Sunny: Chatbot Avatar
Problem:
How can Florida Blue provide a fun and friendly chatbot avatar to interact with and help members answer priority questions on the newest self-service automated chatbot tool? The avatar's design needs to embody the name Sunny, work within the Florida Blue brand design guidelines, and not resemble the existing Florida Blue mascot: a blue macaw also named Sunny.
Approach:
When beginning ideation for Sunny, I took time to explore illustration work from a multitude of different illustrators whose characters jumped off the page. I took note of similarities that each character possessed, as I would want to include them in my avatar.
After reviewing Florida Blue's illustration guidelines, color palette, and examples the main takeaways were: warm, humanistic, and playful 2D characters.
Solution:
Create a playful, approachable avatar that embraced the Florida state nickname of the "Sunshine State." The avatar would always wear his sunny disposition and would be ready to chat with one of his many digital devices. The final concept was presented in a variety of poses and slight differences in structural make-up show illustration's flexibility.
Creative Inspiration
The creative brief hinted at the desire to stir clear of the existing Florida Blue fine-feathered friend and mascot "Sunny" (a blue macaw who made its first appearance as the company mascot in 2013). With that in mind, I explored other "sunny" character possibilities, and as Florida is known as the sunshine state, the character took shape.
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Sunny is a bright, playful sun with a nice head of sun-kissed "hair." He can always be found with a GuideWell teal device and is happy to help answer any question.
