Finding that Sweet Spot

Designers trained in the fields of creative work often aim to invent rather than follow conventions ¹. Understandable – the love of creating something from scratch is enticing! Even if it’s anxiety-inducing, that blank piece of paper can be very attractive for many of us designers.

Terms like 'innovation' and 'creativity' are often emphasized in design curricula, and a misinterpretation of these by students (and even professors) can sometimes be carried into their future professional lives.

This notion, combined with a drive for ambition, has led me to think that creating something completely original is the only way to be an authentic designer. In turn, striving for novelty – and through that, recognition as a 'genuine professional' ²  – has often led me to frustration, procrastination and self-doubt.

Instead, we must remember that 'originality' can also mean linking known ideas in new contexts or in unique way ^{3 4}  – we must balance our impulse for novelty with an understanding of the familiarities of the people we are designing for.

Cut through the noise 

The concept of novelty is complex and subjective. A common definition is when we meet something 'distinct' rather than 'familiar' ⁵. Of course, different perceptions and interpretations of what meets the definition varies based on the individual and their experience and environment ⁶, among other things. So it’s no surprise that understanding what is familiar and what is novel, and finding the right balance between both can be challenging when designing solutions.

First described by psychiatrist and pediatrician Hedwig von Restorff, the novelty phenomenon is also known as the von Rerstorff Effect or the isolation effect: When something stands out from its surrounding, it becomes more likely to be remembered than its environment ^{7 8}.
For this effect to succeed, it relies heavily on its context; it must be uniform and familiar to the perceiver, so the novel element is easily distinguished.

Novelty can bring out a range of emotions – from positive to negative, including excitement and curiosity, to anxiety or even fear. Depending on whether the effect is thoughtfully designed to target the needs and preferences of its audience, the response can therefore be to investigate and interact with the novel, or avoid it completely. This is why, as designers, we must truly understand who we are designing for, and why it’s not necessarily based on our own need for creating originality.

To each their own – comfort

Familiarity – often understood as the opposite of novelty – is knowing or recognizing something based on repeated exposure. It’s the feeling of ease when hearing a friend’s voice or a nostalgic melody. Familiarity brings comfort and enjoyment from experiences we've had before ⁹. However, familiarity derives from novelty. We will always encounter something new, and that new will become familiar over time. Familiarity elicits positive emotions – something we come to like. Robert Zajonc, a social psychologist, coined the term 'the mere exposure effect,' showing that repeated exposure to an object increases the likelihood of someone developing positive feelings toward it, even if their initial response was one of dislike or indifference ¹⁰. For example, during the construction of the Eiffel Tower, the Parisians (including locals, architects, and artists) criticized its aesthetics. However, over time, locals began to appreciate its look. The tower eventually went from being controversial to becoming an iconic landmark to this day ¹¹.

An interesting aspect to be aware of is that, in times of stress, people need the familiar, the comfortable, like being in their own home cooking the dishes that bring them solace or watching a show they’ve seen multiple times ¹². In situations like these, people tend to avoid taking risks. For instance, I know what to buy when I am exhausted or stressed: the same brand of ice cream, the same flavor. The rest of the products on supermarket shelves become a blur. I go straight to the cashier and head home to consume my 400 grams of strawberry ice cream in bed.

In contrast, when we start having positive feelings signaling that all is going well, we relax, and we start looking for what to do next in terms of new experiences, like visiting a country we've never been before, or even trying out different flavors of ice cream – something to make us feel adventurous ¹³.

Our need for novelty versus familiarity changes as we age. As newborns, we are curious, we want to learn, we use play and exploration, we push boundaries and experiment with things that adults wouldn’t. As teenagers, we probably are the biggest risk-takers, and this tendency wanes as we grow up ¹⁴. We get familiar with things, we register what is novel and learn it until it becomes familiar. It’s definitely another factor to take into account when considering a target group.

“People are very open-minded about new things - so long as they are exactly like the old ones.”
– Charles Kettering ¹⁵

As designers, it is helpful to know how states of mind (and stages of life) can shift people’s preferences between novelty and familiarity when designing a product, website, brand, or space. 

“The consumer is influenced in their choice of styling by two opposing factors: 
(a) attraction to the new and (b) resistance to the unfamiliar.
 –  Raymond Loewy ¹⁶

Finding that sweet spot!

Throughout his career, Raymond Loewy, the French-American industrial designer, observed that consumers are often torn between curiosity for what’s new and fear of drastic changes. The key is to find emotional equilibrium – the sweet spot between these two parameters – seeking optimal impact. He also mentions that innovation should be introduced gradually, allowing loyal consumers to adapt to and accept the changes over time. This approach can be seen applied by many well-known brands, such as Apple and how their iPod product transitioned to the iPhone ¹⁷.

Loewy developed a principle called the MAYA principle, which stands for 'Most Advanced Yet Acceptable.' MAYA can be a tool for design we can use to implement these effects and theories into our work, and it is currently being implemented in a few design fields, such as product design.

Bear in mind that this explanation of novelty and familiarity is presented in a more general way to provide an overall understanding of the topic and encourage us to shift our perspective, focus, and curiosity when designing for our audience. This subject is part of a complex and diverse set of elements that influence design and perception. Within novelty, we must consider not only whom we are designing for but also the type of product we are designing, among other factors. For instance, a study shows that people's aesthetic preferences for novelty versus familiarity in art can vary depending on whether the piece is abstract, a landscape, or figurative ¹⁸. 

In the upcoming articles, we will explore how different fields of design manage the balance between striving for novelty and designing for familiarity, and what happens when the equilibrium shifts.