Emotional Design: Why We Love (or Hate) Everyday Things by Donald A Norman.
In Norman book Why We Love (or Hate) Everyday Things, he represent that the emotional side of design may be more
critical to a product success that its practical elements. His fundamental
thesis is that attractive products work better. He contends that beautifully
designed products make people feel good,
which in turn makes people open up and be more creative and mature enough to
find solution to their problems. Things
to include the role emotion play in consumer purchases. According to Norman
people making decision is dependent on two emotions or the mind of
the conscious and subconscious.
Norman suggest that there are have three level of design, the first is “visceral”
appearance well designed products tend to evoke positive emotion in consumer.
Visceral design is design that appeals to our most basic instincts, instincts that prefer things
like primary colors sweet tastes, round smooth objects and smiling faces. Visceral
level which embodies the sensory aspect about how things look, feel, smell, and
sound. Visceral design elicits immediate and powerful responses that are
involuntary and subconscious. Viscerally well designed product tend to evoke
positive emotions in the consumers. In visceral design for the product,
manufacturing output is must good and the good management design will get
response from the user. This is because the people always want something better
and more beautiful. Not only physical appearance but also is something that is important
for a designer. In this case, the designer must perform a survey to make
improvements or new innovation to an addition product price also affect
consumer’s mind. If a product is expensive, consumer are become difficult to
buy, but if the product is cheap does not become obstacles to the buyer. So at this
stage, product designers must be concerned with the environment and marketing
background. Designer also need to design and attractive product that can attach
to please users
The second level is “behavioral” in which users from their perceptions through
the use of certain products. Behavioral is the relationship base on fun or
effectiveness or repeated interaction . Products performance is paramount, and so
designer must ensure that the products is easy to use and that the
functionality of the product is easily decipherable. Norman suggests that good
behavior design must be an integral part
of the design process from the beginning.
Third is the “reflective” is
the extent to which the product has
meaning for the consumer, it contributes to how the user maintain a sense of identity through the use
of nature product from time to time. Marketing plays a big role in combining
the element of design in reflected in the product. The reflective dimensions
describe what is reflected in consumer products in term of self image or
individual satisfaction.Level three is used in product design. So, to the
extent that such products will attract users.
However the human response to the matter of complex everyday world which is determined by
various factors. Every level is as important as the other , but each requires a
different approach by the designers.
Although Norman doing a good job for providing unified theory
to include product design all three levels, the appeal to meet the emotional
needs of the user is not really new to marketers. Similarly, the design concept
reflects, starting that the object of human life is more of material possession
alone, is not new to the marketing literature. The idea that “we what we have”
been very well articulated by several scholars of consumer behavior. Dimensions
to describe what the product evokes in the consumer interm of
self-image or individual satisfaction. Norman’s analysis of design element in
product such as computers and watches will pique interest many reader, not only
in design and technology. He also explores how music and sound both contribute
negatively or positively to the design of electronic equipment, such as mobile
phone rings or beeps “ Engineers wanted to signal that some operation have been
done….The result is that all of us equipment beeps at us”. Theory Norman about
how robots will interact with human and important job they will do attract, but
weight down the already complex text. Even though the designers can design a
good product for technology useful, but there still unable to satisfy everyone.
This is because each person has different needs and want. We really do not know
what is absolutely necessary, for the activities of a person and what people
want and needs.
In conclusion, people
and product are interdependent. If a product is useful and of interest. People will
always try to get and have it. For example, the mobile phone is more and more
sophisticated and is in touch with the times. All actions are controlled by
three aspects: the visceral, behavioral and reflective. Three of this level is
the cause of why people will love and hate the product and related matters in
human life.