The unique story behind Fingerlings from Character Options: one of 2023's winning DreamToys
LONDON, Nov. 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Fingerlings are the oh-so-cute toys that have today been revealed as one of 2023's DreamToys. Voted for by a panel of retailers, the annual DreamToys line-up is the definitive list of top toys for Christmas. Unlike other winning toys, however, Fingerlings was developed for fans by fans through a global brainstorm on TikTok!
Social media may be the place to see the latest products as influencers unbox and showcase their favourite toys; but one forward-thinking toy creator has tapped into her TikTok audience to develop one of this year's most talked about toys.
WowWee toy innovator, Sydney Wiseman, better known by her 192K-strong TikTok following as Syd the Toy Kid, turned to her channel, when considering Fingerlings next generation. Spotting an opportunity for market research, Syd asked her community if they'd like to see Fingerlings back on the toy shelf – and if so, how they could be made better. The response was a resounding "Yes". A series of TikToks later, each with their own options to choose from, and fans' suggestions to add additional colours, fuzzy textures, and more interaction into the mix, and Fingerlings 2.0 was all wrapped up.
Syd quickly got to work, taking the advice of her followers to create a new era of "Friendship @ your fingertips". The new Fingerlings launched this summer, featuring exciting, updated ways to play, including more than 70 sounds and reactions, a poseable tail, and glowing heart.
Syd Wiseman said: "My followers offer an amazing sounding board for toy development. They're as passionate about toys as I am, so they see it as an opportunity to help create their dream toys! Bringing back Fingerlings has been an incredible journey that I've been able to share with my followers, every step of the way. The new Fingerlings is as much my baby as it is theirs and their success is shared between us.
"TikTok and social media in general is a great tool to have in the repertoire when launching products – so why not use if for developing new products. Social media users are a ready formed network of would-be developers, who are more than happy to be involved in both idea generation and evaluation. And Fingerlings just goes to show how valuable their involvement in the process can be."
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