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PoliciesMotion creates emotion
Why motion design is the creative ace that we could all be playing.
This week, we explore how motion design breathes life into a brand.
Joseph Redding
Creative
Craft & creativity
4 minute read
Motion design has long been an afterthought – an add-on crammed into a project last minute, but never the centrepiece of a campaign. In the last few years, however, more big brands and agencies are understanding the power that motion possesses and how to use it effectively across all kinds of mediums.
So, what is it that makes motion design such a mover and shaker?
So, what is it that makes motion design such a mover and shaker?
In short
- Motion design is gaining popularity across many mediums.
- It can help brands make a great first impression and invite interaction.
- Brands need to think carefully about how to include motion design in their guidelines to stay true to their identity.
It makes a great first impression
One of motion’s most powerful uses is in a loading or splash screen – it can be a split second of animation that instantly sets the tone for the experience a user is about to undergo. My favourite example of this is the Netflix loading screen, where the streaks of light feel deep and draw you in. It’s as if you’ve just sat down in a movie theatre and the red curtains are sliding away to reveal the screen, building anticipation in place of frustration.
“The best brands put motion at the heart of their design process, rather than attempting to bring it to life after the fact.”
It invites interaction
Motion has recently been on the rise within the UI/UX world1, 2, and for good reason. When well-executed and meaningfully applied to a product or app, it can prove extremely effective – telling a story or explaining a process without using complex language. It can also bring attention to important feedback.
Think about receiving a notification on your phone. It pops up, you click it. Often, you don’t even give yourself enough time to process what the notification is telling you. This is because our visual system is so attuned to motion that it reduces cognitive load. By adding a splash of motion in elements like feedback or icons, the problem of change blindness (when a transformation on-screen goes undetected by the viewer) is eliminated. Plus, adding motion is often the more elegant and less intrusive solution, instead of making something bigger, brighter or bolder.
Think about receiving a notification on your phone. It pops up, you click it. Often, you don’t even give yourself enough time to process what the notification is telling you. This is because our visual system is so attuned to motion that it reduces cognitive load. By adding a splash of motion in elements like feedback or icons, the problem of change blindness (when a transformation on-screen goes undetected by the viewer) is eliminated. Plus, adding motion is often the more elegant and less intrusive solution, instead of making something bigger, brighter or bolder.
It adds dimension to branding
At its best, motion design can strengthen and extend a brand’s identity. But without careful integration, it can easily feel clumsy. While it can be challenging, defining the style of motion for a brand is key. Consider the Nickelodeon or the Cartoon Network logo – they animate very differently in comparison to the logo of a news channel, or the opening titles for a serious documentary.
To demonstrate why animation needs to be thoughtfully synthesised with your brand’s identity, imagine your brand as a person. Let’s say the brand guidelines define how they look and talk. By adding motion to the guidelines, you define your brand’s body language; how it walks and moves. The best brands make sure their brand is alive from the first step and put motion at the heart of their design process, rather than attempting to bring it to life after the fact. My favourite examples of this are Google3 and IBM4. In particular, Google has given motion design that all-important seat at the guidelines table by exploring how it can be used across every aspect of the brand.
Small in size, big in impact
Motion design can appear unremarkable in our everyday lives. How often do you stop to consider the motion behind an item dropping into your virtual cart or the jiggle of an incorrect password? The constancy of these interactions means that they often go unnoticed, but they dramatically improve our understanding of an interface, capability of using a product, and willingness to engage with a brand and its personality over another. Given the importance of motion design, it’s only natural that brands and agencies have started giving it more well-deserved attention.
on making banking fun
Up, Australia’s firstly entirely digital bank, is revolutionising the way young people bank by putting motion design at its centre. Up knows that the relationship between a user and their money is strengthened by frequent engagement, so the bank’s app uses interactive design to boost this engagement and increase users’ financial literacy.
Written by Joseph Redding, 52 Words by Adelaide Anderson, editing by Abby Clark, key visual by Charlie Rosanove, page built by Kate Pendergast.
References
- Page Laubheimer, The Role of Animation and Motion in UX (12 January 2020), Nielsen Norman Group.
- Issara Willenskomer, Creating Usability with Motion: The UX in Motion Manifesto (1 April 2017), Medium.
- Author unknown, Understanding motion (undated), Google.
- Author unknown, Motion (undated), Carbon Design System.
