Let's talk about emotions. Everyone has them. Everyone responds to them. Emotions are one of the strongest influences we have. Think of what compels you to buy something. Some overpowering inner voice tells you, I want that and I'm going to have it. This is the most common emotional response in a capitalistic sense. However, the roots to this phenomena go deeper, and are much more profound than simple materialism.
Let's look at marketing from an emotional perspective. Every detail that is put into a campaign is designed to create a response. This response is often triggered by an emotional reaction where the consumer evaluates how and why this product will benefit or affect their life. Basically, there is no choice not to respond. The innately human process of reacting is unquestionably affected by well-planned marketing and marginalized design.
An example of building a brand and a business through interplay on emotional perspective is the Starbucks trend. A trip to Starbucks forces you to respond to the product through the experience you have while experiencing the actual product. If you've been to Starbucks you are familiar with the bold aroma of brewing Sumatra, students typing away at their final dissertation, the crinkling sound of the New York Times being flipped through, and those soothing call and response beats of Thelonius Monk. And then there's the coffee. Being in an atmosphere like this causes you to respond: Either you decide to stay, which means you must buy coffee, or you can leave and abort the experience all together.
Starbucks is not just about the coffee, its about the experience, therefore, you are no longer buying just coffee, you're buying the experience. The buying cycle has taken on a new echelon. Environmental stimuli, like that of which Starbucks uses, creates an emotional response and triggers the desire to make a purchase.
In his new book, "The Assault On Reason," Al Gore analyzes ways in which the American public responds to advertising media and how the emotional side of cognition overpowers the rational side.
Design from an emotional perspective is quite different. Using images, color, objects, and figures to stimulate a response can send a blurred message if the means to an end are not well established. Emotional stimulation is 3,000 times more powerful than rational cognition, which means it is important to send the right message- and that's precisely what we focus on at Cuker Design.
We take emotional response into consideration when we do our work. In combination with creative design, emotions create an effect where the sum of all the small details add up to a unique theory of perception. In the 1920's the Gestalt school of thought emerged, which outlined a unique theory of perceptional organization; when individual parts with different characteristics are organized, they become the whole. For example, when you look at a house you don't see the nails and drywall that make the house, you see the whole object- the house. The same theory applies to design. The end result is a combi-nation of elements that deliver the message as a whole and create a response.
Delivering a successful message depends on perception as well as a variety of elements. Both cognitive and emotional responses form the way in which the message is perceived; in other words, one cannot exist without the other. Creating a selling process through an artistic medium such as a website, brand logos, or package design are all tangible elements that bring the consumer's emotions to the surface. Playing off the emotional response of customers through an artistic medium is the most effective way to get the consumer involved- thus creating a response.
One of the world's leading neuroscientists, Dr. Vilayanur S. Ramachandran rationalizes the stronghold emotions have on us:
The primary goal of Cuker Design is to help companies achieve their potential. For example, our new client, Gearbox, has recently become a leader in the racquetball industry after brand imaging on our behalf. We surpassed our goals and theirs with an innovative website to help build the brand and we added an e-commerce store to generate sales. Their main homepage remains the branding effort that gives Gearbox its unique image and provides an appealing aesthetic perspective. Using art in this way to create a response alongside good design helped increase Gearbox's revenue. Their bottom line has increased exponentially in the first week alone through our creative efforts. The website evokes an eloquent brand experience while the e-commerce store brings these larger than life visions to a concrete reality. Using evocative imagery to create an emotional response in the consumer strengthens and supports their decision to purchase, thus further solidifying the selling process.
Creating company growth through an increase in revenue and generate brand awareness is the intended goal of a commercial company. At Cuker Design, our goal is to create an innovative and aesthetically appealing way to help companies achieve this.