Postechian Column : Should Efficiency Be Considered More Than Aesthetics?
Postechian Column : Should Efficiency Be Considered More Than Aesthetics?
  • Kim Na-young (MSE 16)
  • 승인 2017.01.01 17:00
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Suppose you are buying a new smartphone. You will make some effort to consider every feature and weigh values of utility and style in order to make the best choice. Theoretically, you will value efficiency more than the appearance of a phone, because the thing you are going to buy is machinery, not an ornament. But, efficiency is not always more important than appearance, unless you are going to buy a pipe to repair your conduit.
Balancing efficiency and aesthetics is important. Both aspects contribute to a person’s choice. The problem is, when designing a business, there are limits to how much a designer can spend on both construction and interiors. You could spend all of the available funds on stuffing chairs in a limited place or use some of the money to make the interior look better. Which choice will be more beneficial? Owners of bars, or restaurants often encounter this problem. The directors of designing pubs and hotels gave an answer for this– when designing a pub, considering appearance is necessary and cramming more furniture in a limited place is not always right. Even though you may have to turn some customers away because of limited seats, it would benefit you more because the appearance should attract more customers who would be willing to wait for the experience of dining in a fine, fresh restaurant.
We all know that tertiary industry is the mainstream, and the main matter of concern to this field is ‘customer satisfaction.’ To achieve it, practitioners should mull over how to make their customers satisfied and get them seek their product again. Customers nowadays highly value aesthetics when choosing what to buy or where to do some activities. They want to go to fair and good-looking cafes, buy a prettier refrigerator, and get a beautiful cup in which to pour some tea. Thus, fulfilling customers’ desire for ‘prettier’ things can satisfy them. This will lead to increased supply and demand in tertiary industries, or, efficiency. Considering aesthetics as efficiency has become a norm. There is even a term for it, ‘aesthetics usability effect.’
It cannot be said that efficiency is always more important than aesthetics, or vice versa. In an age where economic capitalism frames every aspect of our lives, the customer’s desires are paramount and are changing continuously. People make efforts to distinguish themselves from each other with better-looking things. So companies and corporations should deliberate on how to attract customers and make them buy their products by designing well. Those who grasp the trend of design will surely succeed in their marketing.