Design for emotions, not just functionality
“It’s not enough that we build products that function, that are understandable and usable, we also need to build products that bring joy and excitement, pleasure and fun, and yes, beauty to people’s lives.” — Don Norman
We humans, are rational beings. But we are mainly driven by our emotions. How many times have you picked up a chocolate bar or a pack of gum at the till of a convenience store when waiting in line because they look appealing? It’s not just physical products that can make us feel a certain way. It can happen in the digital world too.
Emotions are how we ‘humans’ make sense of the reality around us. Impulsively, we tend to repeat positive experiences as they make us feel good. Whereas negative experiences help us prevent repeated mistakes.
As designers, we focus on users’ needs in their interactions with our products or services. It’s logical that the functionality of our designs must help them achieve their goals as efficiently and effectively as possible. But we would need to focus on their responses too, which are naturally emotional. Although as rational as we may like to think we are, emotions are at the core of how we interpret reality.
What is Emotional Design?
It is the concept on how we can evoke emotions through our designs, which results in positive user experiences. Don Norman breaks down peoples emotional responses in three stages: Visceral, Behavioral and Reflective.
- Visceral: Our first impressions are the most basic level of emotional response. The visceral level of design is all about appearances. For eg: having a CTA that has a copy of ‘continue’ doesn’t give much information to your users, but changing that copy to ‘continue to create event’ better informs your users on the steps ahead, therefore creating a better user experience.
- Behavioral: This level of design is all about users evaluating the functionality of your product. They subconsciously estimate how easy it is to find solutions they are looking for in your visual design. Products that help you achieve your goals easily without encountering any errors or pain points tend to create positive emotions.
- Reflective: Once we interact with the product, we consciously weigh the pros and cons of the experience we felt. The reflective stage is where we form the overall impression of a design.
Would we want to use this product again? Would we recommend it to a friend? Or would we want to use another product instead?
All 3 stages are equally important. As a UX designer, you need to be able to satisfy all 3 cognitive levels in order to form that emotional, long-lasting bond with your users.
Things to implement before introducing Emotional Design to your product
Before adding the delight factor to the overall experience for your users, basic user needs should be met. In his book Designing for Emotion, Aron Walter argues that user expectations from a product can be seen through a four-tiered pyramid, somewhat similar to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Emotional design can only be effective if the following criteria are fulfilled:
- Functionality
- Reliability
- Usability
Functionality: Your product is functional if it solves a problem for your users, satisfies a need, or creates an experience with ease of use. Basically how well does your product work?
Reliability: creating a common pattern throughout your designs or having consistency should be the main focus to create a sense of reliability in your product. Stick to common design conventions and refrain from making drastic changes to your UI because it looks “good”.
Usability: an interface that requires low cognitive effort from your users is a well-thought-out user interface. Being able to get your users to their end goals intuitively without frustration/barriers is what gives your product better usability.
If these three criteria are weak, even the best emotional design implemented will not create a long-lasting connection with your users :/
More on Emotional Design:
This page is loaded with information on emotional design :
https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2012/07/the-personality-layer/
For an insightful view of Emotional Design from Don Norman:
https://blog.teamtreehouse.com/emotional-interface-design-the-gateway-to-passionate-users
