I often talk about how visual design will never make or break a business. Despite our inclination towards aesthetically-pleasing interfaces, visual design is not that important. But those who have been successful growing tech companies can tell you that once you’ve established a solid foundation, adding good visual design into the mix can make a difference.

我经常谈论视觉设计如何永远不会成败生意。 尽管我们倾向于美观的界面，但视觉设计并不是那么重要。 但是那些已经成功成长为高科技公司的人可以告诉您，一旦您建立了坚实的基础，将好的视觉设计添加到组合中就可以有所作为。

Good visual design alone rarely results in business success, but there’s something to say about the drawbacks of not investing in it. Poor visual design opens up a way to turn people off, and over time it creeps in to diminish the credibility of your brand.

好的视觉设计很少会带来业务上的成功，但是对于不进行投资的弊端，还有很多话要说。 视觉设计不良会导致人们拒之门外，随着时间的流逝，它会逐渐削弱您的品牌信誉。

第一印象很重要 (First impressions matter)

Think about the last time a high-street shop left you with a bitter taste in your mouth. Most likely, it was not because the products or the prices. It was how it looked like and how the staff treated you that made you never go back. It’s normal for customers to walk away after a poor first impression, whether that’s the design of a shop or the customer service. Even if the products are of high quality, many people will still choose to leave out of principle.

想一想上次高街商店让您口中苦涩的味道。 很有可能不是因为产品或价格。 看起来是什么样子，工作人员如何对待您，才使您永不回头。 无论是商店的设计还是客户服务，顾客留下深刻的第一印象后通常都会走开。 即使产品是高质量的，许多人仍然会选择脱离原则。

This also applies online, where products compete in conditions even harsher than street retail. If your platform or website looks outdated, it makes people doubt if they’ll get what your promise. Surely no serious business would look like this, they might think.

这也适用于在线，在这种情况下，产品的竞争条件甚至比街头零售还要苛刻。 如果您的平台或网站看起来过时，则会使人们怀疑他们是否会兑现您的承诺。 他们可能会认为， 确实没有严肃的事情会像这样 。

In a world of unlimited choices, it’s easy to trigger subconscious thoughts in the minds of potential customers. If your design is lacking quality, they might wonder what other aspects of your business you’re careless about. Does shipping take longer? Is the customer support lousy? Is the quality of your products terrible? There’s no benefit in giving potential customers a reason to not want to do business with you. So why so many companies are willingly walking that path on a daily basis is beyond me.

在无限选择的世界中，很容易在潜在客户的脑海中引发潜意识。 如果您的设计缺乏质量，他们可能会想知道您在乎业务的其他方面。 运输需要更长的时间吗？ 客户支持糟糕吗？ 您的产品质量糟糕吗？ 给潜在客户一个不想与您做生意的理由没有好处。 那么，为什么有这么多公司愿意每天走这条路呢？

At the other end of the spectrum, great design and attention to detail communicates professionalism. It’s like a speedy internet connection: you don’t think about it twice when it’s there, but it’s a very big deal when it’s not.

另一方面，出色的设计和对细节的关注传达了专业素养。 这就像一个快速的互联网连接：当它在那里时，您无需三思而后行，但是当它不在时，这是非常重要的。

品牌品质 (Brand quality)

Consumers are willing to spend more money on products that exude quality. German car manufacturer VAG owns many brands, including Audi and Volkswagen. Their models often use the same engines, the same parts, and the quality of the cars rarely differs. That’s why a mechanic certified in repairing a Volkswagen can repair an Audi, a Skoda, or a SEAT just as well.

消费者愿意花更多的钱购买散发出高品质的产品。 德国汽车制造商VAG拥有许多品牌，包括奥迪和大众。 他们的模型通常使用相同的引擎，相同的零件，并且汽车的质量很少有差异。 这就是为什么获得大众维修资格的机械师也可以修复奥迪，斯柯达或西亚特。

So why do consumers pay more for an Audi than for a Volkswagen? Because its brand communicates excellence, innovation, and quality. Notice that I said ‘communicates’, not ‘guarantees’. It’s well known that Volkswagen is even more reliable than Audi, but that doesn’t matter to the market. People are willing to spend more money on products that seem to be of a higher quality, and your brand is what influences their perspective. Great visual design helps you do that.

那么，为什么消费者为奥迪支付的费用比为大众支付的费用高？ 因为它的品牌传达卓越，创新和质量。 请注意，我说的是“沟通”，而不是“保证”。 众所周知，大众汽车比奥迪更可靠，但这对市场无关紧要。 人们愿意在看似质量更高的产品上花更多的钱，而您的品牌才是影响他们看法的因素。 出色的视觉设计可以帮助您做到这一点。

我们都应该关心这个吗？ (Should we all care about this?)

Design is easier to understand in e-commerce, since that’s where we use a solid metric to track our work — the conversion rate. But whether it’s a webshop, a mobile app, or a store front design, this still applies.

在电子商务中，设计更容易理解，因为这是我们使用可靠的指标来跟踪我们的工作(转化率)的地方。 但是无论是网上商店，移动应用还是店面设计，这仍然适用。

One exception has been B2B software, an area that historically ignored aesthetics. This happened because the procurement process didn’t sit with the end-user. Someone high up can buy a piece of software and employees have to use it whether they like it or not. But the success of Stripe, HubSpot, Intercom, or Slack is rapidly changing our awareness of what good enterprise tools look like. Design is becoming a massive selling point in a world known for clunky interfaces.

B2B软件是一个例外，该领域在历史上一直忽略了美学。 之所以发生这种情况，是因为采购过程不适合最终用户。 高层人士可以购买软件，而员工无论是否喜欢它都必须使用它。 但是，Stripe，HubSpot，Intercom或Slack的成功正在Swift改变我们对好的企业工具的印象。 在一个笨拙的界面世界中，设计正成为一个巨大的卖点。

带走 (Take-away)

There are only few examples of businesses that fail because of bad visual design. If your foundation is shaky, design will be as useful as a lifeguard at the swimming event in the Olympics.

因视觉设计不良而导致企业倒闭的案例很少。 如果您的基础不稳定，那么设计将与奥运会游泳比赛中的救生员一样有用。

But if your product is designed with your customers in mind and you’ve found a market fit, a good marketing team, and your sales strategy is in place, then visual design will likely help you do better business.

但是，如果您在设计产品时考虑到了客户，并且找到了合适的市场，良好的营销团队并且制定了销售策略，那么视觉设计可能会帮助您更好地开展业务。