UI + Digital Psychology

Summary

Improving my UI skills while learning about the digital psychology around products.

Mobile E-commerce App + Flash Sales

Study 1 (Jan 2019)

Timer

When you see a flash sale on an e-commerce site ‘your sense of urgency and excitement arousal clouds thinking, and it takes 20 minutes to regain full mental control once your brain has gone into excitement mode’ (Kit Yarrow).

Making the customer feel like they might be losing out on a great opportunity can be very effective tactic for sites that want to clear their inventory.

Blue

Blue is often chosen in company branding to convey trust. Branding choices like this can help negate customer suspicions of the discounted items’ quality.

Flashsale

Web Game + Anchoring Microtransactions

Study 2 (Feb 2019)

Lowest Price First - Anchoring

Anchor values are mental reference points that influence a person’s decision making. When you display an item with the lowest price first, ‘the slightly more expensive but significantly more valuable offers look like a steal’ so people are more inclined to purchase those items (Daniel Stefanovic).

LPF Anchoring