A case against Humaaans: Why illustration libraries are hurting your products brand voice.

If you’re a designer in tech you’ve likely come across them. Any search for UI or product design on Dribbble will yield at least a few. Amid the sea of pastel blues and pinks, accented neon purples and gamboge yellows, these faceless, nebulous bodies have become the lorem ipsum of graphic embellishment in todays product landscape.

Humaaans is a library of vector based, free-to-use illustrations launched in late 2018 by Pablo Stanley, Design Lead at InVision. Upon its arrival, this mix-and-match collection exploded in popularity, inspiring waves of similarly floaty, ambiguous humanoids that remain on-trend to this day.

Humaaans and its influence can be found across the digital design community.

For many upstart product designers, illustration libraries are a practical resource to easily extend the communication around a product. As with all free asset collections, they can expedite the design process while elevating the status of the original creator.

However, for companies trying to establish a brand, these libraries can act as pitfalls against finding a unique voice within the market.

Even big players have used Humaaans. Hinge used the library as a base for their illustrations.

The Purpose of Illustrations

Their role in product.

Illustrations used in product need to live within the context of a brand. This means that effective graphics are supplemental to the overall messaging, serving only to elevate what is already being communicated through an established design system. If a team finds benefit in curating illustrations, time, attention, and budget is needed in order to make sure the deliverables add value to the product experience.

Several digital product companies already utilize custom illustrations to elevate their brand experience. Examples include:

Duolingo uses its famous owl and school-like graphics to communicate their friendly, game-based approach to language learning. Most graphics in the app serve as visual aids within lessons.

CoStar incorporates abstract symbols and objects to add a little mysticism to an otherwise pulled-back, monochromatic astrology brand.

Byte uses colourful 3D renderings to communicate the diversity of content found within the app, suggesting an energetic and ever-changing experience.

From left to right: Duolingo, CoStar, and Byte.

Despite their differences, the common thread between these apps is how they use graphics as a tool to push communication. Everything is presented with a purpose in mind, elevating the brands overall messaging.

All too often, designers plonk in graphics because someone decided “we need something here”. This is when libraries like Humaaans come into play. Without consideration into the communication intent behind their illustrations, designers reach for the most immediate aesthetic option on hand. This graphics-for-the-sake-of-it approach dilutes the core messaging of a product through visual ambiguity.

To avoid this, designers looking to add a little art should ask themselves:

• What would graphics serve to effectively communicate within the product?
• How would their presentation elevate the voice of our brand?

Hiring an Illustrator

Bring in the pros.

While some teams may identify a need for graphics, they might not have the internal ability to execute ideas effectively. If this happens, teams should hire a professional as the first step in what will be a new design process. Dribbble and Behance are already host to hundreds of unique illustrators able to guide clients towards desired outcomes. Finding someone whose graphic style aligns with a products messaging is worth the upfront cost in order to elevate its communication.

There’s a rich diversity found in custom illustrations.

If Cost is an Issue

Dealing with budgetary restraints.

Not every design team has the resources or flexibility to hire an illustrator. Thankfully, there are still a number of ways to incorporate graphics meaningfully when tight on budget:

Use lesser-known libraries — With illustration libraries becoming more common, there’s growing opportunity to find and utilize graphics that play better with your product. With an uncommon library, there’s a smaller chance seeing it used in other designs.

• Open Peeps — Also created by Pablo Stanley, this library isn't used as heavily as Humaaans, and is more sketch-like in quality.
• craftwork.design — While this company embraces the floaty-boy aesthetic with open arms, they still offer a few unique libraries including Afterclap, 3DDD, and Thursday.

Customize — Pictured earlier, Hinge is actually a good example of how libraries like Humaaans can be used as a base for custom illustrations. This is especially true for apps focused on connecting people.

Go without —Fonts and colours alone can go a long way in establishing an apps central theme or idea. Companies like Nowness, Medium, and Soundcloud all have a unique look and feel that lets uploaded content shine within their frameworks.

From left to right: Nowness, Medium, and SoundCloud.

Final Thoughts

A drawn out process.

Everyone wants their product to stand out in what is an ever growing, already crowded market. In order to be noticed, design teams need to look to their core communication as direction when building out unique experiences.

As illustration libraries are available to everyone, they are inherently not unique, serving only to water down a products brand voice. A cut-corners approach to graphic development is a short term solution with diminishing returns.

So if your budget allows, hire an illustrator. Your product deserves a chance to find its voice.

Notes
I’m a Vancouver based digital designer and creative director. For 6 years I’ve helped companies establish themselves online through design informed by strategy. I’m currently looking for opportunities on product teams. If you’re looking to grow your team, connect with me on LinkedIn.