Week 4A: Aesthetics, Design, and Branding
Aesthetics, Design, and Branding are key parts to impacting a consumer's buying decisions. They tell us who they are appealing to, builds recognition, and creates a level of credibility with consumers. Banding, Design, and Aesthetic makes us want to buy and keep coming back for more.
When observing another business's branding, design, and aesthetic we can learn what impacts consumers in a good way and what impacts them negatively. "Headhunter Hairstyling" is a good example of what not to do. It is not that Headhunter Hairstyling's branding, design, and aesthetic is horrible it just needs work. The biggest problem with their website is many of the pictures are not high quality. There are many photographs on the Home page, Gallery page, and About section. Some of them are blurry, lack the proper lighting, and are low-quality. I think this influences a consumer's feelings of trust in the business because there is not a cohesive design. The other problem "Headhunter Hairstyling" has with there design is with the wording. The orientation of the words makes the user have to scroll to one side in order to read everything. This is a problem because your website should be user-friendly and easy to read. I also tried "Headhunter Hairstyling's" website on my Smartphone and it was not very mobile-friendly. Businesses need to consider that more than half of internet users are not using a desktop to visit your website but usually a tablet, iPhone, or smartphone. This means you have to appeal to that market by making your website mobile-friendly as well.
The Riverside Art Center's website was a huge contrast in comparison to "Headhunter Hairstyling". The pictures are high quality, they have an interactive slideshow, and the user is able to navigate the pages easily. The one and only thing that I would change about this website is switch two sections of wording. There is a small amount of wording in the beginning of the Home page and a small amount of text on the bottom of the Home page. I think that the bottom text explains the Art Center more and provides reasons why someone would want to participate. I think that to appeal to consumers and get more donations, the Riverside Art Center should put the "Reasons the RAC Rocks" on the top of the page instead of the bottom. Orientation of text is a huge part of design and alignment doesn't make the website look tacky and is easier for the reader.
The National Park Service's website is very easy to navigate and is aesthetically pleasing. When you stop on their Home page, you automatically know what target market the National Park Service is trying to appeal. The first picture on their webpage is of a classroom so obviously they are attempting to appeal to schools. The webpage is easy to navigate and each section grabs the user's attention to go from page to page. The branding tells the user about the service and it is unique enough to stand out and remember. The photos are high quality and make the user want to venture to the National Parks. They did a great job! Toyota's website was well planned too. They are using the color Red for their design and aesthetic. I think this is clever because Red is a memorable color and it says speed, danger, adventure to the consumer. All the vehicles shown are in the color red on the Home page of their website, which goes along with the branding. The website is easy to navigate and gets right to the point, which is buying cars. They are a good example of how branding and design is supposed to make the consumer feel. The design, branding, and aesthetic of both of these websites made me want the services and goods being offered.
Branding, design, and aesthetic are very important. It lets the consumer know what the product or service is, makes it memorable, and makes the consumer feel that they can trust the company. I learned that even the little things like how your text is oriented or the colors of your website can make a huge impression and impact on whether the consumer buys or continues on their search.
When observing another business's branding, design, and aesthetic we can learn what impacts consumers in a good way and what impacts them negatively. "Headhunter Hairstyling" is a good example of what not to do. It is not that Headhunter Hairstyling's branding, design, and aesthetic is horrible it just needs work. The biggest problem with their website is many of the pictures are not high quality. There are many photographs on the Home page, Gallery page, and About section. Some of them are blurry, lack the proper lighting, and are low-quality. I think this influences a consumer's feelings of trust in the business because there is not a cohesive design. The other problem "Headhunter Hairstyling" has with there design is with the wording. The orientation of the words makes the user have to scroll to one side in order to read everything. This is a problem because your website should be user-friendly and easy to read. I also tried "Headhunter Hairstyling's" website on my Smartphone and it was not very mobile-friendly. Businesses need to consider that more than half of internet users are not using a desktop to visit your website but usually a tablet, iPhone, or smartphone. This means you have to appeal to that market by making your website mobile-friendly as well.
The Riverside Art Center's website was a huge contrast in comparison to "Headhunter Hairstyling". The pictures are high quality, they have an interactive slideshow, and the user is able to navigate the pages easily. The one and only thing that I would change about this website is switch two sections of wording. There is a small amount of wording in the beginning of the Home page and a small amount of text on the bottom of the Home page. I think that the bottom text explains the Art Center more and provides reasons why someone would want to participate. I think that to appeal to consumers and get more donations, the Riverside Art Center should put the "Reasons the RAC Rocks" on the top of the page instead of the bottom. Orientation of text is a huge part of design and alignment doesn't make the website look tacky and is easier for the reader.
The National Park Service's website is very easy to navigate and is aesthetically pleasing. When you stop on their Home page, you automatically know what target market the National Park Service is trying to appeal. The first picture on their webpage is of a classroom so obviously they are attempting to appeal to schools. The webpage is easy to navigate and each section grabs the user's attention to go from page to page. The branding tells the user about the service and it is unique enough to stand out and remember. The photos are high quality and make the user want to venture to the National Parks. They did a great job! Toyota's website was well planned too. They are using the color Red for their design and aesthetic. I think this is clever because Red is a memorable color and it says speed, danger, adventure to the consumer. All the vehicles shown are in the color red on the Home page of their website, which goes along with the branding. The website is easy to navigate and gets right to the point, which is buying cars. They are a good example of how branding and design is supposed to make the consumer feel. The design, branding, and aesthetic of both of these websites made me want the services and goods being offered.
Branding, design, and aesthetic are very important. It lets the consumer know what the product or service is, makes it memorable, and makes the consumer feel that they can trust the company. I learned that even the little things like how your text is oriented or the colors of your website can make a huge impression and impact on whether the consumer buys or continues on their search.
I liked your mention of the National Parks use of color coding. I agree that it does help signify specific parts that contrast to the green in the layout.
ReplyDeleteI like your statement about colors on a website can make the consumer continue with their search.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Savannah! National Park Services did a good job utilizing aesthetics, design, and branding. Good post!
ReplyDeleteHi Savannah, I liked the National Park Site too. Their site made me want to visit them all.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first saw the Riverside Art Center website my first thought was that it is a WordPress template... and sure enough it was. The good thing about that is the format is very common and the familiar feel makes you feel welcome.
Good points about the color usage, especially on the Toyota site. I don't imagine you would feel all that excited if all their cars were shown in olive drab. But for the NPS it works great!
Hello Savannah I agree with you that head Hunters could use some Aesthetics/ design help especially when dealing with the beauty industry. Customers want to see quality photos that help determine the experience of the work.
ReplyDelete