Seems like a lot of work just to sell a chair
Mono has launched an online campaign so convoluted and off-kilter for Herman Miller's Embody chairs ... I dunno, maybe it's a brilliant concept that I'm just too stupid to understand. I knew I was in trouble from the first line of the press release, which promised to "change the way you think about chairs. Or perhaps, to change your chair to help you think." I generally don't think about chairs, I just sit in them. That's me: thick-skulled and lazy-assed. There's a site called thoughtpile.org—it looks like something the Rand Corp. or Dr. Evil would devise—where ideas on various subjects "grow" as users "pile" them on. The idea that gets the most votes wins a chair. Not just any chair, but the Embody, which Herman Miller "has spent six years perfecting" because it "supports the mind and body." It took them six years to make a chair? What did they sit on while they were waiting, the floor? Actually, Embody chairs are kinda cool-looking in a retro-industrial-futuristic way, like something astronauts would sit in while savoring mugs of Tang. If they are mind-expanding, maybe I should check them out. People are always telling me I think with my rear end. |
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December 1, 2008 in Furniture, Gianatasio, Herman Miller, Mono | Permalink |
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They were busy running university lab tests. While the design snobs seem to love it (http://www.id-mag.com/article/Embody/), I have to agree that sitting should take less work. Plus, every time I read "Herman Miller" I first think it says "Henry Miller" and then I get disappointed that we're still talking about chairs.
Posted by: sleeping in my party dress | Dec 1, 2008 9:31:18 AM
Its called marketing. What brand doesnt try to "sell" through a product? What Herman Miller actually did was create an actual, visual, real life manifestation of what the idea is behind the Embody chair. Will it help you think better? Who the hell knows? But claims are always made about any product and we as consumers either buy into it or not. What we have here is a great site that allows people to pile up on ideas that will help to illustrate the concept of the "idea economy", that is it.
Does Coke help you fall in love? Do Twizzlers really make your mouth happy? Is BMW really the ULTIMATE driving machine?
Please! Lets be real here.
What your obviously missing here is a thorough understanding behind a complex piece of furniture design, something that has been scientifically engineered and something that makes a claim that, until you prove otherwise, is not that far fetched.
This seems like a personal attack or perhaps an over compensation for not understanding what the campaign is all about.
I think Herman Miller has proven to the world, AERON, that it knows what its doing.
What I dont get is why you have such a problem with the website and the campaign?
Many people with chronic back problems think about their chairs. People who want comfort throughout the day think about their chairs. People who think about "stuff" will think about their chair.
Why dont you go try the ThoughtPile site and see if your brilliant analysis will win you one of these chairs so you can write up a real review.
I have sat in one for an extended amount of time and honestly it is superior to other chairs I have sat in. The level of spinal support, the mobility and the comfort are all things i noticed immediately.
Posted by: Craig Elimeliah | Dec 3, 2008 3:07:29 PM
