Do good looking icons do better?
Steve Rubel recently blogged on the topic of iconography - the rise of icons and logos as a means of selecting applications and tools. Steve reckons that he is drawn in by icons to use applications that he might otherwise have neglected. I guess there is some truth in this but decisions about the applications and tools we use are determined by a much longer list of factors:
- Do you know about it (the vast array of tools in any given category makes it hard to really know what's best)?
- Does it work?
- Is there an alternative?
- Does anyone else use it? Sometimes our social media choices are determined by critical mass.
- Service and support (including emotional connections - I might prefer to use a product if it is local, for example)
I am sure that some icons stick in our sub-concious and that the reasons for this differ from person to person. And that they have an influence (probably minimal) over the success of a product or service, which leads nicely in to the launch of my new logo:
Daniel Young, PR consultant, writes on the impact of new technology and the Internet on PR and corporate communications. Daniel is based in Australia.