I felt the best way to determine how successful an idea would be as a mail shot, I decided to prototype and model my ideas. The first prototype I created was based on the idea that healing hands mend a broken spine and make it perfect again. The idea works by the user sliding up and down a piece of paper between a holder which on one side has hands which heal the broken spine and a fixed spine on the reverse. This idea is simple and effective in conveying the message that chiropractors need to continue there practice to become the best they can be. Furthermore the interaction with the mail shot is also successful in the action of pulling the inner segment up and down mirrors the hands on approach of chiropractory. However the spine imagery is weak and could become more detailed to more accurately visualise a spine.
Another idea I considered focused more on the pain which is felt by the patient rather then targeting the actions and practice of a Chiropractor. Within this prototype visualisation depict a figure with back pain, which when revealed by pulling an inner segment out reveals a patient cured of any back pain. However the prototype helped me to understand that the idea is very two dimensional and the interaction doesn't add anything to the message. Furthermore I don't think the design depicts the actions or specialities of a Chiropractor, it conveys a confused message that the back was healed miraculously.
Within this approach I have again targeted the patient and sufferer of back pain rather than the practitioner. The design is an experiment with the concept of using 'doctor's notes' which would be found in a hospital to target those with back pain and present them with the option of how chiropractor could help them. However using such serious and professional looking imagery may have the adverse effect on the audience and discourage there interest in the mailshot. Furthermore it would be difficult to target specific people with back problems via the postal network. The elements that are successful in this design us that the front of the mail shot addresses the audience directly and questions them and if yes encourages the user to open the mail shot. However better space of the mail shot could be used for example the inner side left and back panels of the mail shot are unused.
This prototype is successful in conveying a message to those who already understand what chiropractory is and how chiropractors could help them but many people are unaware of the work of chiropractors and confused about the practice is medicine free and it's a purely natural, hands on treatment which are conveyed by the mail shot being in the shape of hands. All sides of the mail shot are also used and the fragmentation of the proverb encourage used to interact with the mail shot and discover the valuable information inside. Possible improvement that could be made to this prototype are that the hands open in a more human way, perhaps a way that mirrors the position of god's hands.
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