The very best, most lovingly designed products will strike a balance between form and function. Not only are they going to be aesthetic and intuitive to use, but they’ll also do what they’re meant to do well and leave you feeling like one satisfied customer.

Some designers go above and beyond the call of duty, finding out-of-the-box and intriguing ways to improve the consumer experience even more. Today, our team at Bored Panda is featuring some of the most creative product ideas that have genuinely surprised people in the best ways possible. Scroll down for a big dose of design inspiration and a reminder that no matter how much the world changes, imagination will never go out of style.

#1 Cat Tree Came In A Box With Instructions To Make A Cat House

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#2 Doll Came With A Tiny Phone That Has A Tiny Broken Screen

Image credits: cooliojames

#3 This Titanium Coated Butter Knife With Internal Copper Alloy Heat Tubes. It’s Made To Heat Up When Held In Your Hand, So That It Is Easier To Spread Butter

Image credits: RampChurch

As per legendary German industrial designer Dieter Rams, good designs are innovative, aesthetic, unobtrusive, honest, environmentally friendly, long-lasting, thorough to the last detail, and useful, as well as understandable. And they should involve as little design as possible.

Finding the right balance between how a product looks (its form) and what it does (its function) is harder than it sounds. If you steer too much in either direction, you risk pushing your potential customer base away. You also need to consider how you market it. The reality is that no matter how gorgeous and efficient a product is, it also has to sell well to be considered successful. The most ‘perfect’ product is useless if it’s sitting in a warehouse, completely ignored.

#4 This Microwave Has A Built In Toaster

Image credits: G-r-ant

#5 This Supermarket Has Magnifying Lenses On Their Carts To Help People Read Product’s Lables

Image credits: reddit.com

#6 This Hairbrush I Bought Came With A Tool To Remove Hair From The Brush

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If your product is beautiful to look at, you’re going to get a lot of attention. However, if it’s over-designed or overly complicated aesthetically, you might end up confusing your target audience. A product that looks more like an art piece than anything else can be difficult to use and hard to grasp in terms of function, from the very first glance

An over-the-top focus on form over function also alludes to a disconnect between the designer’s vision and the consumer. The former is important, of course! But you can’t alienate the people you hope to sell to. Unless you’re catering exclusively to the luxury market and high-end clients, you can’t rely on an approach that makes showpiece-worthy yet confusing things.

#7 Diploma Came With A Wallet Sized Version

Image credits: BearLifts93

#8 My Gas Bill Came With A Scratch ‘N Sniff

Image credits: LadyJane17

#9 My Honey Came With A Tiny Handmade Beekeepers Hat

Image credits: GillyGooze

On the other side of the scale are perfectly functional products that do what they’re meant to do, but have little to no aesthetic appeal in their designs. To put it simply, human beings enjoy looking at beautiful things.

So, if your product lacks charisma and presence, it’ll end up being ignored in favor of something more stylish or ‘loud.’

#10 The Napkin On My Flight Has A Buttonhole

Image credits: Milliways07

#11 My Tire Has A Ingraining That Shows Up Only When It’s Time To Replace It

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#12 A Suitcase That Can Measure Its Own Weight

Image credits: Speedy5ingh

Like it or not, if you want to sell well and keep your business afloat, you have to find a way to make your product visually appealing.

People often identify with the things they buy, seeing them as extensions of their personality, lifestyle, and values. Ignoring form entirely and ending up with a bland-looking product is going to hurt your company’s profits and your reputation as a designer.

#13 I Bought A Pack Of Cigarettes And They Came With A Postage Paid Recycling Pouch

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#14 This Teabag Contains Tiny Llama Shaped Sugar

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#15 The Cream I Ordered With My Coffee At A Swiss Cafe Was Served Inside Of A Chocolate Treat

Image credits: TexasJoey

Some designers think that if their invention works well, everyone should rush to buy it, regardless of how it looks. They don’t want to ‘pander’ to people’s tastes. And there’s a kernel of truth in that.

That being said, it’s not so much pandering as keeping a finger on society’s pulse and having a deeper understanding of how human and consumer psychology both work. If you’re in design, sales, and marketing, you can’t ignore what fundamentally drives people, from the desire to save time (efficiency) and money (being economical) to appreciating stylish things (love of beauty).

#16 This Record Is A Piece Of Chocolate That Will Actually Play Once. The Foil Wrapping Unravels As It Is Played, Revealing The Chocolate Inside

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#17 The Gum I Bought In Hong Kong Comes With Paper To Wrap Your Gum In After You’re Done Chewing It

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#18 My Newspaper Came With 2 Printed Pattern Pages To Wrap Presents

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Designers and companies that manage to create an authentic relationship with their customers win out over the long run. Where there’s good communication, quality products, customer support, and mutual values and respect, you’ll also find profitability. Case in point, Investopedia draws attention to the Harvard Business School’s findings about how brand loyalty and profitability strongly correlate, where increasing customer retention rates by 5% leads to increased profits ranging anywhere from 25% to 95%.

#19 My Shoes Came With A “Handle” Rather Than Being Packed In A One Time Use Bag

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#20 My Exhaust Tips Came With A Lollipop With Its Own Dedicated Slot In The Packaging

Image credits: reddit.com

#21 My Beer Glass Is An Upside Down Beer Bottle

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Microsoft’s findings mirror a similar sentiment. The company reported that just a 7% increase in brand loyalty improved the customer lifetime value of each client by 85%—in other words, leading to higher long-term profitability and growth. On the other hand, Investopedia explains that 83% of customers would switch brands due to bad customer service, while 74% said they stay loyal to brands due to product quality.

#22 The Candle Is Actually Butter To Dip The Bread In

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#23 My Dishwasher Has A Spot Specifically For Chopsticks

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#24 My New Umbrella Has A Vented Top To Let The Wind Pass Through Instead Of Turning Inside-Out

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Meanwhile, around a quarter of millennials and Generation Z are willing to spend more on a brand’s products if that company takes a strong stance on corporate social responsibility issues, such as environmental impacts, ethical and financial responsibilities, and philanthropic endeavors.

#25 Toothbrush With Replaceable Bristles So You Don’t Have To Keep Buying A New Handle

Image credits: simple_gay

#26 These Moving Boxes I Ordered In England That Also Contain 1 Teabag To Help You With The Move

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#27 The Barbie Tent I Bought For My Daughter Has A Mini Tent For Her Barbies

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The best way to gain and keep trust is to follow through on your promises, Forbes writes. Furthermore, you want to be able to be empathetic and understand your customers’ opinions, experiences, and concerns. The caveat is that you can’t fake this. All of this has to be authentic if you want to build genuine, long-lasting trust.

#28 My Puzzle Came With A Stand For The Box

Image credits: Zachdude064

#29 The Zip On My New Lunch Bag Is A Tiny Spoon

Image credits: Kelly960

#30 This New Stick Of Oldspice I Just Opened Has A Little Ship In The Deodorant Part

Image credits: Flimsy_Inevitable_15

Which of the products featured in this list impressed you the most with their creativity? Which designs do you wish that you had come up with first? What are the most imaginative, out-of-the-box design ideas that you’ve seen firsthand?

We’re always interested in hearing your thoughts, so if you have a moment, share them in the comment section at the very bottom of this post.

#31 My Milk Jug Has A Spot To Hang A Tool To Slice The Bag Open

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#32 This Toothpaste Has Its Own “Key” To Help Roll The Tube

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#33 Bought A Box Of Men Underwear From Coolmate In Vietnam And Got A 14cm Ruler

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#34 Plug Has A Diagram Showing The Layout Of Its Wires Inside And Shows Which Is The Ground

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#35 The Pen In My Hotel Room Looks Like A Pencil And Has An Eraser

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#36 My Pizza Came With Recommended Reheating Instructions On The Inside Of The Box

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#37 The Spatula That Came With The Cake From A Korean Bakery Has Matches Inside And A Spot On The Back Of The Spatula To Light Them

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#38 A Camera-Less iPhone Issued To My Buddy That Works At A Nuclear Plant. No Cameras Allowed

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#39 The Tin Cap To This Whiskey Bottle Is Its Own Shot Glass

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#40 This Bigger Cork Has Its Own Littler Cork

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#41 This Cup Reveals The Picture Of A Woman When It‘S Held Into Light

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#42 My Pizza Box Gave Suggestions For Alternate Uses

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#43 My Cat’s Flea Treatment Came With Stickers For My Calendar To Remember When Each Does Is Given

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#44 My Gloves Came With Uncut Playing Cards As The Stiffener

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#45 This Book I Bought Had A $50 Canadian Dollar In It

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#46 The Box My Underwear Came In Can Be Turned Into A Birdhouse

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#47 Found On The Inside Of A Dog Toy

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#48 The Sticky Traps I Bought Came With A Tiny Shovel

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#49 Our New Grill Came With Instructions On How To Turn The Box Into A Playhouse

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#50 My New Toothbrush Came With This Refillable Floss Pick! Really Cool Idea

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#51 I Bought This $5 Cane From The Thrift Store And When I Got Home I Realized It Had A Secret

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#52 My LEGO Pyramid Set Came With An Extra Unlisted Piece, An Alien Ray Gun

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#53 I Bought A $14k Staircase Today And It Came With A Little Example Model

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#54 My Spoon Carving Kit Came With Bandaids

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#55 My Daughters Doll Came With A Realistic Cell Phone

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#56 My Coffee Came With Instructions For Tying A Neck Tie

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#57 The Steak I Bought Comes With A Nose Print Of The Cow It Came From

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#58 These Picnic Benches Are Mounted On Old Streetcar Tracks So They Can Roll Together Or Apart

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#59 My Old Dell Laptop Has A Drain Hole On The Bottom

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#60 Townhouse In Dc Has A Cute Little Model Townhouse In Its Front Yard (And The Model Has Its Own Model!)

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#61 This Conditioner Bottle Has A Hidden Qr Code That Only Shows Up Under UV Light

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#62 This Gluten Free Pizza From A Local Restaurant Came With Its Own Pizza Cutter

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#63 My Textbook Order Came With A Free Sample Of An Energy Drink!

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#64 The Box Of Condoms I Ordered Came With A Free Condom Carrying Case

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#65 My New Cat Tower Came With Instructions To Turn The Shipping Box Into A Play House

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#66 This Bag Of Beef Jerky Came With A Flosser

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#67 My Dog’s Ramen Cup Toy Had A Flavor Packet Toy Inside It

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#68 The Box My Kid’s Beanbag Chair Came In Has Instructions To Turn It Into A Castle

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#69 They Don’t Sell Biore Watery Essence In My Country So I Ordered It From Japan After Reading About It Here. It Came With Green Tea And Sweets

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#70 This Airline Has A Invocation Card For All Religions To Bless The Flight

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#71 My Collagen Powder Container Has A Terms And Conditions Agreement When You Open The Lid

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#72 This Pringle Like Can Has A Tray So You Don’t Have To Get Your Hand Stuck Getting The Last Chip

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#73 When I Opened My Ruko I Found A Bunch Of Signatures On The Inside

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#74 The Inside Of My Zipper Says “Lucky You”

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#75 The Box For My Daughter’s Bath Bomb Said It Had A Calming Message Inside

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#76 My Wireless Mouse Came With An AAA Battery In An AA Adapter

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#77 My Thai Food Delivery Order Came With A Free Roll Of Toilet Paper!

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#78 My New Kitchen Knife Came With Two Free Plasters (/Bandaids)

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#79 My New Keyboard Came With A Free Sample

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#80 Our Pack Of Apples Came With A Free Mini Apple Christmas Jumper

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#81 My Knife’s Handle Fell Apart, And It Revealed An Outline Of A Smaller Blade!

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#82 I Ordered A Carbon Steel Japanese Chef’s Knife And It Came With 2 Band Aids

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#83 My Biore Watery Essence Suncreen Came With A Tiny Origami Crane! Worth The Long Shipping Wait

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#84 This Second Hand Book I Bought Online Has A Ticket To The 2000 Sydney Olympics Inside It

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#85 I Found It Interesting My New Pillow Came With A Sample Of The Material That Also Looks Like A Bed. I’m Now Using It As My “Smartphones Bed”

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#86 I Bought An Energy Drink Online And They Sent Me A Bag Full Of Hair

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#87 I Got My Miner’s Right And It Came With A Pamphlet Telling Me Not To Die

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#88 My New Bra Has Hands Built Inside The Cups

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#89 One Of My Dice Cracked And Revealed Another One Hidden Inside It

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#90 This Box In The Shape Of A Chair

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#91 A Restaurant I Ordered From Included Headphones In The Bag As A Gift

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#92 My Sunscreen Order Finally Arrived, And It Came With A Cute Little Treat Too

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#93 The Japanese Ebay Seller I Bought This Ps3 Game From Also Sent Me A Japanese Tea Bag With It

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#94 Little Asian Sunscreen Haul, Came With Two Kitkats

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#95 This Squishy Toy’s Eyes Fell Off But He Came With Back UPS

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