You don’t hear the term “commercial art” much anymore, but it’s very much alive and well–or it should be. Visually pleasing design – termed “eye candy” – is often treated as an afterthought to form, function, and usability of a product or service, particularly online. An article found at the blog A List Apart explains that this line of thinking can cripple your brand’s personality, before a customer even experiences using your product or service.

The article reads:

Product personality influences our perceptions. Think about how quickly we form expectations about someone simply based on how they dress or present themselves. This is something the automobile industry has known for years, as they spend money to create products that express a specific personality people might identify with. Why does a Dodge Ram seem more durable? What makes a Mini Cooper seem zippy and fun? While there are certainly performance features to support these mental claims, we can also see these attributes expressed in the car’s form.

In other words, the “look and feel” of your product, the website supporting it, even your logo are all integral in communicating how your company functions as a whole, and what your customers can expect from using your product or service. While the actual experience must coincide with the feelings that your image evokes, it is the first step in getting customers through the door to appeal to them on a visual level.

Check out the full article to find out why visual design is a critical part of your company’s brand.