I started reading through my christmas present, a book on imagineering titled:
Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind the Dreams Look at Making More Magic Real.
The kids have loved looking through it as there are beautiful pictures and sketches all throughout, but I am taking my time reading about the process behind imagineering.
Early on in the book they discuss Mickey's 10 commandments, a set of guiding principles that have become that basis for much of the work currently being done in the amusement park industry. As a product manager what was interesting to me was how applicable most of these are to the design of any great product and not just building amusement parks. I know a bunch of you are building your own businesses and I thought these would be pretty appropriate for you. Most of you have probably seen these, but for those that haven't here they are:
Mickey's 10 Commandments
1. Know your audience - Don't bore people, talk down to them or lose them by assuming that they know what you know.
2. Wear your guest's shoes - Insist that designers, staff and your board members experience your facility as visitors as often as possible.
3. Organize the flow of people and ideas - Use good story telling techniques, tell good stories not lectures, lay out your exhibit with a clear logic.
4. Create a weenie - Lead visitors from one area to another by creating visual magnets and giving visitors rewards for making the journey
5. Communicate with visual literacy - Make good use of all the non-verbal ways of communication - color, shape, form, texture.
6. Avoid overload - Resist the temptation to tell too much, to have too many objects, don't force people to swallow more than they can digest, try to stimulate and provide guidance to those who want more.
7. Tell one story at a time - If you have a lot of information divide it into distinct, logical, organized stories, people can absorb and retain information more clearly if the path to the next concept is clear and logical.
8. Avoid contradiction - Clear institutional identity helps give you the competitive edge. Public needs to know who you are and what differentiates you from other institutions they may have seen.
9. For every ounce of treatment , provide a ton of fun - How do you woo people from all other temptations? Give people plenty of opportunity to enjoy themselves by emphasizing ways that let people participate in the experience and by making your environment rich and appealing to all senses.
10. Keep it up - Never underestimate the importance of cleanliness and routine maintenance, people expect to get a good show every time, people will comment more on broken and dirty stuff.
Martin Sklar, Walt Disney Imagineering,