Concept development

Concept Development Lecturer: Bart Haensel US Credits: 8 / ECTS: 14 Short Description The course idea development is geared towards the development of an idea into a campaign or prototype in the broader sense. Ideas may be developed in the areas of commercial campaigning or event planning, as well as further development of ideas in the areas of product or business development. The student may bring along his or her own case or will otherwise be guided by the lecturer to develop a unique idea.

Objective Each student will learn how to develop his or her own idea in a structured way, a step by step methodology.

Assessment - Final presentation in front of a jury (40% of the final grade) - Essay, papers, plans etc. documentation of project & weekly home assignments (60% of the final grade) General Organization Of The Course 10 week course with a workload per week of:

6 (lectures) 6 (lecturer/mentor) contact hours 20-24 hours per week of homework

Course Content The student may bring along his or her own case or will otherwise be guided by the lecturer to develop a unique idea. Therefore students can also start working on their own project or company. The course gives students a chance to bring their idea into practice. The students’ product from a course will be a practical idea, a concept of a campaign, a prototype for a product or a developed concept for his or her own company. The final presentation is part of the course portfolio and may be useful for job applications.

Through class discussions of many real-life cases in the cultural area, students will gain insight into the application of new concepts. This is supported by museum visits e.g. the world renowned Rijksmuseum and the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. In addition, students learn to develop their idea in a thoughtful, step-by-step manner.

Result As a final product of the course students are asked to present their idea and supporting information in the form of a campaign book. They will receive specialized training to present their concept as a ‘pitch’ by an expert professional. The communication strategy will be further developed through visual research.

Guest Lecturers Marlien de Widt (briefing) Eric de Jong (visualization) Kim Swagemakers (presenting, pitching) Literature TED Talk by Steven Johnson: Where good ideas come from Kirby Ferguson: Everything is a remix Adam Curtis: The Century of the Self Gottfried Rittenbacher: The Japanese Version Aaron Rose: Beautiful Losers Course Details During the first 4 weeks of the course, class meetings are supported with workshops and field trips. The focus in these initial weeks is in making creativity tangible. Students will learn about different creative methods and creativity in real life. Eg. Practicing problem solving and the value of failing. Individual and team assignments are related to the themes of problem solving and the value of failing. This is done through the associative and logical methods as an alternative to the classic brainstorm method.

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Target groups/end user of the product Fictive users Usability Set up user scenarios. What does the life of the user look like? Creating Personas with the help of the diary theory

Homework consists of visual and textual research and creative assignments. E.g. The “Campaign in a day� assignment where students develop a campaign to position the Netherlands, being the smallest country in Europe, as the largest city in Europe. Several aspects of what constitutes a briefing will be addressed here. At the end of this first part all students will develop an idea that they will further elaborate during the rest of the term.

Weeks 5-8: Students will be working independently on their project. The class meetings will be used to individually support and guide students with their project. Students learn to trust their intuition and follow it in order to attain their goals. Working independently prepares them for the professional life of independent entrepreneurship. Students consult relevant TNS lecturers. They are also asked to independently plan and execute two company visits or expert interviews.

Students determine their own homework, of course in consultation with the lecturer.

In the past, students worked on the following projects: Business Development

Wetrustee: a brand concept developed by Oliver. A concept to serve homeowners and their renters with full service packages to facilitate renting out your home while you are away on holiday.

Shauni developed a webshop concept called “Utiliser” where she intended to sell highend fashion dead stock. Products from high end, well-known designers would be offered at a 20% discount. Great look, feel and customer experience.

Campaigning: Blogger cosmetics campaign developed by Romy to trigger young consumers to dermatological products. Teaser campaign targeted towards fashion bloggers to create awareness for the dermatological brand.

Apart from the above developments, during the course students have also worked on “event” proposals, ideas for Apps, and ideas for product development.

Weeks 9-10. During these weeks student work on their presentation. They attend a class led by a pitching expert. At the end of this two-week period students are able to present their own well thought out and unique idea. This would then represent part of their portfolio for their final exam and for job applications.