How to buy an Inflatable! Part 2 - Ensuring that you get what you want.

Welcome back to Part 2 of our 8 part Blog Series on "How to Buy an Inflatable". 

With custom built inflatables, the outcomes, needs and specifications are completely different for each job, That is because every reason for purchasing an Inflatable is different for every Client and the resources (whether they be manpower or venue or financial) of every Client is dramatically different. The key to receiving a unique product that accomplishes your aims is Information. Things like purpose, the crew you plan to use, location, artwork, time-frame, size and safety all need to be individually addressed. 

In this blog we deal with point 1 of our Introductory Blog of last week:

Ensuring that what you want as a design translates exactly into what you want in a product

Essentially this is an examination of what you need to communicate to your potential inflatable manufacturer.  When you know the key aspects to communicate to us when considering purchasing an inflatable we can ensure all important outcomes are achieved.

The most important piece of information any inflatable manufacturer will require is "how the inflatable will be used"?  When we know that piece of information, we can ask all the relevant questions to guide you through the acquiring of a safe, easy to manage, branded, portable, fit to purpose Inflatable game or product.

Purpose:

When you order an inflatable, the sooner we know for what "Purpose" it will be used and what "Outcomes" you are hoping to achieve, the more accurate our advice will be to ensure your Purpose and Outcomes are achieved.  We understand the strict Confidentiality requirements but we are needing the information to ensure the outcomes you require.

To help us help you, the more you share of your ideas
and purpose, the better the product outcome.This thought process prior and communication will ensure you get what you want. Do you need functionality or do you need to achieve brand awareness by providing a "wow" factor?

For instance, a sporting club might need their inflatable to train its team members in a certain set of skills, therefore their inflatable must focus on functionality, i.e its ability to properly train the team members on the selected skills.

Alternatively, a sponsor at a sporting event may need to stand out from the crowd and attract brand visibility by focusing their design around the “wow factor” i.e its ability to attract and leave an impression on those who see or interact with it.

When speaking to us, it is imperative to make it abundantly clear the purpose for your inflatable. Think of how you imagine people interacting with it and how you want them to remember it. Then share that information with us. We will use the information only to ensure that you get exactly what you want.

Target Audience:

Your inflatable needs to efficiently attract a certain demographic. To do this, think about who you are trying to attract. Experience has shown us that the better you target your audience, the more efficient the product will be.  By telling us exactly who your target audience is, we can ensure that the product you want will match their needs.  The target audience will also determine the design and engineering of the inflatable for safety purposes.  What we engineer for adults will differ to what is created for kids.

Appearance:

If you Dream it....We will Build it! 
The more you dream and communicate that thought process, dream or idea with us, the better we can design and build your Imagination! The clearer the dream or idea the better the working product that will suit your needs. If you communicate "Why" you want it to look a certain way and not only "How" you want it to look we will be able to bring you a concept render sooner,

but it will also help us discuss some of the aspects that can be improved to help you create an inflatable that is not only safe, but also serves the right purpose, for the right target market.
For almost 20 years we have been providing the highest quality inflatables and we have the experience to know what works best in terms of appearance. We know the best places to put logos, the most attractive colours and the smartest materials to use to enhance your appearance.  The more you tell us, the  more we can impart our 20 years of experience to guide your decisions with the most workable options.

Safety:

When deciding on your inflatables manufacturer, first and foremost in your mind needs to be the question of Safety! 

There are three audiences to consider when determining the safety of an inflatable:
1. the crew - set up, manning and pack down crew;
2. the users - the target audience of the inflatable game;
3. the passers by - the target audiences of your brand.

Our Clients are always fighting an internal battle with their legal team about safety.  The first question to ascertain before you progress with your inflatables manufacturer is whether they can manufacture and warrant that their manufactured product will comply with Australian Standards and whether they can issue you with a Certificate of Compliance to enable Insurance cover.  A good way to determine whether your inflatable manufacturer has safety up front and foremost in their mind, is to monitor whether they offer safety information from the get go.  
Ask what sort of weights they would recommend if you are using the inflatable in the middle of winter in an open outdoor setting.  
Determine if they know the weight to wind speed ratios for the Inflatable. 
Ask them what makes their tie points compliant to Australian Standards.  

With over 20 years experience, above all else, safety is the number one priority at Giant Inflatables. All our designs are highly engineered and are constantly tested and refined so that our tie points, patterning, materials and tether systems exceed Australian Standards. This ensures that your product works first time, every time.  No surprises!

Over almost 20 years, we have developed a "TTT reputation" where our products are Tried, Tested and Trusted. This has earned us our Partnership with AFL Victoria and are an accredited supplier to most of the other elite sporting bodies like Cricket Australia, Tennis Australia and New Zealand, Netball Australia, NRL, AFL, Soccer and many others.
With architects designing and the design team creating highly engineered designs, you can be sure that your product will be 100% safe. Once you have provided us with all the details about purpose, target audience, and appearance we can then tweak the design to make it as safe and user friendly as possible.

Size and Portability:

We are always conscious of the resources available to our clients.  When designing an inflatable it is always necessary to consider what sort of manpower you have to set up, man and take down your inflatable.  If you have few people available then this needs to guide the weight and size of the inflatable. If the transport of the inflatable is to be done in house, again size and weight are paramount.The size and weight of the end product is easy to forget when dreaming and imagining your inflatable. Remember that the bigger the inflatable, the heavier and less portable the package will be when deflated.  We continuously re-engineer our packaging and handling systems and equipment to continue assisting our clients to ensure that transport, set up, pack down and storage are as easy as humanly possible.  Giant Inflatables also offers all those extra services and handling products to our Clients if they do not have the resources available.  In addition, each of our clients will get a video or onsite instructions of exactly how to set up and pack down the Inflatable.

Conclusion:
 We hope that the above topics have given you food for thought.  Next week we will look at "Choosing the correct manufacturer".