazines, newspapers, websites, blogs, through design associations and countless publications like: Abitare (Italy) Design Korea MODE Weekly The Atlanta Journal Constitution Design Net The Montreal Gazette The Baltimore Business Journal Design News (Japan) NBC BusinessWeek Designophy The New York Times The Chicago Tribune Dexigner NPR China’s Product Design Magazine Faces Of Design Plastics News CNBC Fast Company magazine Report + Plus (Austria) CNN Form magazine (Switzerland) San Francisco Chronicle Concept Magazine (Korea) FUSE The Wall Street Journal Core77 Gazeta Mercantil (Brazil) The Washington Post Curve magazine (Australia) The Los Angeles Times Yanko Design The Dallas Morning News Madrid’s Experimenta The Denver Post Metropolis magazine 4 www.idsa.org IDEA WINNERS REACH THE DESIGN WORLD Reach corporations and design consultancies that operate in virtually every design discipline. IDEA recognizes design excellence in a wide variety of industry and design segments. Every year it attracts international entries from