Designing for Emotion Chapter 2

This week in PR Pubs we were asked to read chapter 2 of Designing for Emotion, Designing for Humans. This chapter talks about the universal psychological principles we all share as humans and how understanding those principles will help us with our design. We were asked to write about one thing we agree with and disagree with from the chapter.

I agree with:

The author talks about how as humans we are programmed to think babies are cute. It’s called the baby face bias. We look past shortcomings to look at how cute and adorable they are. Design also uses this the author says, to create connection to ones brand. I agree with this. I have grown a connection to brands that use this design principle, like Twitter. I agree that this principle helps humans connect with a brand on an emotional basis. It’s about putting emotion into your design.

I disagree with:

Again, this isn’t something I necessarily disagree with but just some thoughts I had while reading this chapter. In a section titled Brand Contrast. The author talks about how contrast design sets apart your brand from others and that’s the whole goal o0f branding: to set apart yours from the competitors. I think brand design makes up like 10% of this “competitive advantage”. I think a brand stands out more in people’s minds for what it offers its customers or for what it stands for rather than for its design elements. While I do think design is definitely an important factor, there are strong factors that effect people’s view of the brand more.