Growth Assistant Mascot: A Young Eagle That Grows Up with the Child

A young eagle that grows up with the child

In 2017, Xinming Design created the mascot for Growth Assistant (成长帮手), an education app by Guangdong Qtone Education Co., Ltd. The mascot is a young bald eagle: a big white head that takes up half its body, with a wavy lower edge to the head feathers like a scarf; a brown body; a curved yellow beak; and pink cheeks. The proposal provides front, side and back views, 9 expressions (welcome, happy, angry, sad, surprised, keep going, yay, clever and hi), and 5 growth stage poses: a baby with a bottle, a pupil with a yellow cap and red scarf, a middle school student in a blue uniform with a satchel, a little sailor heading for the "knowledge ocean", and "happiness growth", leaping out of an eggshell holding balloons.

An app that stays with a child for years

Growth Assistant is an education app by Qtone Education. Qtone Education, now Qtone Education Group (Guangdong) Co., Ltd., stock code 300359, is an education technology company serving primary and secondary schools.

The users of a family education app are children who grow up, and the parents who help them. A mascot fixed at one age is soon outgrown: a pupil no longer wants a baby character, and a middle school student no longer wants a pupil.

So the question for this mascot was: how can one cartoon character stay with a child from babyhood to middle school? The proposal's answer: let the mascot grow up too.

White head, brown body, yellow beak

The basic character is simple:

· Head: white, slightly pointed on top, half the height of the body, with a wavy edge of feathers at the bottom;

· Face: two round black eyes, a curved yellow beak and two pink cheeks;

· Body: brown, with folded wings at the sides and yellow feet;

· Back: a cloud-shaped patch of white tail feathers.

The proposal draws a full set of front, side and back views, both as line drawings and in colour. A big head, a short body and round eyes are the usual proportions for a character aimed at young children; the curved beak and the wavy white head feathers make it recognisable at once as an eagle rather than any small bird.

Why an eagle

The proposal images do not explain the choice of an eagle; what follows is our reading.

A young eagle grows into an eagle. For a product named after growth, a young eagle that has not yet grown up carries two ideas at once: small for now and in need of care; able to fly and stand on its own later. It is closer to what parents hope for their children than a small animal that never grows up.

The bald eagle's white, brown and yellow colouring also gives clear contrast, so it remains recognisable even when reduced to a small avatar on a phone screen.

Nine expressions

The proposal gives the mascot 9 avatar expressions, each on its own background colour:

· Welcome: waving a wing in greeting;

· Happy, angry, sad, surprised: four basic emotions, with a pair of round glasses for "surprised";

· Keep going: a red headband reading "Come on" and a clenched wing;

· Yay: a victory sign;

· Clever: a thumbs up;

· Hi: a wink and a wave.

In an app, a mascot appears most often not on the splash screen but in small avatars like these: welcoming, encouraging, reminding and responding. The 9 expressions cover emotions, and they cover encouragement. For an app that keeps children company while they learn, encouraging expressions such as "keep going", "yay" and "clever" are more useful than cuteness alone.

From bottle to school bag: five growth stages

The proposal gives the mascot 5 growth stage poses, each with an English title:

1. I'M STILL A BABY: sitting on the floor with a bottle and a blue bib, beside three blocks marked A, B and C;

2. EXCELLENT PUPIL: a yellow cap, a red scarf, a blue uniform and a yellow school bag;

3. MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENT: a blue uniform and a satchel, leaping with wings spread;

4. KNOWLEDGE OCEAN: a sailor hat, sitting in a small boat that sails on an open book;

5. HAPPINESS GROWTH: leaping out of an eggshell, a book in one wing and a bunch of coloured balloons in the other.

All five poses use the same eagle, changing only props, clothes and movement. As the child grows, the mascot grows; it stays the same age as its user. The last pose returns to the eggshell, as if to say that each stage of growth is a new hatching.

The character designs on this page are proposal-stage drawings; the version in actual use may have been adjusted by the client.

Deliverables and extensions

Character design

· Growth Assistant mascot (a young bald eagle)

· Front, side and back views (line drawings and colour)

Expressions

· 9 avatar expressions: welcome, happy, angry, sad, surprised, keep going, yay, clever, hi

Growth stage poses

· Baby (I'M STILL A BABY)

· Pupil (EXCELLENT PUPIL)

· Middle school student (MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENT)

· Knowledge ocean (KNOWLEDGE OCEAN)

· Happiness growth (HAPPINESS GROWTH)

Looking back nine years on

Three points are worth taking from this project:

1. Let the mascot grow up with its users. For a product serving children of different ages, it is better for one character to pass through different ages than to fix it at one.

2. Expressions are used more than poses. In an app, the mascot appears most often as a small avatar; its expressions need to cover both emotion and encouragement.

3. Use an animal's youth to express growth. A young eagle grows into an eagle; the idea needs no explanation.

For a mascot that keeps a child company, the most important thing is not to be cute, but to grow up together.

How to verify

· Client: Guangdong Qtone Education Co., Ltd. (广东全通教育股份有限公司), now Qtone Education Group (Guangdong) Co., Ltd., stock code 300359

· Client website: www.qtone.cn

· This case page: www.xinming.sg/en/portfolio/3074.html

Further reading

· SOFAR Brand Character Xiaohang: Turning an Energy Technology Company into a Character People Remember (www.xinming.sg/en/portfolio/3054.html)

· EIC Education Identity Upgrade: Writing "I & U" into an Education Brand (www.xinming.sg/en/portfolio/3043.html)

· Yango Academy Emblem Upgrade: A Tree Whose Leaves Are Rays of Sunlight (www.xinming.sg/en/portfolio/3072.html)

FAQ

Who designed the Growth Assistant mascot?

The Growth Assistant mascot was designed by Xinming Design in 2017 for Guangdong Qtone Education Co., Ltd., including the character design, turnaround views, 9 expressions and 5 growth stage poses.

What is Growth Assistant?

Growth Assistant (成长帮手) is an education app by Qtone Education, now Qtone Education Group (Guangdong) Co., Ltd., stock code 300359.

What does the Growth Assistant mascot look like?

A young bald eagle: a big white head with a wavy edge to the head feathers, a brown body, a curved yellow beak and pink cheeks.

Why does the mascot have 5 growth stages?

The app's users are children who grow up. The mascot grows from baby to pupil to middle school student, staying the same age as its users, so that children do not feel it has become too young for them.

What expressions does the mascot have?

Nine: welcome, happy, angry, sad, surprised, keep going, yay, clever and hi.

Which projects can learn from this case?

Education apps and products for children and families; brands whose users span a wide age range and need a character that grows with them; and digital products that use mascot expressions for interaction and encouragement.

Xinming Design is a brand systems design firm. Its work centres on systematic judgment, turning brand strategy into structures that can run and be inherited. www.xinming.sg