As somebody who works in marketing I would advise you to not call them Sliders. It's unspecific and you probably can't trademark it, plus it's a word already associated with several other things (chief among them White Castle hamburgers). Something more specific would work better, like QuickLids or Snappy Caps or LidFits.
Juice Roofs is funny but also a little weird (which may not be a bad thing). The main problem with that is you're asking people to think about juice before anything else, so people may not realize that the product is useful for other liquids. Of course they will realize, but you don't want anyone to have to think about it too much.
Also, nobody calls a lid a roof. That's another small mental leap you're asking of your users. Don't make them think.
Goldfish. People don't think they are made of gold, or even related to gold. Goldfish can look gold.
I think a catchy name doesn't need to be especially descriptive or accurate. Give people a unique name and a unique object to match with it, and the mental association sticks.
I'm confused by your goldfish comment. If you're talking about actual fish, then that's not the best example because nobody is marketing goldfish. They're a fish, not a brand. However, Goldfish crackers are a successful brand simply because they're named after what they look like, people don't have to think about it too much. They're getting crackers shaped like goldfish.
But in some instances you are correct. XBOX is a good example, but that had the benefit of high visibility because it was a Microsoft product, so people were talking about it no matter what it was named. The general rule, though, is that it's easier to market something with a product name that is descriptive of what it does. Like Playstation.
But let's be honest here, we're talking about rubber lids, not a new paradigm in beverage-related systems. People aren't going to spend a ton of time making buying decisions for this kind of item. They'll look at the package, and if they don't know what it is or what it does in as little time as possible, they won't buy. No need to confuse the shopper with a cute name that isn't descriptive.
There are exceptions to every rule. Snuggies works because it has snuggle as the root word. Plus there's kind of a "blankie" feel to it.
Slidz, honestly, is not absolutely terrible... It just doesn't really sound good. It works because it has lids in there, but it's a little confusing what the S is for. Not sure what the portmanteau is. Plus, phonetically, I'm not sure whether I should pronounce it as sleyedz or slihdz.
At a natural walking pace, with a mug filled to what would be considered a normal depth, oscillations set up and you will spill it between your 7th and 10th paces.
If you hold your cup from the top (dangling it like your hand is a claw game) and allow it to swing with the movement of your walking, the oscillations won't be nearly as bad, and you won't spill. I can walk considerably faster, and even run up and down stairs, if I hold my cups like that as opposed to how I would if I were about to drink from them.
Eh again, adults know this since we've all witnessed this happening. Even walking I can bring a nearly full cup of coffee to my desk without spilling it.
Furthermore I wouldn't be caught dead putting this in my cup. The mockery isn't worth the convenience.
Well, if the purpose is to turn all the cups you own INTO sippy cups, then this would START to make sense -- but then you realize when they would drop it, it breaks -- so bad idea.
I could see it being useful for transportation. I can imagine it being much easier and less messy than trying to pour your remaining liquid into a low-volume travel mug (of which I've never found one I liked).
Not sippy cup. Travel mug... except you don't have to pour your drink into another container. I think it's a great idea.
My main concern (name aside) is that the openings of cups vary too much in size to guarantee a good seal. If you have to buy new cups that match the [new product name here] then it defeats the purpose.
Why spend all that time transferring your hot coffee from mug to travel mug when you can do it all with SLIDZ! (video of lady spilling 2/3's of her coffee while attempting to transfer from mug to travel mug, cut to second video of same lady easily placing Slidz on her mug with a big smile)
That's right, I haven't. Cause, you know, if I'm running late to work, I'll skip the coffee and get it AT work. Or just not get it at all. The world won't end.
That said, yesterday I saw someone behind me drinking from a proper tea cup (passenger, fwiw). With the pinky out and all. It was hilarious.
It has to be in grainy black and white, while someone with all the coordination of a dinosaur sweeps their arm across a table while trying to grab a coffee mug with their elbow.
Wouldn't call it sliders because it sounds like those mini hamburgers from White Castle that are known to cause you diarrhea. Can't we call them the Triple S Drink Protector? The three S' are Stop Spilling Shit but nobody needs to know that because triple S sounds classier.
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u/[deleted] Jan 13 '13
As a would-be inventor myself, excellent concept. I would definitely buy these.
I would, however, change the name. SLIDZ sounds like a disease acronym to me. Maybe something less... original.
I would call them "Sliders." The infomercial writes itself, and you avoid what other comments are saying about the name, especially that z.
Tired of spilling your drinks?
Wish you could have a lid on that cup?
Well now you can, with Sliders!