Colorwheel Toys

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This morning, we visited one of the families we sent kits to on Thursday night. They have two daughters, A (9 years old) and R (7 years old).

Key Learnings:

Experience learnings:

• Driving it was most fun
• Driving wouldn’t have been as fun if the car came fully made
• Putting together circuit was easy, directions were very clear
• Incorporate into play – racing against each other, riding their lego people around on the cars
• Parents want educational stuff up front, print it out and put it at the end of the directions. Online have more resources. About directions, “When it’s done, we’re done”.
• Different buying styles within the same household, Mom: parent recommendation is the most important, Dad goes on Amazon because reviews are most important
• They really like making things move, decorating was not as exciting initially.
• Never made it to the website – we need more of a pull to get the kids there and incentive to keep them there
• Parents are excited that this brings together their favorite aspects from 3 different toys: Lego racers, snap circuits, and gear kit

Product Learnings:

• Zip ties are no good – the girls get excited, try something, and then realize they need to change it. With zip ties, there is no going back. We need to use something they can make mistakes with and then change.
• Need more detailed directions with axles
• Dad: The big wheels are great because they don’t get caught on things in the house
• Improvisation- when the zip ties didn’t work they used pipe cleaners to keep the motor in place
• Rubber band keeps slipping out of place – need a more robust solution
• Make battery orientation clearer for younger kids – they might not have experience putting batteries into other products

Other notes:

We received email ahead of time that one of the wheels was slightly broken, so we brought our supplies along, ready to make a lot of fixes. As it turned out, it was a quick fix just requiring a dab of hot glue. The experience provided a crucial learning in how robust we must make all of our parts. For the next round of testing, we are using laser cut acrylic to cut down on number of parts on wheels and to make sure there is a better fit with the axle.

The 9 year old was able to do most of the assembly independently. She needed help from her father mounting the motor, which ended up taking them both a half hour to figure out.

As we were leaving, the girls showed us their tire game. They roll a car tire back and forth to each other. Very cute and it shows they like making things move! Miguel wanted to stay and keep playing.

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GOALS:

1. Test our “Assemble-then-Decorate” product model
2. Test if our product is able to convey formal topics (i.e. Circuits, Wires, Power Source) through Hands-on Learning and Instructions

BRIEF DESCRIPTION:

Last Sunday, [C] was kind enough to welcome us in her home and play with her daughters [A] who was 7 years old, and [D] who is turning 4 next week. We played in a more neutral zone this time in their living room (instead of their playroom or bedroom.) We first let them play with 2 of our minimum viable products (MVPs):  Car Kit and Puppy Purse Kit.  Then decided to show our box of Lego Friends and test her skill at following visual instructions.

KEY FINDINGS:

• LOVED IT: Our Purse Pets have been gaining traction, but [A] liked the Car Kit way more as she was able to race it with her other toys and even build a paper chair + seatbelt for her small doll to ride on.
• ASSEMBLE + DECORATE = WINNING: After 27 kid hours of testing this, we are confident on this approach, every kid loved figuring out assembling the toy, but more importantly being able to decorate it with stickers, write their names on it, etc.
• PARENT INVOLVEMENT: Compared to parents with extremely busy lifestyles whose primary focus is to simply keep their kids busy to free up some “me time,” parents who are more involved with their kids focus on supervising and being there for their kid during playtime.
• LEARNING TOPICS DID RESONATE: From playing with the toy, her father also teaching her, and us being there to explain a little, the 7-year old understood circuits at a basic level and even correctly guess that switching the motor’s polarity would make the car go the other way
• PARENT PAIN: As we hypothesized that “Parents have a pain to raise their child in the best possible manner.” This was evident in the way [C] explained her Middle School hunt around the Bay. She was able to name several schools and the key strengths of each.

QUOTES FROM MOM:

• CONVENIENCE: “If buying a $20 toy instead of a $10 toy saves me time from having to carefully choose which one to buy, I’d do it”
• PRINCESS NERD: “Why can’t princesses wear glasses and have their hair up?”
• LONGEVITY: “I want something that she can use and keep adding on to as she grows up”
• MEDIA EFFECT: “Unfortunately, my girls want to be what they see on TV, have you guys read the book Cinderella Ate My Daughter? It’s literally about that”
• EARLY GENDER BIAS: “As early as 2nd grade, I’ve noticed with my daughters, their peers, and their schools that there are gender differences/bias already”
• FEED THE NEED: “My daughter got hooked on this whole Magic thing and it’s something that I’ve supported her on, but I’m just not satisfied with the content that’s out there online”