Springwise is all about spreading smart new business ideas, so we're always thrilled to hear from readers who have launched a concept that was inspired by something they spotted here. Like Flashchenfotos—which is German for bottle photos and was recently launched in Munich.

Similar to We Shoot Bottles, Flaschenfotos takes pictures of bottles for beverage manufacturers and retailers: high resolution images of bottles against a white background, retouched so that they're ready for use online and in print. Exactly the type of product image that works well for online retail, and that most bloggers and journalists hope to find on a company's website. (Just a gentle hint ;-) Flaschenfotos operates a simple pricing scheme, with an automatic 10% discount for organic and fair trade products. The venture was created by Moritz Wurfbaum and Catharina van Delden of open innovation consultancy innosabi and photographer Veronika Wurfbaum.

While We Shoot Bottles—which is based in the UK—works for international clients, it makes sense to set up services like this locally. It reduces shipping costs, and communication is easier if all parties are in the same time zone and speak the same language. So, keep spreading those good ideas! Just be sure to respect patents and other types of intellectual property.

Website: www.flaschenfotos.de
Contact: info@flaschenfotos.de

“Sorry to pull you away from checking out your ex’s photo gallery, but Vitaminwater needs your help.” Offering an alternative use for Facebook, the beverage company is inviting users to create new flavours and vitamin content.

After adding the FlavorCreator app from Vitaminwater’s Facebook page, users can help influence the flavour, functional benefits and design of the new water. First, they are invited to choose their favourite of ten flavours, picked from the ten most mentioned flavours elsewhere on the web according to the app’s ‘buzz meter’. (Which means the crowds are indirectly and unwittingly contributing, too.) The second step lets users play games and answer quiz questions, helping Vitaminwater understand the most desired nutritional benefits, and which functional ingredients to add to the drinks. The last step lets users name the flavour, and decide the aesthetic and copy to be used on the bottle. Rapper 50 Cent and American Idol winner Carrie Underwood will help decide the winning submission, which comes complete with a USD 5,000 prize. The winner will be announced in December, with the flavour available from March 2010.

Product development contests aren't new, of course. But Vitaminwater stresses that this isn't just another marketing program: like Coca-Cola’s new Freestyle machine, the app enables the company to get feedback on the tastes du jour, producing products that are more likely to become best-sellers. R&D, product promotion and branding building: not a bad result from customers frittering away time on their lunch breaks ;-)

Website: www.vitaminwater.com — www.facebook.com/vitaminwater

Spotted by: Judy McRae

It's no secret that record labels are searching for new ways of doing business. Earlier this year we spotted Groove Armada's distribution partnership with Bacardi. Now Mariah Carey is joining the fun, orchestrating several sponsorships for her latest album, 'Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel'.

Carey recorded the album in the Bahamas, so sponsorship by the Bahamas Board of Tourism was a natural fit. As was Elizabeth Arden, which sells Carey's Forever perfume. Other sponsors include Métier De Beauté beauty cosmetics and Angel champagne. Sponsorship comes in the form of a small booklet that accompanies the album, filled with glossy advertisements that promote a Mariah Carey-esque lifestyle. The content of the 'mini-magazine' will be written by Elle's editorial staff, and the magazine will be distributed to the first 1.5 million buyers of the CD, which comes out later this month. According to an article in The Sunday Times, the sponsorship reportedly covered the cost of making the album (GBP 4 million) album.

The initiative has great potential for sponsors. “We sell records to people who buy lots of other stuff,” says Antonio Reid, chairman of Mariah's label—Island Def Jam Records—in The Sunday Times. “My artists sell two, five, eight million records, and people hold on to them for years. Most magazines are not that successful.” The label says it’s now ready to try out sponsorship with a few other 'commercially-minded' artists like Kanye West and Bon Jovi.

While this level of commmercialism will no doubt be viewed as selling out by many artists and fans, a considered and appropriate approach makes it a model that could work for other performing artists.

Website: www.islanddefjam.com

Spotted by: Bjorn Verbrugghe

The U.S. government's Cash for Clunkers program may have come to an end, but for bicyclists in Portland, Ore., the opportunities have just begun. Local bike vendor Joe Bike has launched its own Cash for Clunkers program whereby consumers can donate an old car or bike in exchange for discounts on a new utility bike and a Zipcar membership, among other benefits.

To unload an old car, consumers begin by donating their vehicle to the American Lung Association, which will tow it away for free. They then bring their receipt to Joe Bike, which gives them a 10 percent discount on any bike in stock or any bike that it can order or build. Then, with their purchase, Joe Bike will also provide a unique code that's good for a USD 50 reduction in the cost of a new Zipcar membership along with half-priced annual renewals indefinitely and USD 150 in driving credit. For bike donations, meanwhile, consumers can bring in any repairable clunker and get discounts starting at USD 50 off any new bike priced under USD 1,000. The clunker is donated to the nonprofit Community Cycling Center, which will repair and find it a new home.

Though he originally intended the Cash for Clunkers program to end Sept. 1, store owner Joe Doebele has now extended it at least through year's end, he says. He's also working with Zipcar to expand the program, including signing on more nonprofit partners, and hopes eventually to turn the result into a nonprofit organization that can spread to other cities as well. Time to sign on and help make that happen...?

Website: www.joe-bike.com/cash-for-clunkers
Contact: info@joe-bike.com

Spotted by: Judy McRae

Most people order pizzas when they're at home or at work. Aiming to broaden those delivery horizons, Domino's Pizza in the Netherlands recently placed white doors in the park and on the beach.

Dubbed Domino's Delivery Points, the doors prominently featured the company's phone number, as well as doorbells for delivery people to ring. Dutch director of marketing André ten Wolde explained that as long as they're within delivery range of a local Domino's, customers can have a pizza delivered pretty much anywhere: at the beach, on a boat, in the park, etc.

Targetting summer beach crowds and an influx of students in Amsterdam, the campaign—developed by creative agency Indie Amsterdam—draws on the power of showing instead of telling. Does your product or service have hidden benefits that you could demonstrate in an equally effective (and cost-effective) manner? (Related: Beach barbecue on call in Copenhagen — Balloon-enabled pizza delivery in Paris.)

Website: www.dominos.nl
Contact: www.dominos.nl/Corporate/contact

Spotted by: Judy McRae