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Minor Project

23/04/2025 - 08/08/2025 (Week 1 - Week 16)
Chong Wee Han 0368863
Creative Brand Strategy / Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Minor Project - Yubari Expedio
JUMPLINK
LECTURES
In our first lecture, Mr. Mike introduced the projects and outlined the brand we’d be collaborating with, giving us a clear overview of the objectives and requirements. We were then asked to form groups of 6-7 members. I joined with Kerly, Charmine, and Tyra from Graphic Design, Wei Yi and Jin Rong from UI/UX, and Sue Zhiun from Immersive Design. Together, we chose to take on the Expedio Project, focusing on developing a self-watering and mood lighting product in collaboration with Expedio Design as our industry partner. During our initial discussion, we decided to let fate choose our team leader by spinning a wheel, which ended up selecting Kerly to lead the team.

The remaining lectures were delivered as self-paced online sessions through MyTimes.

Figure 1.1

INSTRUCTIONS
<iframe src="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xrK0yBnAxsuAPdDo5lkbnqXye7SZpGyb/preview" width="640" height="480" allow="autoplay"></iframe>

Overview
A desk-friendly hydroponics planter inspired by the Japanese Yubari melon. It combines plant care with aesthetic lighting, designed for a new generation of plant lovers and collectors. Helps busy users grow small plants with minimal care and doubles as a stylish desk decoration and mood light. It also adds personality to modern workspaces. 

Problem To Be Solved
Build community and brand following to gain traction on TikTok, Instagram and XiaoHongShu (小红书). To create engaging, behind-the-scenes content (like HYGR.MY and dododots). 


TASK 1 - PROPOSAL
Week 01
In Week 1, we received a briefing from our module lecturer, Mr. Mike, who introduced us to the module information booklet and the real clients we would be collaborating with for this minor project. He presented several industry-based projects for us to choose from, including:
  • WarisanXR Digital Hologram Experience
  • WayangMind – Mindfulness Solution
  • EXPEDIO Project: Self-Watering Pot & Mood Light
  • CONTINENTAL TIRES Project (for SOE groups)
  • IMPACT LAB: Edu4All – The Night School Project
  • IMPACT LAB: Food Security and Nutrition – Food Aid Foundation
  • IMPACT LAB: Innovation and Technology for Sustainable Hospitality and Tourism
After reviewing the options, we were required to form groups of 6–7 members. My group decided to collaborate on the EXPEDIO Project: Self-Watering Pot & Mood Light, as we found the topic to be both meaningful and interesting.

Week 02
This week centered around confirming our group members and reviewing the recorded lecture on MyTimes to gain a clearer understanding of the project goals and expectations.

Week 03
In Week 3, we had our first online meeting with our clients from Expedio Design. During the session, they introduced the key focus of our project, which is the Yubari Self-Watering Pot. The clients walked us through a detailed presentation covering the product’s introduction, purpose, target audience, pricing and market positioning, marketing goals, and future roadmap. This briefing session gave us a clearer understanding of their goals and helped align our project direction with the clients’ expectations.


After meeting with our clients, we understood that one of their main goals is to build a strong and connected brand community. They encouraged us to delve deeper into researching what drives consumer engagement and loyalty within such communities. This involved exploring how successful brands use emotional branding, interactive social media content, and consistent engagement strategies to maintain strong relationships with their audiences.

Then we started on our research part, which is the contextual research. This is the process that we need to know more about with the product. By doing research like product competitors, target audiences research, and direction of marketing strategy, brand identity and brand positioning, visual identity and etc. 

I focused my research on marketing strategies, product advantages, and promotional ideas. However, some of the research extended beyond the current scope of our project. While these insights may be useful for future development, we collaborated by dividing our research into different areas to gain a clearer and more well-rounded understanding of our collaboration product.

Figure 2.1

After consulting with Mr. Mike, he encouraged us to conduct deeper research on how successful brands build strong communities. He highlighted the importance of identifying what motivates people to stay engaged within a brand community, and how we could apply those insights to our Yubari project. He also challenged us to think critically about how we might educate the public and promote the adoption of our new product concept.

I was assigned to research successful brand communities, and I chose to explore Lululemon as a case study. I discovered that their strength lies in three key strategies:
  • Boosting Local Voices Through Programs for Brand Ambassadors 
  • Authentic Storytelling Through Ambassadors-Led Content 
  • Building Meaningful Connection Through In-Person Events
These insights gave me a clearer picture of how intentional community-building efforts can enhance brand loyalty and trust, valuable learnings we can translate into strategies for Yubari.

Figure 2.2

Week 04
During our consultation with Mr. Mike, he emphasized the importance of conducting deeper research to uncover meaningful insights into what motivates consumers to stay engaged within a brand community. He encouraged us to study how successful brands cultivate loyalty and foster long-term connections with their audiences. This involved analyzing emotional branding strategies, social media engagement, and audience interaction techniques to better understand how these brands build lasting, impactful relationships with their communities.

In response, we expanded our research into successful brand communities and developed three user personas—The Nester, Early Millennials, and Gen Z. Creating these personas allowed us to clearly define our target audience segments and better understand their specific needs, behaviors, and emotional triggers. By identifying what each persona values and expects from a brand experience, we were able to tailor our strategies more effectively, ensuring that our campaign direction for Yubari resonates deeply with each audience group and supports the goal of building a strong, engaged community.
Figure 2.3

Figure 2.4

Week 05
We refined our 3 user personas after consulting with Mr. Mike, by revising the first persona (mother) to ensure all three personas were clearly distinct from one another. Below are the final user personas following our empathy map. 
Figure 2.5

Thus, we also finalized the target audience distribution for our survey form: 
  • 60% Gen Z
  • 20% young home creators/nesters
  • 20% female entrepreneurs
This week, we began drafting our initial survey, and I was responsible for designing the survey questions. We created a Google Doc to compile contributions from everyone involved in question design. Each of us collaboratively worked on different sections, and once completed, we submitted them to Mr. Mike for feedback.

Week 06
This week we tried to refine our survey questions after showing Mr. Mike by his feedback. He reminded us that we need to ask questions that would help you create a promotional ad strategy or plan to persuade the 3 personas to buy the Yubari. He also shows us some example for us to have a better understanding on it.

Initial Survey Questions
Figure 2.6

Feedback and Example Question Provided by Mr. Mike
Figure 2.7

Final Google Survey Form

Week 07
Our goal for the survey was to reach at least 50 respondents, so we shared it with our family, friends to connect with the different target audiences we aimed to gather feedback from. We were intentional in distributing the survey specifically to individuals who matched our user personas, ensuring that the data collected would be relevant and valuable. By targeting the right respondents, we aimed to gather objective insights that would allow us to develop a more accurate and impactful promotional strategy.

Week 08
After collecting our data from our 52 respondents, we started doing data analysis and conducting the insights discovery section in our Miro board.

Figure 2.8

Each member was assigned to identify the top 5 findings from the data analysis that they considered important and categorize them into each section.  

Figure 2.9

Figure 2.10

Week 09
In Week 9, we worked on completing the remaining parts of the insight discovery section. I was responsible for developing the How Might We (HMW) questions. Based on Mr. Mike’s feedback, we refined these questions to more clearly highlight the role of the self-watering plant pot and its value to our user personas.

After completing the remaining tasks, my groupmates and I began preparing the presentation slides for our first client presentation.

Figure 2.11

Week 10
We had our first online presentation with our client. Below are the presentation slides that we prepared.


TASK 2 - IDEA EXECUTION
Week 11
Mr. Mike briefed us on the required content for the final presentation. At this stage, we began developing both the user journey map and the customer journey map to clearly outline and plan our design tasks. In addition, we started preparing a Gantt chart to effectively track our progress and ensure we stayed on schedule leading up to the final presentation.

Gantt Chart

Week 12
In Week 12, our art direction was still somewhat unclear, so we decided to define it using three key words for the Yubari concept: simple, calm, and playful. Mr. Mike advised us to stick closely to these keywords to maintain consistency throughout the concept.

Initial Colour Palette
I took the lead in selecting the color palette, prioritizing green tones to reflect our product—a self-watering pot, while also evoking a sense of calm. I prepared several palette options and shared them with my groupmates via WhatsApp, and together, we finalized the one shown below.
Figure 3.1

Typography
I was also involved in selecting the font. We wanted a rounded typeface for our logo to convey a playful, calm, and comfortable feel. After some research, I found that the combination of Nourd Bold for the logo and Montserrat for the body text suited our brand perfectly.
Figure 3.2

Poster
One of our group members, Charmine, took the lead in designing the poster. She created multiple design variations and shared them with us via WhatsApp for feedback. We then voted and finalized the 13th composition, as it best matched our concept and overall vibe.

Figure 3.3

Figure 3.4

Packaging & Affirmation Card
Initial Attempt
I was responsible for the packaging and affirmation card design. I began by researching visual references and ideas. Initially, I wanted something that felt calm and aligned with our Me Time concept—something soothing and comfortable. My focus was on creating a minimalist yet stylish design that felt comforting and welcoming, reflecting the product’s identity while evoking cozy, home-like vibes.

Packaging Visual References
Figure 3.5

Affirmation Card Visual References
Figure 3.6

I made several attempts at the packaging and affirmation card design, creating different versions. 

To enhance the MeTime feeling, the overall packaging looks calm and inviting. I included the phrase “Helping your plants thrive, even on busy days” to highlight the key benefit, a self-watering system that makes plant care easier for busy individuals. Leaf textures were added to give a natural, homey feel, and an illustration of the Yubari pot is featured to spark curiosity and introduce the product at a glance.

Figure 3.7

For the affirmation card design, I decided to create a leaf-shaped card so that consumers would be reminded of our brand whenever they see it. The design also ties directly to our product, a self-watering pot.
Figure 3.8

I also tested the designs in mockups to visualize how they would look in reality. On the right are variations of the affirmation card designs, along with their mockups. 

Figure 3.9

Mobile Application
Our groupmates Wei Yi and Jin Rong also worked on the mobile application, focusing on its structure and the design of its features. 
Figure 3.10

I also helped by adding colors and images, as well as making some design adjustments.
Figure 3.11

Week 13
Mr. Mike approved our customer journey map and mentioned that the art direction seemed to be moving in the right direction.

During class, we presented our progress on the poster, packaging, affirmation card, and mobile application. However, he pointed out inconsistencies across our work,  they were not following the same art direction, which became a challenge for us. He also commented that while my packaging design looked nice, it didn’t match our main target audience, university students. Instead, it felt more suited for an older demographic. He advised us to make it more playful to better appeal to Gen Z.

Feeling a bit stuck, we began discussing and finalizing our design concept. After some brainstorming, we agreed to focus our art direction on a calm, minimal, and nurturing style.
Figure 3.12

We then refined each element, including the color palette, logo confirmation, and designs for all deliverables.

Final Colour Palette
We replaced Ivory Mist with a creamy tone to give the palette a fresher, more youthful feel.
Figure 3.13

Yubari Logo
I was also responsible for designing the logo. We chose all lowercase letters to create a friendly and approachable feel, and added a small plant sprout above the letter “i,” which visually resembles a plant pot,  perfectly aligning with our product and concept. The second logo received the majority of votes, so we selected it as our final design.

Figure 3.14

Figure 3.15

The team also explored the features for the Yubari Mood Tracking App, designed to connect seamlessly with the smart plant pot. Its core concept is to let the pot’s light shift colors according to the user’s mood.

Key features include:
  • Sending notifications prompting users to rate their emotions.
  • Changing the pot’s light based on selected moods — starting with Happy, Sad, Angry, and Neutral, with more nuanced emotions like Anxiety or Calm unlocking as users level up.
  • Monitoring plant health and providing care reminders for watering and sunlight needs.
  • Using AI to recommend suitable light colors, while offering emotion and plant diary functions alongside personalized tips.
  • Adding social elements where users can invite friends, share moods (optionally), and view each other’s plant health updates.
  • Allowing friends to send plant care reminders and emotional support, fostering a connected Yubari community.
  • Rewarding friend invitations with pot charms, care tools, or app points.

Week 14
Packaging & Affirmation Card
Final Attempt
I began refining my packaging and affirmation card designs, aiming to maintain a minimal yet stylish look, but with a brighter, more youthful touch to better appeal to Gen Z. I wanted the design to feel comfortable, functional, and aligned with our concept. I also added the tagline and a QR code that links to our app, which offers many anticipated features. The packaging now includes key introductions, instructions on how it works, care guidelines, and a message we want to share with our audience. To spark curiosity, I illustrated the Yubari pot on the packaging and listed the items included in the box at the bottom of the design.

For the affirmation card, I added a small detail to the design: the front features only branches, while the back is filled with vibrant leaves. This visual represents the message we want to share, that rest is not a pause, but an essential part of the process that allows you to grow and achieve greater things.

Figure 3.16

Final Outcome - Packaging Design
Figure 3.17

Mockup Version
Figure 3.18

Final Outcome - Affirmation Card Design
Figure 3.19

Mockup Version
Figure 3.20

Mobile Application
After our groupmates Wei Yi and Jin Rong finalized the mobile application design, I began adding colors and making adjustments to ensure it was consistent with our visual style.
Figure 3.21

Figure 3.22



TASK 3 - FINAL PRESENTATION
Week 15
We had our final presentation with our clients, showcasing our proposed outcome, and were grateful to receive positive feedback. They liked our designs and felt they aligned well with their expectations.




FINAL SUBMISSION
Miro Board
Link to Miro Board - Yubari Expedio Miro


Proposal Presentation 


Final Presentation


Final Project Tracking Document


REFLECTION
Week 03
Throughout these 3 weeks, I have learned that developing an emotional connection with the audience is one of the most vital elements of branding. The customer emphasized to us throughout our conversation that their priorities are community development rather than sales. We also discovered how Yubari needs to develop its emotional appeal differently, as it lacks a strong character-based identity. This led me to investigate consumer engagement techniques, emotional branding approaches, and how brand communities employ content, like user-generated tales, interactive social media posts, and behind-the-scenes content, to sustain loyalty. I came to see that community is about shared meaning, identity, and belonging rather than merely numbers. I have gained a better understanding of branding's deeper purpose, which goes beyond aesthetics and includes how it affects long-term value and consumer connections. 

Week 04
This week, I discovered how crucial it is to utilize user personas to develop more targeted branding strategies. After consulting with Mr. Mike, we were advised to narrow down our audience using three persona categories: Nesters, Early Millennials, and Gen Z. We were also encouraged to consider different plant care behaviors, such as people who don’t plant at all, those who frequently fail at it, and those who are too busy to care for their plants. These insights reflect a range of emotional and practical needs, like the desire for a cozy environment, the guilt of watching plants wither, or the struggle to balance self-care with a hectic lifestyle. This approach helps me better target user groups across diverse demographics by truly understanding their lifestyles and emotional motivations. Gathering this data will be valuable for shaping Yubari’s brand direction and deepening our exploration of its identity.

Week 05
In Week 5, I learned how important it is to create differentiated user personas to build a focused and strategic brand direction. During our consultation, we were advised to revise our first persona to make it more distinct from the other two, as each persona should reflect different needs, behaviors, and lifestyles. We also needed to decide on the percentage distribution of each persona and develop survey questions tailored to these profiles. This process made me realize how user personas are not just imaginary characters, but powerful tools that guide product design, content direction, and communication strategies. I understood how overlapping personas can confuse the brand message and weaken targeting. This exercise taught me the value of specificity and empathy in persona development, which I will carry forward in future branding projects to ensure that my strategies are grounded in real, diverse human needs.

Week 06
In Week 6, we focused on refining our survey questions based on the feedback from Mr. Mike. He highlighted the importance of designing each question with a clear strategic purpose, ensuring that the data we collect would meaningfully guide our promotional approach for the three defined user personas. His feedback helped us realize that every question should directly contribute to shaping a stronger, more targeted strategy. After reviewing some sample questions, we reworked and finalized our survey to better align with our campaign goals. This process taught me that even something as simple as a survey can hold significant weight in strategic planning. It’s not just about gathering information; it’s about asking the right questions to get the insights you need. This experience helped me understand the importance of user-centered design and how research directly influences branding decisions. This learning will help me craft more strategic and purposeful research in future projects, ensuring every decision is backed by user insight.

Week 07
In Week 7, after gathering responses from our survey, my groupmates and I worked together to organize and analyze the collected data. We each identified our top five findings from the survey results to better highlight key insights. This process allowed us to categorize the most significant themes, making it easier to guide our next steps with clarity and purpose. Our analysis revealed five main categories: Low-Quality “Me Time,” Emotional Branding Through Visuals, Style Preferences, Product Appeal & Purchase Motivation, and Trends, Feeds & Trust. These categories confirmed the relevance of our concept and provided a deeper understanding of our target audience’s needs and expectations. Through this exercise, I gained valuable experience in interpreting user data and transforming it into actionable insights. It highlighted the importance of grounding creative decisions in real user feedback to ensure our solutions resonate with the intended audience and deliver meaningful experiences.

Week 09
In Week 9, I participated in developing the "How Might We" (HMW) section and organizing our group’s tasks. After gaining insights from the online lecture and case studies, I developed a deeper understanding of how HMW questions act as a strategic tool to spark creative thinking and uncover purposeful design directions. This method helped us frame challenges in a way that allowed us to explore practical solutions tailored to our target audience’s needs. Following feedback from Mr. Mike, we refined our HMW questions to more clearly reflect the role of the self-watering plant pot and its value to our user personas. Aligning the ideas while maintaining consistency across the project was not easy, it required continuous assessment to ensure our direction remained user-centered. Through this process, I learned the power of asking the right questions and how intentional planning is essential in building a strong, meaningful design outcome.

Week 10
In this week, we presented our full proposal, which included our research findings, SWOT analysis, user personas, proposed solutions, initial art direction, and potential implementation strategies. After receiving valuable feedback from our client, our group held a detailed discussion to plan our next steps. We focused on identifying key deliverables that would genuinely enhance the user experience when purchasing and using Yubari products. From this discussion, we developed the concept of an integrated mobile application that includes mood settings, plant condition tracking, mood journaling, and a customizable lighting system. These features aim to create a more meaningful and interactive connection between the brand and its users, while also building a sense of community. We outlined the requirements clearly and assigned the mobile app design to Wei Yi and Jin Rong. Through this process, I learned how important it is to translate insights from research into thoughtful, user-centered solutions. It taught me the value of teamwork and strategic planning, especially when combining both physical and digital experiences into a unified brand concept. Applying feedback constructively helped us refine our ideas and align better with our audience’s needs. This learning experience will help me approach design with greater empathy and clarity, especially in collaborative, real-world scenarios.

Week 11
In Week 11, I contributed to creating the user journey map, which helped us clearly identify our target audience’s experiences, needs, and pain points throughout their interaction with the Yubari brand. This process allowed us to align our direction more effectively and laid the foundation for the rest of our design work. After completing the map, my teammates and I divided our deliverables, and I took on the role of designing the packaging and affirmation card. I began researching visual references and shaping the art direction, refining the colour palette, and selecting brand fonts to ensure that the visual language felt calming and aligned with our “Me Time” concept. I also started drafting my initial design attempts this week. This experience made me realize how essential it is to understand users before jumping into the design phase. The user journey map helped us empathize with our audience and gave purpose to each design decision. I’ve learned that thoughtful planning and user-focused thinking are crucial for consistency, emotional connection, and successful branding. Moving forward, I plan to apply this process to future projects, as it not only improves the quality of the outcome but also ensures that my work stays relevant and meaningful to the target audience.

Week 12
In Week 12, we realized that our deliverables lacked consistency in terms of art direction. Since I was responsible for Yubari’s packaging and affirmation card, I noticed that my initial designs didn’t align well with the styles in our posters and mobile application. After discussing with the team, we decided to revise the overall art direction to better reflect Yubari’s MeTime concept, focusing on a calm, minimal, and nurturing aesthetic. We also finalized the logo to create a more cohesive brand image across all touchpoints. This process helped me recognize the importance of maintaining a unified visual identity to communicate professionalism and build audience trust. Comparing my work with the rest of the team’s deliverables highlighted how disconnected elements can dilute the brand message. The experience taught me that consistency in design supports the bigger picture of brand identity and enhances the user experience. It also reinforced the value of communication and collaboration, especially when multiple people contribute to one campaign. Exploring different design options pushed me to think more critically about what truly represents our brand values. Moving forward, I will ensure a clear art direction is established early in any project, as this is crucial for creating effective branding, both in future modules and in my professional journey as a designer.

Week 13
In Week 13, after aligning our deliverables under a consistent concept, we encountered a critical issue highlighted by Mr. Mike, our designs were not accurately targeting our intended audience, Gen Z. Specifically, the existing packaging design appeared more suited to individuals aged 25 and above, which did not align with the youthful, playful energy that we aimed to convey. To address this, I reworked the packaging design to better reflect Gen Z preferences by adopting the same brighter and more playful art direction used in our first poster. I also contributed to enhancing the mobile app interface by adjusting the color scheme and making minor visual changes to ensure consistency across touchpoints. This process taught me the importance of truly understanding your audience and how design decisions can influence their perception of a brand. It reinforced the need to be adaptable and open to critique in order to refine and strengthen our work. I gained valuable insight into how small design adjustments like color and tone can shift the entire message of a product. Moving forward, I’ll apply this learning by always considering the audience’s perspective first, ensuring every design choice aligns with their expectations and needs, both in future modules and my professional practice.

Week 14
Over the past 14 weeks, I’ve gained a deep and meaningful learning experience from this module. Working with real clients gave me a glimpse into the real-world design industry, allowing me to confront challenges and problem-solve in a hands-on way. Through team collaboration, I learned the importance of design consistency, mutual communication, and the power of working together toward a shared goal. One key takeaway was learning not to make assumptions in design but to listen carefully to feedback, an essential part of the creative process that helps refine and elevate ideas. This reinforced the understanding that a successful design isn’t just about visual appeal, but also about how well it responds to user needs and feedback.

The Yubari project in particular helped me realize how thoughtful research, survey, planning, and design all play critical roles in shaping a meaningful brand experience. Our core concept—Pause. Breathe. Grow with YUBARI.—centers around creating a space for people to reconnect with themselves through Me Time. In a fast-paced world, Yubari offers more than just a plant pot; it’s a lifestyle tool. With self-watering features and mood lighting, we ensured both functionality and emotional value, bridging the digital and physical experience to enhance users’ quality time. 

My main responsibility was to design the packaging and affirmation cards, focusing not just on aesthetics, but also on usability and storytelling. Every element, from layout to message, was crafted to reflect the brand’s intention and connect with our Gen Z audience. This experience taught me how crucial research and brainstorming are when developing design concepts that speak authentically to a target audience. Moving forward, I will carry this learning into future projects, making sure my design choices are intentional, user-centered, and aligned with a larger narrative.


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