I’ve been thinking about the purchasing journey and in
particular, the role that brands play in user experiences.
Becoming ‘experiences’ aware is the first step. Big business
gets it. It not a case of ‘user experience’ but a case of ‘user experiences’.
The plural is key.
If you consider where and how often we potentially interact with
brands it starts to make sense: in the high street, in print, in the supermarket,
online with e-commerce, social media, then environments that support social
events and so one. Brands are practically everywhere.
Added to this, every brand is vying for our attention from
all these different platforms, using a mixture of sophistication data driven algorithms
to find us, and emotive advertising to capture and hold our attention.
It’s crazy.
The sheer volume of information and choices we are facing
can be fantastic but also confusing. As consumers, it’s not surprising that
sometimes we’re a bit bamboozled by it all, at times splitting hairs as we make
up our minds over a purchase.
Given the vast range of products and services available to us,
often available in just a few clicks via e-commerce, it’s also not surprising
that brand loyalty is increasingly hard to maintain. And yet, even in these ultra-competitive
times, the opportunity is always there for brands to win. And they do, some very
well too.
You don’t have to be a huge multi-national to win. Okay,
sure it helps but the playing field is more level than ever; anyone can create
a logo and a website – for free, and millions of people have done just that, it’s
practically become a right.
However, it doesn’t mean that it’s all good. Not by a long
way, everything has become a commodity: A logo – so what. A brand - who cares.
A website – you mean another one. No one cares. This is why user experiences
are so important now.
Largely due to this, ‘ideas’ have become the key currency in
helping drive business and brands. Good ideas are okay. Great ideas fuel passion, attraction,
keep us engaged, create movements and get us to participate. All vital for
branded user experiences - especially where purchase is the goal.
Here are a few of my basic thoughts and advice on branding that
helps to create good user experiences.
Start with the basics. Your logo and brand name encapsulate
all your brand stands for. Consider the brand name, how it’s pronounced, and
with global reach, consider the impact different languages could have on this.
Consider different operating environments for the logo: from
old school business cards and stationery, to printed media, up to large format
print, and then right back down to a profile image on social media. Make your
brand identity scalable; the first rule is that people can read it, if not you’ve
already failed because that’s a bad experience so fix it – fast.
Create consistency in your marketing and advertising adds to
great consumer experiences because it helps to make sense and maintain clarity
in the long run.
My feeling is that generally, after seeing one advert, it’s perfectly
possible, but fairly unlikely that a consumer will make a spontaneous purchase right
there in that moment. Even in the supermarket where this type of action is more
common, a better educated view points to purchase decisions being more likely
to be based on previous interaction, research and word of mouth recommendations.
This type of pre-purchase consideration may well happen quite a lot prior to
purchase as we seek to clarify our choice with reassurance of its suitability.
The suitability scenario takes into account that many of us
consumers are creating our own sense of brand using a combination of reality
and social media which is especially important to consider.
People want to be
associated with stuff that is good. In terms of product or service this could
mean that we have special preferences for social responsibility, ethical values,
products that are non-damaging to the environment, and that are drenched in authenticity
and provenance.
Of course this is in addition to the product or service making
them feel better about themselves, quite possibly in a multitude of situations
and doing the job it’s supposed to do in the first place. This all adds to brand
experiences and brand value so bring it into the equation.
Advice: Consider how you would shop for a product or service
and what turns you on or off in that decision making process.
Brands that lack in consistency and authenticity can cast
doubt in the mind of the consumer and can be off putting. Brand consistency, consistent
advertising or story telling across all platforms and environments will help to
eradicate any doubts that the consumer may have when interacting
with a brand leading up to purchase.
Take care with elements such as typeface colour palettes,
images and your message. As humans we experience the world by quantifying our
emotional reactions to different stimuli. We base our choices on this. Think
about how that alone effects brand communication and user experiences.
The best brands take what can often be complex
communication of products or services, and make it simple. Aim to do this.
Remember, we’re all over loaded with information and we don’t like adverts, so
if something resonates and makes sense, you’ve created an emotional connection
with that person. Hopefully a positive one. To do this, it must happen quickly or
you’ll end up missing out and starting over.
I subscribe to Dr Barbara Frederickson’s evaluation of
love; that it is created from ‘micro moments of positivity resonance’ and this
is how it grows. Think of each moment of consumer interaction as an opportunity
to build on positivity resonance for you brand.
Leave room for the addition of social responsibility, environmentally
friendly points, authenticity and provenance in your equation – this will help
to build trust and so adds value.
More than ever, we want instant gratification, especially in
the fast consumer goods market. When people do get to the point of purchase, make
sure it’s equally as considered as the journey by creating a simple, intuitive
process with potential questions available to be answered instantly. This will
help relieve any last minute doubts that may arise.
Think about all the platforms and environments that
your brand could appear; in print, business stationery, printed adverts for
magazines, leaflets and company literature. On the high street; billboards,
shops. In social environments; events such as exhibitions, live music or
sporting occasions with sponsorship or adverts. This list continues digitally,
with websites, apps and social media and so on.
Link all these together and it adds up to how the consumer experiences
your brand at each touch point.
To summarise: Good brand ‘user experiences’ are led by
considering how we engage with brands today across all the various platforms
and operating environments. They seek to create a consumer centric, holistic almost
merry-go-around scenario, where we consumers can jump on or off at any point, whilst
ensuring that the brand journey doesn’t break apart at any time and continues
to make sense - no matter which part of that journey you’re at.
Simon Bell,
Director, Sensation Creative.
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