Everyone sees the world through their own set of spectacles. I thought it would be fun to take one aspect of perspective and see if I could break the world into a normal distribution of how people seem to perceive aesthetics. This is more for fun than anything else, so don't get too bent out of shape that this is totally unscientific, extremely opinionated and probably ugly itself.
The Chart. There are four major rectangular categories that overlap to form six sub-groups which are sort-of overlayed onto a normal distribution.
These are the traits of the four major categories:
- Pink: People who mistake ugly for beautiful.
- Magenta: People who can tell if something is ugly.
- Blue: People who recognize beauty.
- Yellow: People who are creative.
The minor categories:
A. These are people that mix up ugly for beautiful and beautiful for ugly. This includes guys who think Drew Barrymore is attractive but kittens are hideous. It also includes women that would date Donald Trump if he were poor and are repulsed by Tom Cruise. This is a strange set of people who find that the theory of supply and demand often works in their favor.
B. These folks call pretty things pretty, but also seem oddly attracted to things that are not so pleasing. If you can watch the initial audition episodes of American Idol without a barf-bag you may be in this category. My first instinct is to pity this group of people, but they may actually be the most happy. They like just about anything! They are rarely disappointed at Christmas and have no trouble finding an "attractive" date or spouse.
C. Here are the people who are properly repelled by the repulsive, but aren't naturally attracted to things that are inviting. This is the group that deserves your pity. They instinctively reach for the remote when re-runs of Rosanne come on, but find themselves endlessly channel surfing - looking for something to watch. At the car lot their subconscious hurries them past the clusters of PT Cruisers and Scions, but they find themselves wandering aimlessly looking for something they really like.
D. I think that most humans naturally fall into this category. They recognize beauty - even if they can't tell you why it is that way. They can tell you that Joan Cusack ain't too good lookin' even if they can't put a finger on exactly why that is. They listen to and appreciate the mastery of Mozart but can't quite explain why it sounds so right. The most wide-spread exception to this rule is that most normal people can't seem to tell if their own child is ugly.
E. These people are pretty rare. Not only do they know what makes something attractive - they can generally tell you why and create good looking things themselves. These are artists, designers, decorators, cinematographers, and so on. It's pretty easy for most of us to look at a user interface and say that it seems wrong, but it takes a great designer to know why it is wrong and re-design it to feel right.
F. Here is an odd group of people. They are creative, but have a skewed sense of aesthetics. I think that Pablo Picasso belongs here. A lot of "musicians" also seem fall into this category.
So, why does this matter to Balihoo or people interested in local marketing? The sad truth is that you generally are not capable of placing yourself on this curve! You should always assume that you are farther on the left side of the chart than you think. If you own your own business and you are considering producing your own ads you should think twice. If you ever watched American Idol and asked yourself "how did that guy ever think he could sing?" then you should be able to understand this. Just like the mother who thinks her hideous offspring is beautiful, you probably cannot judge your own creations.
When it comes to building ads you need help. Most of us can tell within about 20 milliseconds when we are seeing, hearing or viewing a "locally created ad". Do you really want 90% of your audience to turn the dial when your ad airs? That's why we offer professional ad builder software. Highly skilled designers and advertising professionals create the template and you fill in the details (pricing, business address, etc).
The Chart. There are four major rectangular categories that overlap to form six sub-groups which are sort-of overlayed onto a normal distribution.
These are the traits of the four major categories:
- Pink: People who mistake ugly for beautiful.
- Magenta: People who can tell if something is ugly.
- Blue: People who recognize beauty.
- Yellow: People who are creative.
The minor categories:
A. These are people that mix up ugly for beautiful and beautiful for ugly. This includes guys who think Drew Barrymore is attractive but kittens are hideous. It also includes women that would date Donald Trump if he were poor and are repulsed by Tom Cruise. This is a strange set of people who find that the theory of supply and demand often works in their favor.
B. These folks call pretty things pretty, but also seem oddly attracted to things that are not so pleasing. If you can watch the initial audition episodes of American Idol without a barf-bag you may be in this category. My first instinct is to pity this group of people, but they may actually be the most happy. They like just about anything! They are rarely disappointed at Christmas and have no trouble finding an "attractive" date or spouse.
C. Here are the people who are properly repelled by the repulsive, but aren't naturally attracted to things that are inviting. This is the group that deserves your pity. They instinctively reach for the remote when re-runs of Rosanne come on, but find themselves endlessly channel surfing - looking for something to watch. At the car lot their subconscious hurries them past the clusters of PT Cruisers and Scions, but they find themselves wandering aimlessly looking for something they really like.
D. I think that most humans naturally fall into this category. They recognize beauty - even if they can't tell you why it is that way. They can tell you that Joan Cusack ain't too good lookin' even if they can't put a finger on exactly why that is. They listen to and appreciate the mastery of Mozart but can't quite explain why it sounds so right. The most wide-spread exception to this rule is that most normal people can't seem to tell if their own child is ugly.
E. These people are pretty rare. Not only do they know what makes something attractive - they can generally tell you why and create good looking things themselves. These are artists, designers, decorators, cinematographers, and so on. It's pretty easy for most of us to look at a user interface and say that it seems wrong, but it takes a great designer to know why it is wrong and re-design it to feel right.
F. Here is an odd group of people. They are creative, but have a skewed sense of aesthetics. I think that Pablo Picasso belongs here. A lot of "musicians" also seem fall into this category.
So, why does this matter to Balihoo or people interested in local marketing? The sad truth is that you generally are not capable of placing yourself on this curve! You should always assume that you are farther on the left side of the chart than you think. If you own your own business and you are considering producing your own ads you should think twice. If you ever watched American Idol and asked yourself "how did that guy ever think he could sing?" then you should be able to understand this. Just like the mother who thinks her hideous offspring is beautiful, you probably cannot judge your own creations.
When it comes to building ads you need help. Most of us can tell within about 20 milliseconds when we are seeing, hearing or viewing a "locally created ad". Do you really want 90% of your audience to turn the dial when your ad airs? That's why we offer professional ad builder software. Highly skilled designers and advertising professionals create the template and you fill in the details (pricing, business address, etc).
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