that was the term assigned to it at ces 2019, a major annual consumer electronics events, after i received a brain scan while sampling a product called touchpoints.

touchpoints are small wearable devices that release micro-vibrations that, when worn by users, can trigger a nervous system response that has shown, in some cases, to lower stress levels. that's where the brain scan comes in -- at ces, the team behind touchpoints used it to show what a user's brain activity looked like before and after using the devices.

but how, exactly, does it work -- and what does it say about the broader concept of stress, as well as where it intersects with technology?

here's what happened when i underwent my own brain scan, and what i learned about that very question.

wearable, connected wellness

touchpoints fall under the category of wearables: a type of technology that seeks to shrink down intelligent electronic devices -- e.g., smart watches -- to an accessory or item of clothing that can be worn by its users. in 2019, wearables are predicted to see a 9% increase in sales, leading them to draw high levels of attention among consumers and industry analysts alike.

the specific wearable technology behind touchpoints are the vibrations they emit -- formally known as bilateral alternating stimulation tactile, or blast.

according to research conducted by dr. amy serin --  a neuropsychologist and the founder of the serin centers for psychology, who helped administer the brain scans -- exposure to blast vibration has correlated with changes in brain activity that indicate a deescalated stress response. these include modifications to the user's overall calmness, as well as physical symptoms that often result from stress, like stomach pain or muscle tension. 

the brain scan

what the scan measures

so, how can a brain scan measure the effectiveness of a wearable device like touchpoints? 

well, the scan -- formally known in this case as a quantitative electroencephalogram -- is used to measure beta activity in the brain. when such brain activity is elevated, dr. serin explains, it can be an indicator of stress.

"excess beta activity is associated with anxiety and obsessive thinking," says dr. serin. and if a scan shows decreased beta activity, it's "associated with clearer thinking and calm focus."

as a self-admitted over-thinker, i wasn't sure just how effective a wearable device would really be in addressing what is, for me, a typical baseline of high stress. if daily meditation and mindful breathing practices weren't enough, how could wearables -- which have faced a degree controversy -- so easily fix the problem?

but when a neuropsychologist invites you to try a product that could potentially lower your anxiety in 30 seconds -- and pair it with a personal brain scan -- you say, "yes."

the results

following the 45-minute process of being fitted for a brain-wave-reading cap, being asked to think of something stressful, and then being fitted with the touchpoints (see the video at the end of this post), my results were in and displayed on a large screen.

"that's your hamster wheel," said dominic di loreto ma, bcn director of applied neuroscience at the serin center, pointing to the image on the left: the "before touchpoints" image of my brain activity.

the image on the right, meanwhile, displays my brain activity after wearing the touchpoints for a few minutes.

i stood, dumbfounded, starting at my scan results. "that's incredible," i said, after muttering some disbelief-inspired expletives.

what the results mean

as for my own scan results, "the image on the left shows the excess beta activity in your brain before touchpoints. excess beta activity is associated with anxiety and obsessive thinking," she explains. "during touchpoints use, your beta activity lowered significantly as shown on the right. this is associated with clearer thinking and calm focus."

it's an intriguing intersection -- that a phenomenon that's been shown to increase stress levels (technology) is actually being built at a rate higher than ever to counter these symptoms, and to improve overall mental and physical health. the entire concept started, arguably, with mobile apps designed for mindfulness. now, the technology can be worn by the user directly.

i had a chance to speak with dr. serin before, during, and after the brain scan process -- and about what devices like wearables say about the current state of stress in the modern era.

data collected by dr. serin and her team, for instance, "show that it is unfortunately very common for people to be in stressful states way too often. but using touchpoints can bring a profound sense of calm without the user having to shift what they are doing."

stress is on the rise globally. our bodies are not meant to live with artificial light, screen time instead of real interaction, chronic sleep problems, et cetera. the result is more excess stress. and worse, the common 'stress management' techniques add more to your day or are inefficient.

- dr. amy serin, neuropsychology and touchpoint solution co-founder

dr. serin pointed to the convenience factor of a wearable device like touchpoints: something that can be easily put on by the user and reduces stress without taking a significant "break" in the day.

"that's what people need now more than ever," she says. "instant stress relief without adding another 'to-do' to an already packed schedule."

but others in the field of psychology have questions about the idea of a quick fix -- and understandably so. while my own scan showed evidence of decreased activity associated with stress, it was done so with the guidance of professionals who reminded me to unclench my jaw and try to relax once i had the touchpoints on.

"i think it’s great that we are using our powers of technology to improve ways to treat mental health issues," says dr. laurie paul, a psychologist in the washington, dc area. "my main concern, though, is when the general public interprets things like this [e.g, brain scan results], they may misinterpret it because they haven’t had the proper training that a neuropsychology professional would have."

and while these concerns are valid, it doesn't completely negate the positive benefits of wearable devices like touchpoints. it's possible that one might experience the best results with the guidance of an expert, or perhaps in tandem with other stress-reducing activities, like meditation or a mindfulness practice.

the bottom line: to see founders and experts within the tech industry develop devices to encourage wellness is an overall positive development, and one that my hamster-wheel-brain and i find encouraging. while the category of wearables is still in a fairly early stage, the emergence of products like touchpoints from it is a positive sign that, as it evolves, solutions can continue to become more accurate and personalized.

but without further ado -- here's a closer look at the touchpoints experience.

originally published feb 14, 2019 7:00:00 am, updated december 11 2019

according to amazon's official product sampling page, the program is designed to users "discover products [they] might love by sending you free samples from new and established brands. it's like amazon's product recommendations, but real, so you can try, smell, feel, and taste the latest products."

so, what's in it for amazon? as david mccabe and sara fischer of axios write, "turning free samples into new targeted ads plays to amazon's strength as a trusted delivery service of everyday goods, something americans already expect from the company. amazon is betting the sample strategy is something its biggest competitors — google and facebook — can't match." read full story >>

2. twitter will stream nba games -- but only the second half of them

beginning in february, twitter will stream nba games -- but only the second half of them (not the first), and only focused on a single player of the viewer's choosing.

according to recode, twitter users will vote in the first half of the game -- "the half you can’t watch on twitter" — on a poll tweeted by the @nbaontnt handle to pick a single player on which the camera will focus during the second half of the game -- the half, of course, that they can watch on twitter.

the winning player of the vote will receive singular focus during the live cam, unless that player is benched or otherwise removed from the game -- in which case, viewers will be able to continue watching the livestream of the game from the perspective of a camera placed on a backboard. read full story >>

3. and speaking of twitter (no pun intended)

twitter is testing new features that could ultimately impact how conversations look on its site -- and it's doing so publicly, with hopes of enlisting the help of users. 

some of the new items being tested, according to engadget, include "new organization and context features with their followers," including status updates and tweets that are meant to act as ice breakers, "to encourage people to talk to each other." want to participate? you're in luck -- anyone can apply to be one of the "few thousands users" accepted to take part in the test. read full story >>

4. nielsen's total ad ratings will now include mobile youtube viewers

google has approved the addition of mobile youtube viewers to nielsen's total ad ratings, according to broadcasting & cable, which measures how many people are viewing certain programs and advertisements across tv and computers -- and now, tablets and smartphones.

the primary motivation behind this agreement: more viewers are watching videos from both traditional networks and original content platforms (like netflix and amazon prime) across several platforms. as a result, many advertising campaigns are cross-platform in nature, and the companies behind them want to measure their effectiveness according to channel. 

"programmers, advertisers and media buyers have been looking to measurement companies to count all viewers," writes jon lafayette, "and find ways to compare the size and effectiveness of tv and digital campaigns." read full story >>

5. for apple's fall product lineup, it's iphones galore

despite recently cutting its quarterly revenue forecast due to a missed estimates on iphone sales, a new report from the wall street journal (wsj) says that, this fall, apple plans to debut three new models of its flagship mobile device.

sources tell the wsj that one of the three new iphones will include a "high-end one with a triple rear camera" -- an interesting move, considering that many are pointing to apple's premium pricing as one of the key factors in its reduced sales forecast. 

according to the report, many of the new iphone models will focus on areas where it lags behind competitors, such as rear camera quantity -- which might not do much to boost sales. "beefing up functional value, like expanding camera features isn’t attractive,"waseda university professor atsushi osanai told the wsj, because everyone else is doing the exact same thing.” read full story >>

6. a new ad blocker rolls out in google's chrome browser

a new ad blocker will be rolling out in july on chrome -- google's web browser -- for users globally. according to venturebeat, the new ad blocker will adhere to guidelines established by the coalition for better ads' guidelines, which outlines standards for ad improvements with consumers in mind.

chrome first began blocking ads that don't comply with these guidelines in february -- and now, since the coalition for better ads says that its better ads standards will expand to all countries (beyond north america and europe), google has said it will act in kind. read full story >>

7. "self-regramming" arrives on instagram

instagram now allows users to post the same content to multiple accounts at the same time, instagram is swaying the balance toward simplicity but away from originality. 

on the plus side, says techcrunch, the self-regramming feature will provide a more seamless way for businesses and influencers to publish content to multiple accounts, saving time and steps. but on the other hand, it could make certain user feeds -- such as those who follow multiple accounts managed by the above -- seem redundant and repetitive, "with different audiences of different accounts seeing the same shots and captions." read full story >>

8. how kodak picture-perfectly made nostalgia and emerging tech work together

at ces, attendees spend the week watching various brands compete to be the newest, coolest, most cutting-edge names in tech. but we found a trace of nostalgia -- and it comes in the form of an instant-print camera. read full story >>

9. at ces, the robot is one of us

at ces, artificial intelligence (ai) took center stage, where it powered many robots with a unified message: "we're just like you." here's a closer look at how bots could become members of our households, gyms, and more. read full story >>

10. google's 6 biggest announcements from ces

didn't get a chance to check out the google assistant playground at ces? here are six announcements you may have missed. read full story >>

11. the coolest stuff we saw at ces

and finally, that's a wrap on ces 2019. in addition to the above, check out some of the coolest stuff we saw while we were there -- in 60 seconds. read full story >>

12. with 2019 officially upon us, we reflect on holiday shopping trends

the holiday season might seem like it took place a lifetime ago. but alas, it's only been a few weeks since 2019 first dawned on us -- and for data nerds such as ourselves, one thing that never goes out of style is the study of shopping methods. here's how people did their holiday buying in 2018. read full story >>

featured image: amazon

originally published jan 16, 2019 7:00:00 am, updated december 10 2019

source: google

you might even be on a first name basis with some of these voice assistants -- "hey siri," "alexa!" and "okay, google" have become part of the daily vernacular for many of us (present company/author included). 

but looking ahead to 2019, how many of us are really taking advantage of this technology -- of using voice assistants, buying the hardware (like such smart speakers as the amazon echo or google home) that they equip, and even gifting others with them? and where we do use our voices in this capacity, what are we using them to do?

we asked over 3,400 people across the u.s., uk, and canada to weigh in. here's what we learned.

the state of voice: looking ahead to 2019

the prevalence of voice assistant use

most people say they don't use a voice assistant

in response to the question, "do you use a voice assistant, like alexa, google assistant, or siri?", there was a close split between those who indicated that they do use a voice assistant (52%) and those who do not (45%).

data collected with lucid

out of those who do use voice assistants, most do so on their phones, suggested that the smart speaker market has a but of a road ahead in terms scale or becoming mainstream.

there also still remains some confusion about what defines a voice assistant, with about 4% of people answering that they aren't sure what it is.

that awareness somewhat informs use cases for voice assistants, which is what we examined next.

the privacy issue

one barrier to scaling voice assistant use could be privacy. when we asked survey respondents what their reasons are for not using a voice assistant, most answered that they have privacy concerns about the technology.

data collected with lucid

the issues of privacy and personal data protection have been front-and-center in 2018, with headline after headline appearing about how personal details from users' online accounts have have been either improperly harvested or otherwise misused.

where that particularly manifests in the realm of smart speakers became particularly relevant when facebook -- who faced one privacy-related crisis after another this year -- launched a video smart speaker, portal, which came equipped with a camera.

how people use voice assistants

then, we asked survey participants: "in the past 30 days, what have you used your voice assistant -- like alexa, google assistant, or siri -- for the most?"

here, fewer respondents indicated that they don't use a voice assistant (about 40%).

data collected with lucid

as for the use cases among those who do enlist the help of voice assistants, they were somewhat fragmented, with a fairly small percentage of users falling into each category. the highest number, however, said they use the technology to check the weather, with shopping following close behind.

the state of voice shopping

given that shopping was one of the highest-indicated use cases for voice assistants, we want to drill down into that behavior and find out just how prevalent it was among users.

we asked: "have you ever used a voice assistant -- like alexa, google assistant, or siri -- to buy something online?"

data collected with lucid

while nearly half of respondents said that they don't use a voice assistant at all, nearly a quarter of those who do said they have used the technology to make a purchase online.

when amazon's virtual assistant, alexa, and the hardware it supports, echo, first launched, that was one of the key selling points in the company's narrative: got your hands full? now you can reorder dog food on amazon, just by asking this speaker to do it for you.

the future of smart speakers

finally, we wanted to know what people's plans are for purchasing a smart speaker: the hardware that's supported with various voice assistants to execute commands much like the ones we asked about in our use case question.

data collected with lucid

exactly half of respondents indicated that they have no foreseeable plans to buy a smart speaker. out of those who do, most said they plan to buy one for themselves -- not someone else -- within the next six months.

the year ahead

looking ahead to 2019, voice search shows some promise for growth. over two years ago, search engine land reported that 20% of all google search queries are made by voice. with the amount of google-assistant-equipped devices -- like the google home and home hub -- having launched since then, that number is likely to have increased in the time following that statistic's publication.

the same could be true of a mainstream presence of smart speakers. after all, our above research shows that 37% of people plan to buy a smart speaker either for themselves or someone else within the next 6-12 months -- and about 14% of people said they have already made such a purchase.

what's key to remember about the growth of both voice assistant use, as well as the hardware it will support, is how it will inevitably be used for marketing purposes as the technology permeates more households. 

the new york times recently published an article titled, "marketing through smart speakers? brands don’t need to be asked twice," which explores ways that businesses are creating user experiences on these speakers -- not to be confused with creating paid ads on them, since neither google home nor amazon echo will run them (yet). 

to think about the best experience to create, have another look at the data on use cases. first, where does your audience fit in -- and second, how can you help users who are new to or unfamiliar with voice assistants navigate this technology? as many predict, voice commands could feasibly go toe-to-toe with actions executed on desktop computers and mobile devices. 

"these are still early days for marketing on voice devices," writes sapna maheshwari, author of the aforementioned new york times story. "but over time ... voice interactions will begin to replace many of the activities that people are conducting on screens."

originally published dec 13, 2018 4:48:24 pm, updated december 11 2019

as reported by seo roundtable, this is not the first time users have reported seeing the zero search results landscape. the feature was first tested in march, received poor reviews, then briefly appeared again in september due to what google called "a glitch."

but now, google has confirmed that it has rolled out the zero search results feature on mobile, telling seo roundtable that it contributes to quicker load times, among other user experience improvements.

so, where exactly do users weigh in on the world of zero search results -- and what does it mean for the work that marketers do? we did some research to find out.

how do users feel about a zero search results world?

we asked over 4,200 people across the u.s., uk, and canada for their reactions to google's new zero search results feature. first, we explained what it is -- "the search engine will provide a single answer to queries -- such as, 'what time is it in new york?' -- without displaying any other search results."

then, we asked them to measure how this would impact their search experience in a few areas -- such as their ability to find information, the accuracy of the single answers they might receive, and others.

here's what we found out.

even exposure

we wanted to gauge how many users had actually come across this feature -- so we began by asking how many of them had seen it.

there was a somewhat even split between those who said they had come across a zero search results page and those who hadn't. however, most respondents -- nearly 60% -- said they hadn't yet seen it. 

data collected with lucid

ease of finding information

then, we wanted to know if users thought a zero search results feature would make it easier -- or more difficult -- to find information.

data collected with lucid

the impression of a zero results world seems to be generally positive, with about half of respondents indicating that they think it would make finding information on google easier.

the accuracy element

next, we wanted to find out how users think the zero search results feature would impact the accuracy of the information they might receive in response to a query. 

we phrased this question two ways. first, we asked users, "how do you think this will impact the accuracy of the search results?"

data collected with lucid

when the question was phrased this way, the response was generally positive, with most people (close to 80%) indicating that they believe a zero search results page would generally make the information more accurate -- or equally accurate to a traditional search results page.

then, we asked how much users would trust the information they received on a zero search results page.

data collected with lucid

interestingly, the positive sentiment here was sightly lower -- with 20% fewer respondents indicating that they would be more or equally likely to trust the accuracy of information received on a zero search results page.

still, the positive response outweighed the negative, with less than a quarter of participants saying they would trust a zero search results page less.

time spent on google

finally, we wanted to know if a zero search results page would impact the amount of time users spend on google.

data collected with lucid

overall, the prospect of a zero-search-results-driven world doesn't appear to have much impact on how much time people will spend on google, with half of respondents indicating they would continue use the search engine as much as they would otherwise.

it's worth noting that one of the reasons google provided for introducing a zero search results page is quicker access to answers. over a third of users said they might actually use google more with the onset of this feature -- suggesting that people would respond positively to the ability to perform more searches in a smaller amount of time.

what a zero search results world looks like for marketers

but even if a zero search results feature solves for the user, what impact could it have on marketers and content creators -- especially those behind sites that specialized in unit or time conversations?

"zero search results is the new extreme in search," says hubspot head of seo victor pan. "remember when it used to be just 10 search results? then it sometimes became just seven, then folks started seeing three-to-five search results on the first page, and now we're at the point where zero could happen."

it's that evolution of what search results look like, pan says, that points to a need for marketers to look at search results from a multi-dimensional perspective.

"what this means for marketers in the future is that, if you prioritize by just one piece of search -- like volume or rankings," he explains, "you could be getting an extremely inaccurate picture of a target search term or keyword."

so instead of looking at search terms and keywords through a narrow scope, pan advises marketers to prepare for a more widespread presence of zero results by focusing on intent.

first, pan says to consider the users who might be searching for these target terms or keywords, and what they're hoping to accomplish by searching for them -- their intent. does the intent behind that search actually present an opportunity for your seo-related goals, like visitors, rankings, or brand awareness?

in other words, pan asks:

"what's the total opportunity for that intent?"

a follow-up question, then, concerns whether or not multiple search results would actually serve the user's intent and goals in searching for a particular term or keyword. 

"you need to know ... whether it's helpful for users to have more than one source tell them the answer," pan says, or if the results for those terms and keywords are best served via a single result.

finally, pan suggests researching what the results for these target terms and keywords look like, perhaps by way of searching for them yourself before optimizing for them.

"how many search results and features -- like featured snippets or 'people also ask' -- show up for specific keywords?" pan challenges marketers to ask. "these are clues to what google thinks the user's intent is."

and by learning how google interprets a user's intent, you can begin to understand that of the audience you're trying to draw to your content -- and, therefore, if certain terms and keywords aren't worth pursuing, especially in a zero search results world.

originally published nov 28, 2018 3:22:48 pm, updated december 11 2019

one commenter suggested that advertisers -- those who use facebook's ad targeting tools to build and promote their businesses -- leave the network, effectively cutting off the company's largest revenue stream.

to which another commenter essentially asked, "but where else is there for them to go?"

this story is not, however, about the pros and cons of advertisers leaving facebook. rather, it's a story about moves made by other companies to create new platforms for businesses to establish a broader -- or perhaps alternative -- digital presence.

one such company is google, who earlier this week announced its new google my business app. here's a look at the app -- and why it represents a pivotal moment in marketing.

the google my business app

the road to this app began a few weeks ago, when google introduced a new feature to maps that allowed android users to follow a business on that platform. 

on the consumer side, the development was positioned as a way for users to keep up with existing favorites and new establishments alike on maps for android and mobile search. (when or if these features will be available for ios users is unclear.)

image source: google

on the flip side, the follow feature allowed these businesses to create a profile and -- even if they weren't going to open for another three months -- become discoverable. 

these features were and are part of the broader suite of tools within google my business, which is what allows businesses to create and maintain these profiles that appear on maps and mobile search results. now, google has released a mobile app for managing these profiles.

in a way, the google my business app could be likened to a hybrid of yelp and facebook business page tools -- among its features are those that allow businesses to respond to reviews, send and receive messages from customers, and see who's following them on a dedicated "customers" tab.

image source: apple

otherwise, the google my business app offers similar tools to those of other social networks -- namely, facebook -- that allow businesses to upload photos, promote offers, create events, and view engagement analytics.

image source: apple

a key period in the history of digital marketing

what might be the most interesting aspect of google's announcement and launch of this app is its timing.

as we mentioned previously, the google my business app was officially unveiled on the same day the new york times published a rather damning report on the inner workings of executive leadership within facebook -- which is one of the most commonly-used digital marketing tools among small businesses.

this story has been 6 months in the making. it started with a question: what happened inside facebook over the last 3 years, and what did top executives, mark zuckerberg and sheryl sandberg, do in the wake of crisis after crisis battering the company? https://t.co/n6kadnqfj6

— sheera frenkel (@sheeraf) november 14, 2018

as one of the report's authors, sheera frenkel, notes in the tweet above, it followed years of controversy faced by the company.

facebook's ongoing period of embroilment is somewhat compounded by diminishing user trust in the company among users, slowing growth in its two most lucrative markets (the u.s. and canada), and a drop in business page engagement by as much as 50% over the past year.

when looking at all of these combined factors, it raises the question: is this a catalyst for other networks and platforms, like google, to build new platforms for businesses and advertisers to reach customers?

possibly -- but some say that these new platforms would build on a foundation of business tools that facebook has been building and growing for a while.

"facebook has really been the leader in solutions for very small businesses over the past eight years," says hubspot principal marketing manager marcus andrews. "its business pages and ad solutions have really resonated with the early entrepreneur."

but now, andrews says, the landscape has shifted -- and calls for both facebook and other potential providers in the digital marketing space to approach thoughtfully.

"a lot of factors have helped facebook achieve this leadership position, but seems like the company might have to slow down and start to be more deliberate about the choices it makes -- for good reason," andrews explains. "at the end of the day, that does give some of its biggest competitors an opportunity, and i think entrepreneurs will go to wherever they see the most opportunity."

featured image credit: google

originally published nov 15, 2018 6:11:55 pm, updated december 11 2019

but did you know color also plays a major factor on your customer's first impressions of your brand? people generally make up their minds on how they feel about a product within the first 90 seconds -- and about 62-90 percent of their assessment is based on colors alone.

the right colors can engage your audience and showcase your brand's individuality in a way words cannot. to stand out against your competitors, and to ensure consistency across all your marketing materials, it's critical you put time and effort into creating an impressive color palette.

access hundreds of website templates in hubspot's theme marketplace

a color palette can help you ensure uniformity across your website, promotional materials, social media content, and more. this consistency is key to attracting and retaining a loyal audience across all your platforms and channels.

now, you might be thinking -- great, i'm convinced. but how do i get started? to make it easy for you, we've compiled 14 unforgettable color palettes to help you design your own.

pastel color palette

#baf2bb, #baf2d8, #f2bac9, #f4f7f9, #f4f39a

blue color palette

#161925, #23395b, #406e8e, #8ea8c3, #cbf7ed

green color palette

#e3eecd, #acd1b6, #71a596, #40676e, #408e61

red color palette

#e96166, #c53538, #963543, #fda696, #fdcdd1

purple color palette

#4a4063, #ccb8d6, #513e43, #783f8e, #49275b

brown color palette

#efe0b9, #524636, #b7521e, #643b0f, #e4b04a

gold color palette

#e2953d, #524636, #ac7330, #b19a78, #dbc2a4

pink color palette

#870040, #ce4a87, #ff82bf, #f7cfe1, #dbc2a4

fall color palette

#d8c9cb, #96a88e, #a75037, #753740, #db9c77

spring color palette

#ebdfe7, #ccc2cd, #81a190, #a2c0a0, #dbe8d9

winter color palette

#493319, #907f60, #c7ccd3, #f0f1f2, #9d0200

autumn color palette

#db9c77, #a75037, #6f3b48, #f3e4df, #60958b

summer color palette

#f7e06c, #f8ced2, #ed5b46, #8bd0b4, #d8eee7

sunset color palette

#983275, #811d5e, #fd2f24, #ff6f01, #fed800

color palette generators

to gain further inspiration or create unique color palettes for yourself, you might consider using an online color palette generator. color palette generators are extraordinarily helpful -- they suggest colors that look good together, and even provide the hex color numbers, so you can plug the colors directly into a program like photoshop.

before you begin your next design project, you might want to try generating different palettes of your own using one of these free online tools:

• coolors
• canva
• colormind
• colorspace

looking for a more guided approach? check out the selection of website themes located in hubspot's theme marketplace.

 

 

originally published nov 12, 2018 6:00:00 am, updated june 15 2022

there are plenty of benefits to flat design -- the simple elements allow for faster load time and easier user navigation.

download 195+ visual marketing design templates to use for social media posts, infographics, and more. 

windows 8 is a good example of flat design:

as you can see from the windows 8 interface, the large, colorful blocks are effective elements for easy usability. plus, the flat design ensures optimal user experience on various devices, since the simple shapes and lack of texture easily scale for different devices' screen sizes.

if you think flat design is just a short-term trend, think again -- usabilla surveyed 100 professionals and found 68 percent believe flat design will affect how we design for the web, long-term.

here are the major elements of flat design:

• illustrations
• bright colors
• uncomplicated shapes
• functional
• simple typography
• minimalist
• intuitive
• more use of negative space
• absence of three-dimensional depth

here, we'll take a look at the top websites using flat design, so you can decide whether flat design is the right style for your business.

top websites using flat design

1. wistia

2. the hype agency

3. intercom

4. stripe

5. apple ios 7

6. taasky

7. operativnik website design by felix baky

 

originally published oct 22, 2018 6:00:00 am, updated september 05 2019

juvenile: yes. uncommon: no.

i thought it could be solved by turning off notifications, but alas -- that only led to checking the app more often. so, one saturday night, i decided that it was time to quit cold turkey: to deactivate my account, delete the app from my phone, and call it quits with instagram for good.

spoiler alert: i failed, miserably.

but it turns out that there's some science behind my failed attempt to quit instagram -- and that i'm not alone in breaking up with the app, only to come back to it. here's what happened when i tried to quit, and why those efforts may have been doomed from the start.

what happened when i tried to quit instagram

it seems as though there's an app for everything, especially when it comes to social media. of course, there are the networks themselves, but there also exist myriad apps to manage your presence on them: to schedule posts, like posts in bulk, and even see when someone has unfollowed you.

it was an app for that last part that got me into trouble. on top of my existing like mania, it turns out that seeing who had unfollowed me on instagram didn't exactly instill positive feelings.

when i shared one particularly freak-out-inducing unfollow with my friend, she asked me two pointed questions: "has this app ever made you feel good? or does it just make you feel sad and anxious?"

yikes. that question didn't just apply to the unfollower-count app -- it also applied to instagram itself.

and so, i quit. for about 72 hours.

at first, it felt quite liberating and validating. my iphone's screen time report quickly noticed the decrease in time spent on the app -- even during a condensed period -- which made me feel like i had made the right decision. in fact, instagram wasn't even ranked within my top five most-used apps anymore. yippee!

but it wasn't long before my fear of missing out (fomo), as the phrase goes, started to kick in. i missed seeing what my friends were up to -- despite the absence of instagram spurring me to actually check in with them and ask, "how's your weekend going?" my parents missed seeing the flood of pictures of my dog that i would usually post. and most of all, i missed sharing these visual moments from my life.

so, this morning, i reinstalled the app.

it didn't take long for instagram to top the list of my most-used apps on my screen time report. what a difference three days makes -- check out today's report, compared to the one above:

so, why is it so hard to quit instagram? just how addicting are social media apps -- and are they designed to be that way? and how many people have also made similar efforts, only to fail as spectacularly as i did?

the psychology of instagram

i'm not the only one asking these questions. academic researchers have turned them into full-blown studies, showing a variety of conclusions. and among the outcomes, many experts have found that there's an addictive quality to social media apps -- instagram, in particular.

take this article from harvard university about the connection between dopamine production and social media notifications. dopamine, the story explains, "is a chemical produced by our brains that ... gets released when we take a bite of delicious food [and] when we have successful social interactions." in other words, it's a chemical that makes us experience a sense of reward.

source: harvard university 

but should we engage in these reward-inducing behaviors enough, explains the article's author, harvard medical school's department of neurobiology research technician trevor haynes, we begin to become addicted to them -- and expect a sense of reward when we perform them. and one of those behaviors, it turns out, is checking social media.

source: harvard university 

the way that psychobiology plays out with something like instagram, is that when you open the app, you expect to see notifications that your content has been liked or otherwise engaged with. we become accustomed to being rewarded for the behavior of opening the app, and therefore, addicted to doing so.

but when we open the app only to find no notifications, the sensation might be similar to biting into a piece of food that's unexpectedly repulsive, or telling a joke for a crowd that completely falls flat.

are social media apps designed to be addictive?

okay, so maybe apps like instagram play a big role in these dopamine triggers -- but are social apps actually designed to be addictive? we asked 833 internet users across the u.s., uk, and canada if they think so.

over half of the respondents indicated that social media apps are not only addictive -- but that they are, in fact, designed to be that way.

there may be some truth behind that public perception. according to a "60 minutes" interview with technologist and neuroscientist ramsay brown, instagram will sometimes withhold notifications of likes and comments for a prolonged period of time, only to release them in a bulk at once.

that pattern of notification withholding-and-bursting encourages users to check the app more frequently, suggests haynes.

"your dopamine centers have been primed by those initial negative outcomes to respond robustly to the sudden influx of social appraisal," he writes, which "takes advantage of our dopamine-driven desire for social validation, and it optimizes the balance of negative and positive feedback signals until we’ve become habitual users."

so maybe that's why it's so hard to quit. to find out if i was alone in my challenge to stay away from instagram for good, i ran another survey of 832 internet users across the u.s., uk, and canada, asking: have you ever tried to quit using instagram?

interestingly, about 40% of respondents indicated that they had never used instagram in the first place.

when adjusting for that, just under half of the remaining 500 participants said that they had never bothered trying to quit using instagram -- or considered it -- in the first place. and while these results alone can't say for certain, it's possible that this reluctance to quit the app altogether could be due to its aforementioned addictive nature.

can the phone-checking crisis really be resolved?

it's an interesting dichotomy -- that such a considerable portion of people can both believe that social media apps are designed to be addictive, but at the same time, not want to quit using them.

we've discussed a similar phenomenon when examining the reluctance of many facebook users, for example, to leave the site or delete their accounts, despite the company's many privacy-related issues. why is it, i asked, that people continue to stick with social media networks, despite the various risks involved?

"my personal opinion is that people are making mental tradeoffs. [facebook is] a primary connection point to family members, to news, to society at large," hubspot vp of marketing meghan keaney anderson said at the time. "and for now, there is no viable replacement to that. the trade off i'd argue people are making is the very real value of that connection point, versus the not-yet-personally-actualized threat to privacy or security of data."

so on instagram, it could be that the tradeoff comes in the form of sharing visual snippets of our lives with friends, family, colleagues and strangers -- and being able to observe those moments of theirs, along with those of the brands we follow -- versus the "threat" of addiction-like repercussions.

of course, social networks and tech companies allege that they are responding in kind. there's apple's aforementioned screen time reports, and both facebook and instagram have said that they'll "soon" roll out tools to help users manage their time spent on both apps -- though it seems that no one has seen or been able to use those features just yet.

source: facebook

as for how effective these tools will be -- we'll have to wait to find out. but in the meantime, this entire phenomenon may serve as an opportunity for marketers and content creators.

there are ways, for example, to encourage audiences to both engage with your brand on social media, while also enjoying life offline; for example, asking users to post a photo or video of themselves using your product or service in an offline setting, or sharing content that shows how your brand helps them spend more time doing what they love.

but if you'll excuse me -- i have some analog time of my own to attend to.

originally published oct 17, 2018 2:22:21 pm, updated december 11 2019