Designing for Emotion

Design 101
Jason Putorti
Lead Designer, mint.com
Follow me @novaurora
Monday, November 2, 2009

What is design?

Design isn’t
decoration

“What is design? It begins with ideas--ideas based
in purpose. It requires a plan or a process. It yields
innovation, invention or creation. It is successful if it
elicits response--attention, desire, interaction or
purchase.”
Joe Duffy

Design is
communication

Design is a process

Why Design Matters

Understanding what the consumers want and
bringing solutions that will inspire them is the most
powerful way to support any business strategy.

Understanding what the consumers want and
bringing solutions that will inspire them is the most
powerful way to support any business strategy.
Putting consumers and the product at the center of
the equation is fundamental to a brand's success.

“[Design is] proof of a company's commitment to
people and to innovation.”
Marc Gobé

Early adopter love

"Design is the message. It helps us
communicate our strong point of
difference. What you say is not as
believable as what you show."
Stig Gustavson

We’re in an
emotional economy

People act on
emotion

Then back it up with
reasoning (maybe)

Design is a tool to
affect emotion

“A relevant and well-designed product will make its
way into the world, will be spun across the
blogosphere, will be sought after and endorsed in
the most emotional fashion as a reward.

“A relevant and well-designed product will make its
way into the world, will be spun across the
blogosphere, will be sought after and endorsed in
the most emotional fashion as a reward.
In an emotional economy, success is judged by a
profound and indelible connection with people
through sensory experiences.

By forgetting to focus on the way your product will be
experienced, and failing to respond to people's
need to be stimulated, you #fail their expectations.

No amount of money can buy the media to fix a
boring product, no PR message will work once you
lose that trust.

The best brands of all jam with their consumers to
invent and imagine ideas designed for the future.”
Marc Gobé
Author of Emotional Branding
No amount of money can buy the media to fix a
boring product, no PR message will work once you
lose that trust.

Emotion brand

A brand is not your
name

A brand is
not your logo

A brand is a
personality

Brand is how you feel

P O W E R E D b y S E R V I C E™

How can I apply all
this to my startup?

Trust is an emotion,
affected with design

Create a relationship
through interactions

Evoke emotion by
being unforgettable

Every interaction is
+ or – to brand

Shipping upgrade
from Zappos +1

“Tell your friends”
email –5

US Airways lost my
bags –50

First Mover Advantage

Design wins

Match the
aspirations of your
users

How mint.com did it

Engineering-first

Design-first

A designer shouldn’t
‘skin’ the interface

A designer shouldn’t
‘skin’ the interface
A designer should
solve the problem

Be the opposite of
the competition

Them Us
Colors Red Green
Imagery
Stock art of
people
It’s the product,
stupid
Features
Lots,
complex UX
Simple,
automatic
Setup
Lots of steps,
friction
< 5 minutes
Products 11 1

Design for tasks

Is it good for the
user?

Make experience
delightful

Show important info
hide the rest

Get away from the
computer

Our Big Problem

I need your bank passwords.
Trust me.

Solution:
Be beautiful

Don’t apologize for it

Don’t think of an
elephant

Make it a benefit

Be approachable

Overwhelming return

Delight the user
when they’ve done
what you want

We focused on
experience start to
finish

Designing for Emotion

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