Comparing UX and Experience Design: The Part to the Whole

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

In your journey through online UX design education, you may have heard of “experience design” or “experiential design.” Many people mistake experience design for UX (user experience design) or UI design. I would like to explain the differences.

User experience relates mostly to the interaction between the user and an interface. The interface, or UI, can be anything and is not just limited to the digital environment. The aim of a user experience designer is to make experiences, conversations, and interactions present, efficient, and seamless.

In comparison, experience design and experiential design relate to a 360-degree point of view. Take the following scenario as an example.

Say you are walking into an event. Before going to the bar, you may need to download, install, or open an app on your phone. The app will enable you to generate a code that will give you access to the bar.

Alternatively, there may be a QR code that you need to scan to get a gift from these events. Both user experience and experience design are emerging fields, with each of them informing one another. User experience relates to the design of the QR code and what happens on screen.

Experience design, however, involves the entire process of experiences. Usually, experience design is multi-sensory; the five senses, or at least most of them, will be stimulated. In UX, meanwhile, designers focus on the senses of sight, hearing, and touch.

To bring your awareness to the concept, let’s discuss the role of the senses in greater depth. Sight comes into play because (obviously) we are looking at our screens. We work with what we hear from the sound of the screens. There may be music or sound effects or pushes with audio and tactile prompts.

“The tactile” refers not only to how we touch our screens or keyboards. It also refers to, for example, how our phone vibrates when someone calls us, or how an app sends you push notifications to get your attention.

We now move on to the experience design realm. There is an entire world that is created, where each element is meant to stimulate all of your senses. Going back to the event we described earlier, the experience includes how you arrive at the event. How are you greeted? What is the music, and how does it pair with the light design? Perhaps the experience is tailored to create a path of circulation or a journey.

If there is food or beverages around, what dishes are served? How do you drink the beverages? Do you interact with the host or event speakers? How are you seated? What is the color of the chairs, walls, and other elements in the event space? What else happens within that space? Experience design is meant to be 360 degrees — “omnichannel”, so to speak.

UX design and experience design are independent, but they can also coexist with one another. Yes, it is possible to merge both of them; but knowing the difference between the two will enhance your design processes and portfolios.

Connecting with Your Customers: Telling the Brand Story: Brand Story: Introducing New Customers

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

Your brand becomes a part of your store in various ways. If you understand this and your core customer base, you may ask yourself these questions:

* Who are you serving?
* What will connect with them?
* How can you make your brand more appealing?

If you know this, it will help you understand how to set up and run your store. For example, if your brand focuses on being fun and goofy, you may have a younger audience as your target demographic.

You should make sure your website’s color palette matches the brand. For example, if your brand focuses on being fun and funny, then grays and monotone colors won’t reflect that same voice.

This involves identifying your customers and matching what they want. You may want to avoid boring and dry product descriptions if you choose brighter colors.

You can use these descriptions to inject some humor and branding into your business. It comes into play in various parts of your e-commerce store. Look at every opportunity you have and make sure your store reflects the bigger brand.

Telling your story can help you create a more personable narrative to help new customers see the person behind the brand and understand it to build connections.

You don’t want your company to be a faceless brand. You should build a connection with your customers since it will help them connect with you, become loyal customers, and buy from you.

Connecting with Your Customers: Telling the Brand Story: The Brand Deefines the Customer Experience

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

How do you effectively brand your product online? Ecommerce is a craft. You have less than 10 seconds to capture the attention of a potential consumer. It’s about relating directly to crafting the perfect story. The story is a general narrative applicable to many people and a multitude of life experiences.
When I worked at Barney’s, we were tuned in. Every new brand had a story behind it, including the collection. However, it left an enigma that raised questions: What is the story of the brand’s history? Why was the brand created? How was the brand’s name created? Why did the brand choose the colors they did?
Factors such as those are considered when marketing your brand. The question remains: How do you effectively gain an online audience to hear your story in such a short time? It’s critical to ensure that the images displayed on your e-commerce website or a retail partnership website accurately represent your brand.
Accurately representing your brand is one of the most important factors you have in e-commerce advertising. Your target audience must feel that you understand them, that you’re speaking to them, not at them. If I’m trying to reach 18-year-olds, and I’m using this kind of formal, prim, and proper business tone, it’s not likely going to be effective on that target audience.
If I’m speaking or marketing to seniors using emojis, vulgar language, modern images, and people, fur coats, funky styles, it’s not going to resonate with them. They require marketing that is familiar to them, understanding and providing that comfort is a much better approach. One of the first things you must always do is begin with entry-level ideas— who am I going to market to? What’s different about my brand? Most importantly, how am I going to communicate that?

Considerations for the Research Phase of Product Development

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

What often comes next is really doing the due diligence, doing the research. “OK, we know there’s a problem,” explains Alicia Tam Wei, “but we need to learn more about what’s behind this problem. What’s causing it? How does it affect people?” It’s important to discover what it entails. There are several different ways to approach this in product design. One thing to do is a user journey, which is putting yourself in the shoes of a person who is using this thing and trying to figure out everything along the path of how they would use it.

If she were doing a user journey for a mute button, for example, she tells us she would say, “Ok, I’m Alicia. I’m going to sit at my computer. I’m opening my laptop and opening Zoom or any video conferencing product. From here, I have my laptop’s built-in microphone. I also have maybe an external microphone or speaker system. I also have in my environment some background noise. Maybe there’s an air conditioner, a heater or an air filter. Maybe there’s an air purifier or background noise from my home or my office.” Product design education teaches you that all this that has to go into consideration.

She continues with the other things you must think about. “OK, why am I using it?” she asks. “How am I using it? So why do I even need a mute button at all?” You would then go into all the possible uses for this mute button. When would it be needed? What are the circumstances and scenarios in which a person might need this?

You start to build a map, so to speak, of how a person is using the item. Along with this map, you realize there’s a scenario in which it fails, in which it could be better and in which there’s an opportunity for improvement.

She tells us that each time you find something that’s annoying or problematic, something that doesn’t make sense or just doesn’t work the way you wish it would, it’s an opportunity as a designer to go back in and say, “Ok, now there’s a problem. And I’ve got more background knowledge of the nuances behind that problem.”

She sums up this way: “I can actually then think about ‘How would I solve that problem?’ I sometimes believe people think that design is all about solutions. But so much more of it is actually about the background of figuring out what the problem is and then researching how people use the product.” These are lessons taught in online product design education.

The Fragrance Industry: Introduction to the Industry

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

We fragrance everything from perfume to bath and body products, cleaning products, household products, and home fragrances.
We may not realize it, but all products have a base odor. Fragrance is then used to either mask or neutralize a scent, or to add something new to the product.
The addition of fragrance is used to enhance the experience of consumers and meet their needs or demands. Specific fragrances can target specific consumers. It’s often cultural and demographic tastes that dictate what we gravitate towards. We tend to look towards what we’re familiar with.
The generations also provide different tastes and influences. Socio and economic factors can change the trends in architecture and colors. Fragrances really mirror those trends. For example, younger generations prefer fruity fragrances, while older generations may have grown up with floral, green, powder, or heavier scents.
Another example is that American cleaning products are fragranced with pine and citrus notes, while Latin American cleaning products are fragranced with lavender. Baby products in the US use powdery notes, while in Europe orange flower and citrus notes are used for baby products.
We’re also drawn to fragrances that make us feel positive emotions like feeling special, powerful, confident, sexy, successful, clean, energized, or relaxed. Sometimes we select a fragrance based on the mood that we’re in or the experience that we’re going to have for the day. Citrus notes, for example, are energizing notes and make us feel fresh and clean. Heady floral fragrances in ambers and woods can make us feel sexy or feminine. And in the workplace, we might want to choose a fragrance that is not too intrusive or distracting but makes us feel confident.
In a competitive environment, fragrance can really make or break the viability and success of any given product. If you don’t like the way something smells, it will be hard to purchase it for the second time. Fragrance is the key.

The Marketing Environment: The Marketing Mix

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

We understand a lot more about marketing than we used to. An important part of the marketing process is identifying and analyzing your target customer.

After this point, the marketing process involves creating your first product and deciding on a price. Once you’ve set your price, you need to find ways to distribute it and promote it.

Marketing professionals use a tool called the marketing mix to help build their businesses and organize products.

The marketing mix is sometimes referred to as the ‘Four P Model’. But what are the ‘four P’s?

The first P is product. What kind of product is your target customer going to be interested in? For example, if you own a fragrance brand, consider the different aromas that people enjoy in each area of your target demographic. Different fragrances will be popular in different countries and even within the different regions of each country.

The important thing is to understand your customer and develop a product that’s going to appeal to them.

The second P is price. It’s not only important to have a product that is going to appeal to your target customer, but you have to have a product that your target customer can afford.

Make sure the price matches the product. Take a look at what kind of products are sold by other companies and compare them to your product. You can use this comparison to determine your price. Set your price so that it is accessible to your customers but will also provide you with a profit so you can grow a successful business.

The third P is called place or placement. You might also hear marketers call this distribution. This involves finding a place to sell your product, whether that’s in a brick-and-mortar store or online.

The final P is promotion. This involves communication and advertising to let your customers know about your product.

The Packaging Design Profession: The Packaging Designers

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

The role of a packaging designer is both critical and multifaceted. These designers collaborate closely with an interdisciplinary team that includes marketing experts, designers, engineers, researchers, material specialists, suppliers, manufacturers, and production teams. Their ultimate goal? To transform a product from concept to a shelf-ready marvel. Candace Allenson, a seasoned professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), sheds light on the critical role packaging designers play in preparing a product for its market debut.

 

The Workspace of a Packaging Designer

A common inquiry among those intrigued by the field of beauty packaging design relates to the environments in which these creatives operate. Marianne Klimchuk, a design professor at FIT, notes the curiosity of online beauty education students regarding not just the types of companies packaging designers collaborate with, but also the nature of their workspaces. In today’s digital era, the landscape of design agencies stretches globally, allowing packaging designers the flexibility to work from virtually anywhere. Whether it’s a cozy home office or a bustling design agency, the work environment can vary significantly.

 

A Global Network of Specialized Agencies

What sets apart packaging design in the beauty industry is the presence of specialized agencies focused solely on this niche. Unlike general graphic design firms or advertising agencies, these specialized entities are dedicated to the art and science of beauty packaging. Working on projects for both small firms and major brands, such as Glossier, packaging designers find themselves in diverse team settings, from small creative clusters to large interdisciplinary groups.

 

The Creative Environment

The physical workspace of a packaging designer is often designed to stimulate creativity and foster collaboration. It’s a space brimming with visual inspiration, from desktop computers to an array of design tools, packaging samples, and sources of inspiration. This environment mirrors that of architects and graphic designers, where the ambiance is crafted to enhance creativity, inspire innovation, and facilitate teamwork. For freelance designers or those with work-from-home arrangements, creating a personal workspace that echoes these principles is key to producing amazing packaging designs.


Crafting Packaging Designs in Beauty

The journey to creating compelling and effective packaging designs in the beauty industry is intricate and rewarding. For aspiring designers or professionals looking to deepen their understanding and skills in beauty packaging, specialized education can be a game-changer.

Whether you’re new to the field or seeking to advance your career, many of online beauty courses offer comprehensive insights into the world of beauty packaging design. These courses can provide a blend of theoretical knowledge and practical application, preparing students for success in this exciting industry.

 

Take the Next Step in Your Beauty Packaging Design Career

If you’re passionate about beauty packaging and eager to make your mark in the industry, exploring specialized education is your next step. Discover how the FIT Beauty Business Essentials Course and the FIT Beauty Industry Essentials Course at Yellowbrick can give you new opportunities and improve your design skills. Start your journey towards becoming a leading packaging designer in the beauty world today!

Industry Perspectives – Cosmetics: Three Key Traits

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

The beauty industry is a multi-billion dollar industry, and it takes three key traits to become a success story in this competitive field. Juliet Falchi, the director of global product innovation for MAC Cosmetics, shares a few tips with readers on how to make your mark.

Whether you’re focusing on the beauty business side, makeup artistry, beauty education, online beauty education, or cosmetics research and development, this growing industry requires hard work and dedication.

“There’s a rhyme, a reason, and a science to why we do everything that we do,” said Falchi. “There’s a lot of work, thought, and testing involved.”

Falchi believes there are three traits an aspiring beauty professional should possess in order to be successful: the first is to be flexible, adaptive, and willing to learn. The beauty industry is an extremely fast-paced environment where things are constantly changing.

“You have to know you may be working on a project for months about matte lips,” said Falchi. “Someone may come to you and say, stop what you’re doing. You need to focus on metallics. This is the new trend.”

A successful beauty professional must be able to adapt and go with the flow. There is no syllabus when it comes to working in the beauty industry as new research and trends emerge. Flexibility is key.

Number two: being collaborative is super important. You can’t work in a silo. The beauty industry means working with other people who have different opinions, backgrounds, and interests than you. When you all come together to share ideas and concepts, you can create something incredible. You may have one piece of the puzzle, but you need all these diverse people to create the rest.

Lastly, Falchi says the third trait you need is to be passionate about beauty and truly love what you’re doing. That passion will shine through you and everything you do.

Today’s Industry: Facts, Trends, and Careers: Industry Perspective – Digital Has Changed the Playing Field

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

“All of beauty has changed because of technology,” explains Sophia Panych. “The first is backstage, primarily because I’ve done Fashion Week. I covered Fashion Week for eight years. I’ve gone to Milan and Paris twice a year to cover the shows. And that is something that has completely changed, not just for editors in magazines, but for the people that work backstage-the hair, the makeup artists, the models.”
Technology—and social media—has exposed something that used to be private and secretive. Exclusive is now broken wide open. There are no secrets left.
It’s changed how we talk about beauty makeup trends. Trends don’t really exist anymore because of social media. You get so much information at once, there’s no chance for something to build for six months and become a trend that everybody copies. It’s changed how important Fashion Week is in terms of those beauty trends.
Beauty brands work so fast now. Social media and technology have completely changed how brands strategize their product launches and how they get the news out about products to their consumers. The playing field has changed, and everybody has to shift their strategies and their plans. If the companies are changing their plans, the editors have to change how they cover them. It’s a cycle.
Panych continues, “As an editor, we work a lot faster and produce a lot more content. So that’s another thing that has definitely changed.”

Industry Perspectives: Be Business-Savvy

Yellowbrick on December 24, 2021

Jeanne Grey, founder of GreyLayers says that cosmetics and beauty as a whole can change one’s personality. “When I was little, I used to observe my mom and how she got ready in the morning and completely transform from a completely simple person into somebody different. I saw how her personality changed along with that and I thought that was amazing. I wanted to grow up and see how I can do that for other people as well,” explains Grey.

Grey says about beginning her career as a social media beauty expert, “My advice to the younger me would be to just be you and just let things flow. And eventually, with experience, all the trial and errors counted in too, everything will just work out.”

The most common mistake that Grey has seen in the beauty industry is people not being prepared prior to getting into the career. She says, “You have to treat this career as you would any other career, being a lawyer, a doctor, any important one.” She also emphasizes being business savvy and professional. “This industry, especially because it is an easy play, you know playing with cosmetics, products and different kinds of experiences, you easily forget to be professional.”

One of the ways Grey has found success in her career is by putting together case studies. These case studies are reports of a certain niche project that she’s done in the past. “For instance, as an influencer, I have done projects for a lot of hospitality brands,” says Grey. In order to land a gig with a beauty brand, Grey creates a slideshow that ties in her hospitality background of traveling and creating content. She then combines beauty into that by showing them that she was able to use beauty products throughout her trip. “I highlight how I was able to create that and capture my audience at the same time.”