Attractive design makes you buy things…faster!

I suppose anyone with a good taste would agree with me if I say a good design can influence people’s first impression of a product.  To illustrate my point, let’s take Sony VAIO as an example.  I don’t know about you, but to me Sony VAIO laptops are superior in their design to other laptops.  The only laptops that would come close to it is those MacBooks.  But let’s face it, MacBooks are in a different class on its own, which I intent to leave out for another discussion in my future posts.

Let’s forget the fact that Sony’s brand is known for their quality.  Let’s forget that I was a proud owner of one, and that it never failed me from time to time (I speak for my self).  I was so happy with VAIO that after all these years, I still would like to get me another one.  VAIO simply had me at “Hello” (referring to Tom Cruise’s famous line in Jerry McGuire).
Back then, I didn’t even know much about battery power or “blue screen of death” that was all too popular among Windows users.  I just loved VAIO’s curvy look and how it felt less bulky in my hand.  Though sold at a premium price, the protruding metallic “VAIO” logo on the casing immediately placed me one class above the rest (again, I speak for my self, but please keep up as I’m trying to prove a point).  Sony VAIO design was so revolutionary to me that no other laptops could come close (Apple was not yet mainstream back then).

10 years have passed, and here I am thinking that I have gained more insights in the world of tech-gadgetry, and that I would value a gadget based on its capability more than its look so I know a product inside and out before I buy it.  Boy  I was wrong!

A few months ago, I contemplated whether I should get my self an iPhone or Google Nexus One (Android-based smart phone made by Google).  I really did do some research on the two products, one reason because there’s just a geek in me that tells me to do it for fun, two because Nexus One just had more to offer in terms of flexibility (Android is an open source platform, as iPhone is proprietary), and three because they both ain’t cheap!  A power user that I am, that would’ve come naturally as I interact with Google applications on Internet for most of my Internet life time.  I even did some research on blackberry, just to be sure that I wouldn’t miss anything (and I didn’t) as my wife happens to have one (and an avid fan of “BB Messenger” as well).

But in all fairness, I wasn’t thinking about that when I looked down at an actual iPhone in my hand!  This device had my name written all over it! It looked way more “cool” than Nexus One (though I only saw a picture of Nexus One on the Internet).  I know about all the benefits of both phones, and that they are not priced too far apart either.  But I just couldn’t picture my self having another brand but iPhone…period! (really, this was my attitude).

After about 10 minutes getting a feel of it, observing it like it was mine already, I was eventually sold…I finally got my self an iPhone!

Enough about me, but I’m very certain there are others who have had a similar experience.  Most early adopters of smart phones would have less of a clue about an open source platform like Google Android having much to offer in terms of interactions with Google Internet applications (i.e. Gmail, Gmaps, Gdocs, and all other “G’s”), or whether there are thousands of these so called “apps” available for iPhones.  One thing there for sure, the sleek design and smooth curvy look of an iPhone makes the owner proud!  The interface is clean, with only one master button to bring you back to home screen…look, I won’t bore you with the facts that there are too many articles out there on the specs.  You can argue all you want, but to me nothing has come close to iPhones in terms of look and feel.  Blackberry? Not a chance! (Sorry blackberry fans).

By the way, did you notice I mentioned “early adopters”, or what we normally consider average hand phone users?  These are the people who have less expectations of the inner workings of a product. Many of us are early adopters who may not know the difference between a smart phone and a regular hand phone.  Many of us may not have browsed the Internet on a hand phone, and never will.  Their first “experience” with a smart phone is just that, an iPhone looks very different from the rest.  It is unique in its look.  Like the old saying, first impression always counts…what catches your sensory organs at the first time drives your impulse to buy.

I may be stating the obvious, but you’ll be surprised to find how design can be easily overlooked.  This rule of thumb, if you will, seems to apply to any products out there.

Let’s try something else which is intangible, say, service.  You really can’t say a service is “attractive”, can you?  But if you’ve been following, I’m sure you would’ve caught on by now.  A bank, for example, offers a myriad of financial services.  You can’t touch a service, but you can definitely “experience” it.  So the design of a financial service product would have to include the “first hand experiences” that customer goes through when he or she encounters a product.  These experiences can take many different forms:  the look of a branch, the gracious smile on the face of a staff opening the door for you, the clarity of information a bank teller tells you, right to the very design of the pamphlet in your hand when you’re in a queue.

Of course, most companies get it, that an overall experience that counts, especially in this day and age. If you fail to deliver your promise, you are immediately out of the game. Disappointed customers would start spreading the word like it’s a bad disease. Internet provides a good platform to do that.   What I think many companies have yet figured out  is how design of a product has a significant effect on product experience.  A product with a distinctive design, something which stands out from all others, is able to draw the most crowd.  The more people talk about the product, the better exposure a product gets, and the more demands it creates.  As demands escalate, influx would put strains on supplies which would drive price to go up.   As product becomes more pricey, its perceived value get elevated to the point where it becomes aspirational.  At this point, a product would have strengthened the product brand, which is ultimately more valuable than the product itself, hence creating barriers for competitors to enter.

DELL notebooks have an excellent reputation in quality of the product and customer service.   But DELL is not alone.  There are many others which have rivaled DELL’s quality products and services (i.e. Acer, Toshiba, Asus).  However, many people have told me, high price aside, they would love to own a VAIO, or MacBooks.  And after all these years, they have yet reduced their pricing and still remain as aspirational brands.  This is why I’m not so surprised why DELL’s latest product, Adamo, has finally succumbed to this very idea.

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