ARTICLE SUMMARY: Design is tough. It does not matter what you are looking at, Facebook, ‘X’ or instagram, you are bombarded with non stop ads. Competition is fierce, the question is how do you stand out?
The old saying goes “you attract more flys with honey than vinegar”. In this case honey equals emotion. You want that visitor to your site to develop a delightful and meaningful relationship with you and your product. You want to create something that will evoke positive emotions and connections with your users.
“Emotional design: why it matters in UX” by Andrew Tipp looks at the benefits of emotional design and why it is the key for creating products and experiences that people truly love. This article centers around creating a product that incorporates design on
- The visceral level
- The behavioural level
- The reflective level
People form emotional attachments to objects for a variety of reasons rooted in psychology, culture, and personal experience. We can appeal to their identity or self expression with items like clothing, accessories, and personal collections can reflect our tastes, values, and personality, making them emotionally significant.
Think of the objects that can evoke nostalgia, a sentimental longing for the past. Items that remind us of our childhood, family, or a specific period in our lives can bring back fond memories and a sense of comfort. There is a lot that pulls on the heart strings that designers should explore.
Andrew Tipp reminds us that “people don’t just use products, they form emotional relationships with them and the brand behind them. We own products because we have immediate positive responses to them, they behave intuitively and they say something meaningful about us. As long as humans are recognisably human, designing for emotion will always make sense.”
In this age of AI this article is well worth reading.
Let us know what you think in the comments.
