I am a software engineer by trade and also a designer for as long as I can remember. I thought it would be interesting to see how my peers viewed design, especially with the explosion of the importance of UX in everything we design for clients. Here is a scenario I presented to understand the mindset of designers vs. engineers. Phone #1 has the most immaculate design you have ever seen, but it cannot make phone calls. Phone #2 is fully functional, tailored exactly to your needs, but has a simple box design in black and white; both phones are priced at the same amount. Each person must select one of the phones. Pause for a second and think about which one you would like.
I was surprised at the survey response I received about these 2 hypothetical phones.
- Those who chose aesthetics – about 55% of people (all designers) picked this one because they felt possessing such a phone was a privilege and gave them a sense of being part of something special. The visual experience alone was worth it, even though the phone did absolutely nothing a basic phone would allow. I asked one UI designer the reason behind his choice and how he planned to make phone calls. He said he would just buy another phone just to call people and didn’t mind carrying 2 phones in his pocket.
- Those who chose functionality – about 30% of the people (mostly engineers, except for one designer) opted for the fully functional phone. They all said that it was an obvious choice because a phone’s primary purpose was to make phone calls. Logically, they would not spend money on something that didn’t work. Most of them said they didn’t care too much for the appearance of the phone because they would buy covers/cases for them anyway. One UX designer explained his reason for choosing functionality over aesthetics was because he liked black and white; otherwise, he would have gone with the other phone.
- Those who wanted both – the remaining 15% of people (a mix of both designers and engineers) opted for this alternative and asked why I proposed such an unrealistic scenario. I told them I was curious to see how designers and engineers valued and viewed what was important in a product. I later presented the results from collecting my data and pointed out that the majority of people opted for the non-functional phone, even though I was clear that it would never function like one. The novelty of having a beautifully designed phone was something they wanted to experience and possess.
Summary: When I proposed this question, I thought more people were going to opt in with #3 – challenging me to provide a more balanced option. I realized that what we design and the message that we communicate along with a product is essential. If it’s important enough to the consumer, they will buy anything – especially if there are no other options.
I feel that this is also true when we purpose products as well. There will be many options out there and we do our best to find what suits our needs. I believe that if we find a way to target those 15% of the market, products like phone #1 and #2 would be obsolete and only then would a product be true to design, providing a complete, user experience.
(Photo taken by Taner Ardali).
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