You know that feeling when you are running, or swimming or completely “into” something and you completely lose track of time? Some people call it being in the Zone, but now there is something that is even more important to marketers – and that is being in the flow.
Everyone knows that the success of your web site depends on the combination of artful design, engaging and interactive engagement, and meaningful content. But did you know how important the theory of flow is to making your web site work?
FLOW was coined by Dr. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, and refers to an "optimal experience" that is considered "intrinsically enjoyable." According to Dr. Csikszentmihalyi, when you are in the flow, “time seems to stand still, and we lose our sense of self. We feel playful and are willing to try (and presumably buy) new things. Simply put, "Flow is a sense that humans have developed in order to recognize patterns of action that are worth preserving and transmitting over time."
Wikipedia describes the charts below as follows: This graph depicts the relationship between the perceived challenges of a task and one's perceived skills. This graph illustrates one further aspect of flow: it can only occur when the activity at hand is a higher-than-average challenge (above the center point) and requires above-average skills (to the right of the center point).The center of this graph (where the sectors meet) represents one's average levels of challenge and skill. The further from the center an experience is, the greater the intensity of that state of being (whether it is flow or anxiety or boredom or relaxation).
Why is Flow so important? Responsive, well-designed web sites can also induce a flow state in their users. Wired Magazine conducted an interview with the good Doctor and asked him for some practical advice on how to implement flow concepts in web site design and functionality. Some top line tips he gave to increase flow on your website include:
· People enter Web sites hoping to be led somewhere, hoping for a payoff.
· Goals transform a random walk into a chase. You need clear goals that fit into a hierarchy, with little goals that build toward more meaningful, higher-level goals.
· A flow experience has got to be challenging. Anything that is not up to par is going to be irritating or ignored.
· We are still a multimedia organism. If we want to push the envelope of complexity further, we have to use all of our devices for accessing information - not all of which are rational.
But all of this theory has to be mindful of best practices in graphics, images and multimedia too. So how do you create a completely engrossing website experience that is stimulating, content rich and creates stickiness? The US Government has a very useful usability guide to help you. (Yes, the U.S. Government no less). They even give you some examples of the good, bad and the ugly web site designs. For example, the chart below is used as a good example of how a site effectively uses labels to reinforce and memorialize images and icons.
This concept was so interesting to me, and it made me look at our web site in a whole new way. In addition to navigation and meta tags/meta data, I looked to see how interesting, compelling, and fun our web site experience was.
The sad answer is – not fun at all. Which means you can be sure I am adding a web site redesign and launch to my FY2012 marketing plan.
What I like about Csikszentmihalyi's "flow" is the fact that it is dependent upon each individual's perceived challenges and skills. Of course this mean's every one is going to have a different reality of their flow. It should be possible, however, to study target consumers and get a good idea of how to design a website that facilitates their flow. My first reaction was that there is no way I could allow myself to be engrossed into a website experience that has a goal of selling me something. I'm much too aware of such tactics to be drawn in like that, right? But the more I think about it, the more I realize cyberspace is becoming a space that I am more comfortable with as digital media evolves. Fortunately I have my wife and two young children to keep me from staying in my "flow" and potentially spending too much time and money there.
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