I learned about an interesting concept this week at an event where design gurus of Airbnb, medium and Lyft came to share their design secrets. Among all different ideas they discussed one particular stuck in mind and kept lingering there for a while. It is called The Ikea Effect.
Here's the wiki definition of Ikea Effect:
When you give your customer an opportunity to add their own personal touch to your products it creates a bond, a connection, the love for your product that lasts long and strong. It might also catalyze the word of mouth, sharing on social media for you.
Here's the wiki definition of Ikea Effect:
- The IKEA effect is a cognitive bias that occurs when consumers place a disproportionately high value on products they partially created.
It means that every time we become a part of creating something, we tend to love it more. Ikea sells ready furniture parts that their customer assemble together to build the final product. Ikea makes basic, simplistic looking furniture, but the connection they establish with their customers by making them part of creating the final product is what creates the value for them.
Picture Credit: Sophie Exintaris (@eurydice13)
Another example would be baking a cake using the instant mixes. The mix has pretty much everything to make it delicious and fluffy. All the customers do is to add water and egg, and put it in oven. But just doing those last 2 simple steps gives them a pleasure of baking something on their own and they tend to love it more than a ready-made cake that looks and tastes exactly the same.
Meet Elsa Bear!
This is the bear my daughter created at The Build a Bear Workshop in Disneyland. They charge premium for these stuffed bears, but they let you customize them from scratch. So my daughter picked the bear, it's outfit, shoes, the wand, the hairpieces, necklaces, crown, heart (which get sowed inside the bear), the song that plays when you press the bear, bracelet and what not. They even let you name her and give you a birth certificate of your own bear. Who wouldn't love it after putting so much effort into building something? My daughter thinks this bear is even prettier than Elsa herself!
Meet Elsa Bear!
This is the bear my daughter created at The Build a Bear Workshop in Disneyland. They charge premium for these stuffed bears, but they let you customize them from scratch. So my daughter picked the bear, it's outfit, shoes, the wand, the hairpieces, necklaces, crown, heart (which get sowed inside the bear), the song that plays when you press the bear, bracelet and what not. They even let you name her and give you a birth certificate of your own bear. Who wouldn't love it after putting so much effort into building something? My daughter thinks this bear is even prettier than Elsa herself!
When you give your customer an opportunity to add their own personal touch to your products it creates a bond, a connection, the love for your product that lasts long and strong. It might also catalyze the word of mouth, sharing on social media for you.
Remember those Paint-nites? Fresh choice's salad? Custom burgers at The Counter? Custom Evites?
How will you bring the Ikea effect to your business to create that emotional value for your customers?
