| Automatic pop-up products such as pop-up cubes, | | | | have a "pop". Instead it would sort of wake up in a |
| pop-up houses and pop-up pyramids have been a | | | | lazy fashion, erecting itself over a period of several |
| feature of the Business to business direct marketing | | | | minutes. |
| scene for some time. The products have proved to be | | | | So, how does a member of the public get hold of a |
| very popular and very successful in direct mail | | | | pop-up cube or a pop-up house to send as a surprise |
| campaigns, as promotional giveaways at exhibitions | | | | birthday greeting to a friend or loved one? The |
| and as desk top pen holders amongst other things. So | | | | answer is to make one yourself. There are books |
| that begs the question, "Why do we never see rubber | | | | which give instructions and there are websites which |
| band powered automatic pop-up products in greeting | | | | show videos of the product which will help. But if you |
| cards shops or on the card shelves in supermarkets?" | | | | do make the product yourself, the pop-up action will be |
| It's not that it hasn't been tried. It has but the would-be | | | | nice and fresh just as they are when the pop-ups |
| publishers have never thought through the full | | | | leave the assembly lines when being made for the |
| implications of trying to bring the product to the public. | | | | advertising and marketing industries, ready to be mailed |
| The simple fact is that the product would not be a | | | | out the following day. |
| viable option for the commercial greetings market but | | | | However, help is on its way and at least one UK |
| not because of cost. It is more a matter of logistics | | | | manufacturer is going to bring the product into the |
| and the problem lays with the most important | | | | public domain in a do-it-yourself kit and that is great |
| component - the rubber band. | | | | news for one group in particular - the growing army of |
| You see, rubber bands begin to lose their elasticity if | | | | card making, scrapbooking and rubber stamping |
| stored at full stretch for a long period of time. In a 3-D | | | | crafters. As automatic pop-up products have never |
| pop-up, the rubber band is at full stretch when the | | | | before been seen in the greeting card shops the card |
| product is compressed. The longer it is stored flat, the | | | | making fraternity will have something to stretch their |
| weaker the rubber band gets. If these products were | | | | creative talents. |
| produced for the high street or the mall, they would | | | | Card making and scrapbooking crafters have been |
| potentially have been compressed for months. Having | | | | producing some of the most stunning creations for |
| left the manufacturer they would go to a distribution | | | | years, many of them far more attractive and |
| centre until ordered by a store and then they would sit | | | | imaginative than anything you will find even in specialist |
| in the store room or on the shelf until bought by a | | | | gift shops never mind in card shops or on supermarket |
| customer. The result would be that the rubber band | | | | shelves. Ad agency creative staff and graphic |
| would become weak and the product would no longer | | | | designers watch out! |