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We hear the happy sounds of children playing as gorgeous magazine style images of beautiful women and their babies and children dance across the screen. Gentle music is playing softly in the background.

The sound of a baby crying starts softly and mounts until it dominates. During this time the flow of images has grown increasingly chaotic.

The screen goes abruptly black. Our point of view switches to that of eyes opening. Blink. Blurry at first. Blink. And then it hits us [jarring sound effect]. We are on a living room floor scattered in toys and baby food, cereal and laundry.

Our point of view changes to that of observer. We see an exhausted woman struggling to pull herself up amid the mess and crawl over to her screaming baby. As she scrambles up, she accidentally steps into a half finished bowl of cereal. She wails at a level that matches the baby.

Freeze frame.

A beat kicks in and an accompanying poem/rap begins.

We see scenes of exhausted mothers, unwashed mothers, stressed mothers, lonely mothers, crying mothers, mothers stepping on lego, mothers desperately trying to get personal toilet time, or using personal toilet time to do something for themselves (like eat), mothers dropping and spilling, mothers unable to calm their child, mothers being mothers.

A common theme is reaching for a coffee that never gets finished or, worse still, gets knocked over.

One mother at her wits end and then there's a knock at the door and her coffee is delivered.

The poem/rap urges mothers to not go it alone. Coaches mothers to reach out and connect. Each chorus features increasing numbers of women "speaking out" and validating mothers and appealing to them to not "go it alone".

Coffee is suggested as a tool for connection.

Slowly the scenes become about togetherness, another person cleaning up the coffee spill and making her another which she drinks and savours while her child is cared for; a mother at the end of her tether arriving on her friend's doorstep, she is led into the kitchen where her friend has laid out every possible Infusi coffee option on the counter for her to choose from; scenes of mothers helping mothers; mothers finding comfort and support from mothers.

Ends with voiceover and text on screen driving home the message, followed by a call to action.

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I did some research around making still images dynamic and also about filming with an iPhone (see above). At first I was not sure which would be more accessible to me and I figured that would guide my choice. I've never filmed before and so I was hoping to be able to create something interesting and dynamic with still images. BUT the theatre director in me is winning over and the video I see is very much one with "live scenes" and not single images. I tried pushing myself creatively to see how I could adapt what I have in mind to a montage of dynamic photographs but it just doesn't grab my audience. My over tired, "desperately seeking something" mommas don't want another waiting room magazine experience, they want heartfelt storytelling. They want and need the dopamine! The want to identify. The want the neural coupling, the mirroring, the cortex activity! Pull all this together and they will want my coffee. They will need my coffee.

So filming on an iPhone 7 plus it is. I've found a number of tutorials that are pretty straightforward. Coming from a theatre background where I've been manipulating light, sound and scenes/images/visuals for many years, it is not a totally insane jump. This assignment will be a fantastic learning experience for me. A giant leap into something I have been dying to do for a very long time and an opportunity to start building a skillset I am going to need for this course anyway. If I bomb out, oh well ... I learn :)

At this stage my ideas are still a little too unformed and very very "draft like". I have multiple scenes in mind and so pulling them together to create a story will be a task. For the treatment at this stage, Carolyn does say it can be very much still a draft and not much longer than a paragraph - phew!  In that case, I will write up option 1, so to speak - a preliminary version that I can develop and refine in the coming week or so. If I end up throwing everything out and starting again, that's ok too. That's not unlike the playwriting and directing process - I'm not afraid to hit a wall and start looking for windows. Not much time left but I won't lock myself in just yet.

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At Infusi Coffee, we get coffee, we get connection, we get you.
Infusi Coffee - we've got your back.

Coffee and Connection: we've got your back!
Infusi. We just get it

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ATTENTION
Thinking back to the ideas I generated when challenging assumptions as well as the information I gathered from interviewing my target audience, I will grab their attention with very relatable "opposite" scenes and images. Exhausted women, lonely women, isolated women, emotional women, end of tether women, and so on. Almost like an "is this you?" survey. As she watches the opening scenes, so my 31-50 yr old momma should be screaming "yes!". She should be feeling heard and understood and connected to all those other women in similar, very familiar situations. A sense of shared experience will draw her in.
I'd like to use a mixture of humour and "authenticity".

INTEREST
The daily reach for that life giving cuppa is already familiar and another shared experience attention grabber.
Add the element of human connection / social connectedness and being part of a community along with friendship, being heard and understood and, most importantly, belonging and I will be appealing to a very basic and pervasive need.

DESIRE
I want to make my audience feel they are heard and understood; that they have a place and they belong; comforted, nurtured and inspired but the power of the shared sisterhood.
Coffee becomes a tool to make this happen.

ACTION
Ultimately, I want them to buy Infusi Coffee.
Why Infusi Coffee over and above other brands? Because this brand "gets you".

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My fiddling in photoshop

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Colours:
Trying to find interesting tones and combinations of Orange, Green & Blue. It would also be nice to bring in a brown - representing the earth and coffee.
Brown - stability and solid foundation, natural and simple, reliable and wholesome, safety and quiet confidence, warmth and reassurance.
I will use colourschemedesigner.com and color.adobe.com to help me choose.

The more think about it and fiddle, the more I like orange and brown tones with a touch of green and blue to highlight or add some "punch".

Fonts:
I'm going in circles a little with fonts and their appropriate combinations. I love the idea of the handwriting fonts for all the reasons listed to the left BUT I am worried about overuse or saturation. A good combination of handwriting and a sans serif font would be ideal. I have written text in the various fonts on a page in photoshop and I keep moving them around and situating them beside each other, etc. I am slowly narrowing it down.
I love the Lancaste script as a signature but am worried it is too great a clash? Or is that a handy tool I can use to drive the message home?

I'm also really liking Amatic SC as a heading and PW Double Script as a body. Is that overkill? Can I add Source Sans Variable for long bodies of text?
Looking at the G'nosh website that was used as an example in the above article Evoke emotion through typography, they very effectively use 3 different fonts. Hmmmmm, so let me fiddle and think this through.

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1. It's for web so I'm looking for a sans serif font

2. My audience is time poor - it needs to be easy to read and highly legible

3. I want it to convey comfort and gentle invitation so it needs to be rounded

4. I want it to be very personal and human. In this case, I should consider a handwritten font. Handwriting fonts also evoke a feeling of close and connected which is exactly my message (50% anyway)

5. Lower case - compassion and innovation

6. Connected letters - unity and collectivism

That's a lot to consider. Which fonts would tick many/most/all of these boxes?

Handwriting Fonts:

Indie Flower - casual but possibly a little too "weak"?  It looks like a grocery list or quick note to self font which could appeal to my target audience (very familiar and attuned / personal).

Kalam - easy to read and a good flow but there's something "not human enough" about it.

Amatic SC - I like this one. It's warm and personal. Is the uppercase too direct and powerful or is it a nice combination of authority and warmth?

Permanent Marker - I thought the familiar would be a nice touch but it's too ordinary and boringly familiar

Just Because - I really like this one. I love it's femininity, it's signature slash greeting card feel. It evokes friendship and intimacy. BUT it is way too much for a full site.

Miss Issippi - nice, clear, but kind of bland

PW Double Script - Another one I really like. Good for headings and quick lines but not necessarily full body? The draft like feel makes it very authentic and relatable. Could be a really nice one for any text on video.

Lancaste Script - This is an awesome alternative to 'just because font'.

Luna - this one seems to tick all the boxes

Rounded Fonts:

Myriad Pro - Another favourite. Simple, clean and gentle. It has a calming and trustworthy feel.

Sukhamvit Set - similar to myriad pro but gentler feeling

Avenir Next - spaced and clear; very very clean

Source Sans Variable - softer, almost has a hand jotted feel; very personal and human feeling

Other Fonts:

Brush Script - nice, clean, ticks many boxes. Too "ordinary"?

I really like the handwritten fonts most for my message but I think they would be very tiring as a body text on a website. The would be great as headings and "pull outs".
Top 3: Amatic SC,  PW Double Script, Luna and Lancaste
Amatic Sc or PW Double Script would work very well for the video (if I decide to go with different fonts)

The rounded fonts feel like a better choice for a website. My favourite among them for this project being Source Sans Variable

Source Sans Variable looks really good teamed up with Luna. They are both rounded and both have that warm, comfortable, at ease feel

Avenir Next looks really good teamed up with Amatic SC. They contrast each other really effectively. OR maybe there is too much contrast?

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The Official Pandora 2015, The unique connection, video, YouTube, 13 April, viewed 8 August 2019, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRoqk_z2Lgg>

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As a small experiment of women's uniqueness and the special bond between a mother and child, we met up with 6 wonderful women, and asked them to let us blindfold their most precious loved ones. Their children!

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Aliotta, C 2016, Evoke emotion through typography, joogpot, viewed 7 August 2019, <http://joogpot.eu/knowledge/16-webdesign/57-evoke-emotion-through-typography>

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What's all this fuss about emotion?

We all know about emotions because we experience them every day. Emotions influence the way we make decisions, evaluate risks, solve problems and categorize information. In advertising and product design, emotions are a really well-known subject. In web design, emotional design has just recently made its way to usability. Design is still useful and usable but when we design for emotion we intentionally trigger emotional responses in our users, keeping them motivated and helping them perceive a personality.

Emoticons: what kind of personality you can perceive from this emoticon?

In another words, when people are emotionally involved, they tend to create a relationship with your site and they will visit it again and again. But most of all, they will share the experience with other people.

3 Reasons to go for emotional design

Research has demonstrated that people without the capacity for emotional response are unable to make simple cognitive decisions, like what dress to wear today or what to eat for lunch. So emotions are important in everyday life, but why in design? Here are 3 reasons why we should go for emotional design:

Emotion dominates decision making

We experience emotion every day and through emotion we actually screen the world around us while making decisions.

How do you decide which sweet to take?

Emotion increases motivation

Emotion, as we saw, commands attention and helps us to focus, it actually makes information memorable, resonant and eventually, actionable. If we trigger the right emotion, people are motivated and chances are high that they will perform the desired action or complete a task.

Does the sticker make you smile and the action is more fun to perform?

Emotion affects memories and creates personalities

We memorize things through association and emotion is the way we create negative/positive associations. Once we have defined the emotion, we give a personality to that product and we interact with it according to that personality.

Is Christmas still brought to you by Coca Cola?

Typography fundamentals and reader mood

Two researchers from Microsoft, Kevin Larson and Rosalind Picard, conducted a study called the Aesthetics of Reading, to demonstrate the benefits of good typograp hy. They found that good typography induces a good mood. In this study, participants were asked to read text with either good or poor typography. The participants who received the good typography performed better on relative subjective duration and on certain cognitive tasks. This should make us think that typography is a design element that needs our attention not only on the web, but in all design that employs the use of typefaces.

Before you start any project that includes the use of typography, there are some important typography fundamentals to take into consideration if you want to keep your reader motivated and browsing your site:

01. How typeface looks

If you are not able to recognize the difference between and , well, this is the time to learn it. There are different font classifications. The most well-known is the one by Maxilliam Vox which you can read a bit about in my blog. What it is important to keep in mind is that typefaces look different and their "design" communicates a different personality and feeling (don't forget to read my previous article, You only like me for my body).

02. Readability and legibility

Although, the two terms seem to define the same thing, in typography the difference in quite distinct.
Legibility is good when we are able to distinguish one character from the other. Readability is more about a block of text and how we can easily go through it. To improve legibility, you have to focus on . Kerning is the space between two specific words.

As you see in this example there is a critical kerning that must be adjusted between the A and the T to avoid misunderstanding.

Today CSS has a property called Optimize Legibility, but I think that Kern.js gives a better result. I suggest that you focus on kerning when you write big headlines.

You can improve readability using tracking.Tracking is the uniform space between letters. In CSS there is the property letter-spacing that does exactly this, spacing letters uniformly, but the plug-in, Lettering.js, also does this.

In the second sentence I gave positive tracking to improve the space between letters, especially between the L and the A.

On the web be sure to use both kerning and tracking for big text and headings, and in all the texts that drive user's attention.

03. High Contrast

Jakob Nielsen, one of the most authoritative voices in user interface, said that generally low contrast text causes eye strain and discomfort to readers. Gray text is sleek and elegant, but this is good on paper, where the result is almost certain not to hurt your eyes. On the screen, things are different because we rely on the brightness of the screen which is not the same for everybody!

Try to avoid making your user struggle to read

04. Scalability

Each time a discussion pops up about responsive design, the common terminology and concepts that get the maximum amount of attention include grids and images, and obviously the settings like "fluid" or "flexible". In 2006, Oliver Reichenstein, founder of Information Architects, wrote an article titled Website is 95% typography, where he pointed out something really important: treat typeface like interface. So always check the size, type and the line length and how these two elements look on different devices.

For example, a good size for screen body text is about 14 and 16px and a line length between 50/75 characters. You can divide text into columns to avoid long lines or give a maximum width based on percentage or ems. It takes a small amount of effort when you code, and gives great results.

05. Hierarchy

A clear understanding of hierarchy results in more beautiful, meaningful, and communicative designs that better serve yFfeour audience. Furthermore, as Steve Krog in his book, Don't Make Me Think, says, "people don't read, but they scan pages".

Can you see any hierarchy here?

06. Tone of voice

When you write for the web, tone of voice is an important tool that helps users understand and define the personality of your site.This is why tone of voice should be consistent and depend on the context and the way typeface looks (see point 01.Look).

A few tips to evoke emotion through typography

There are different and creative ways to use typography on websites to engage your audience. In the following examples, you will learn how typeface can be a powerful tool to express personality, grab attention and create memories.

Draw attention

When you use typography to draw attention, you really have to:

1. Reduce distractions, organizing all the information really well (hierarchy),

2. Check that size and amount of white space are consistent on all devices.

Snowbird

Because people scan pages, you have to organize information for their memory in such a way that there is a sense of control and the task can be completed. Usually the emotions we want to evoke are confidence, trust, consistency and the typefaces used are simple, clear and classical typefaces like: serif, sans serif and also, slab serif.

Snowbird is a site that promotes a resort where the main attraction is the snow and the opportunity to ski and snowboard. Of course, if you are planning a weekend to go snowboarding, you want to be sure that there is snow. In fact, as soon as you load the page, one of the most prominent pieces of information is the weather forecast. A big bold sans serif font is used to indicate the temperature and on the lower part of the site you can see three other different blocks of information, highlight by bold and capital sans serif titles. Font consistency is also on the inside pages where a clear hierarchy helps the reader to easily spot different elements of the site (ie- news, holiday packages...).

Another element you can add to typography to draw attention is of course color. This is Impero, a British creative agency based in London and Sydney. On their website, there is the use of big contrast in colors, yellow and black. Contrast (intended here as different font families and sizes) is also created by the use of three different typefaces: a big, bold and capital sans serif font to indicate where the user is, a second level web font, in slab serif, that describes the page, and finally a simple and plain sans serif font, used for a more descriptive part (like the work descriptions). Typography, along with color, is the only design element used in the whole site, of course transitions between pages also create a dynamic and engaging user experience. The general result is a really straightforward and clear website.

Add character and personality

As human beings, we are able to perceive personality in things and to form relationships based on that personality. You can use typography to communicate personality but when you do so, you should pay attention to:

1. How the font looks, choosing the main typeface carefully, so it will give personality to your website.

2. Giving just one personality and defining the tone of voice.

3. Fitting in with the context.

Only in this way can you easily interact consistently with your audience and forge a strong relationship.

Personality #1: Personal and human

In this case, the feelings you want to evoke are spontaneity, friendliness and authenticity. Fonts used for this purpose are script or handwritten typefaces.

G'NOSH is a British company and on their site, they advertise their healthy food and fresh products. They care about the quality and tradition. The feeling you get when looking at their site is not so different from that which you get when looking at blackboard in a bar. The feeling you get is comfort from knowing that experts' hands have put together a fresh and authentic variety of productsfor you. Big handwritten headings decorate this site, giving information about the brand. Some of them are also links. The main body text is written in a clear slab serif font.
The Fountain of Youth
The site of this French designer and illustrator is really characteristic and creative in the use of different handwriting and script typefaces. He uses a really personal and consistent style throughout the site.The font is creative and unique, as is the way he presents himself and his skills.

When you use script typefaces it is also important not to exaggerate. In this site, the Fountain of Youth, this script is use all over the site. Instead of giving consistency, it just compromises the legibility and the readability of the text. Remember that script fonts are nice if you use them in the right size and context.

Personality #2: Fun and informal

When we go for this approach, the range of typefaces can be really wide. But again, they should fit the context. The feelings we want to evoke are usually happiness, humor, joy and exuberance.
Engage Interactive
This website is gathering money for cancer research, but their tone of voice is fun and humorous. In fact, they are aware that people in a positive mood are able to perform the desired task, in this case, making a donation, better and more easily. So fonts here are all different and this gives movement and color to the page, empowering the sense of humor. Every element in the design is unique and contributes to creating a homogenous look and feel.

Engage is a creative agency in Leeds, UK. The general feeling of this site is humorous. The funny side of this site is the use of an irregular sans serif font that highlights specific sections of the site, like the slideshow or the testimonials. On most parts of the site, like news and work, the font they choose is a slanted, smooth sans serif font, still friendly but able to maximize legibility and create a sense of consistency.

Personality #3: Fun and informal
Chrysler: test of ownership
When the feelings you want to evoke are seriousness, professionalism and credibility, you are not going to use more than two typefaces on your page, and usually these are the classic ones, like serif and sans serif. Also use of color is reduced to the minimum and is used mostly to highlight specific aspects of the website.
With Art Philadelphia
Chrysler's website talks about users and the experience with their cars. The site is really clear. Hierarchy is sturdy and bold. Throughout the site, the font used is a sans serif. Headings are capitalized to command attention and authority (lettering is also applied to improve readability). The experience of driving Chrysler's cars is extended to the way you navigate the website: you perceive a sense of control and precision in the movement. Colors are really limited and images are predominant to enhance user experience.

On the site, With Art Philadelphia, the feelings they want to instill are trust and reliability. The audience of this website can be different in age and interests, so they "play it safe", using a plain, young sans serif font for headings and call to action buttons, and a more traditional serif for body text, breadcrumbs and small links. The use of color is really limited to cyan, white and dark gray, while text and images follow a rigid and clear hierarchy.

Create memories
The Production Kitchen
Typography can tell a story. Aristotle, the Greek philosopher, said that people can easily memorize stories if they recognize a start, a main plot and a conclusion. So, if you want to enhance memories and create a unique experience, you need a sophisticated font that reminds the reader of something else through association. The feelings you want to evoke are engagement, desirability and interaction. The fonts used can range from scripts to a simple sans serif.
Ride for the brand
The Production Kitchen is a great website to explore. The color palette is based on pastel colors. The fonts used are different kinds of handwriting, hand-designed sans serif and serif fonts and design elements, along with pictures. The large choice of different typefaces gives the site a unique feeling which perfectly fits the purpose of this company, which produces handmade cupcakes to order. The overall look is cute, but also catchy and exciting.

The Ride creative agency is instead telling you a completely different story. Black and white flourishes, ink drawings and old style pictures decorate the entire website. But what really brings you back to the Old West is the use of different chiseled and hand tooled typefaces. If you haven't realized it, The Ride is an agency from Texas. I think the association is clear throughout the website. The design is decorative, but also extremely fun and inviting.

Conclusions
Note: This article is created based on the talk I gave at the Joomla Day Netherlands conference, that took place in Zeist on 19- 21 April 2013. The slides of the presentation are available on Slideshare. Comments, corrections and improvements are always appreciated.
Typography is the real, almost invisible protagonist of any website. When we work with typography, we inevitably have to consider different fundamental aspects that can influence a reader's mood. In the end, if we want our users' experience to be engaging and exciting, we should definitely consider adding emotion to our website. When we do so, we have to keep in mind that emotion, personality and tone of voice are consistent throughout the site and communicate the brand's values in a correct way. Only if we have given emotion and typography the right consideration, will we be able to communicate in a way that appeals to and amuses our audience.

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We all know about emotions because we experience them every day. Emotions influence the way we make decisions, evaluate risks, solve problems and categorize information. In advertising and product design, emotions are a really well-known subject. In web design, emotional design has just recently made its way to usability.

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Kolenda, N 2019, 'Font psychology', blog post, Nick Kolenda Psychology and Marketing, viewed 7 August 2019, <https://www.nickkolenda.com/font-psychology/>

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Welcome to a scientific resource on fonts.

Do you spend WAY too long looking for fonts? Do you have trouble finding fonts that "feel right" for your context?

Well, this article is for you.

I read 75+ academic articles on typefaces. And I compiled the actionable findings into this article. By the end, you'll know how to decipher the "personality" of any font, so that you can choose the best font in any context.

PDF Bonus: This article is 3,104 words. Click to download the PDF so that you can reference it moving forward.

PART 1: How We Subconsciously Evaluate Fonts

Let's play a game.

Among the fonts above, which is better for:

Like most people, you probably chose C, A, then B.

They felt right? Seemed fitting? Looked good?

Sure. But WHY did those fonts feel right? Most people can't articulate the reason because the mechanism occurs subconsciously.

So here's the answer...

If you follow my content, you've heard me explain your brain's associative network.

If you're a newb here, then watch my quirky video about spreading activation:

Your associative network plays a role in font perception. How? I summarized the steps in the following model:

Let's look at each step...

STEP 1: We perceive a font

You see a font...and that's it. Pretty straightforward. If you want a deeper understanding, Koch (2011) explains the biological components of font perception (see pgs 17-27).

STEP 2: We activate PERCEPTUAL associations

Fonts contain various components (e.g., line, weight, size, orientation). When you see a font, your brain disentangles those perceptual components:

Big whoop, right?

Well...yeah. It IS a big deal. To appreciate the importance, you need to understand a crucial concept.

Look at the traits from the previous image:

Notice something? Those traits are general adjectives. They describe stimuli outside of the font world. And that's crucial.

Fonts share visual characteristics from the real world. If you want to choose an appropriate font, then choose a font that visually resembles your context:

Here's an example.

Kang and Choi (2013) created ads for a cell phone. When ads emphasized the "slim" nature of the phone, condensed typefaces performed better:

However, some ads referenced the elegant nature of the phone. In those cases, the opposing font performed better:

In both cases, the font matched the visual qualities of the product.

However, font traits can also be metaphorical. Suppose the ad emphasized the phone's speed. Even though technological speed is intangible, we associate visual traits with general speed - such as a forward tilt:

"What artistic conventions are used to convey the motion of animate and inanimate items in still images, such as drawings and photographs? One graphic convention involves depicting items leaning forward into their movement, with greater leaning conveying greater speed." ( Walker, 2015, pp. 111)

Need to convey technological speed? Then tilt your font forward. Maybe add a slight blur. Incorporate traits that are visually related to speed.

It might sound far-fetched, but Lewis and Walker (1989) found that people identify "fast" related words more easily in slanted fonts.

STEP 3: We activate DIRECT associations

Conversely, direct associations refer to the aggregate combination of font traits - usually the font family.

"...[direct] associations refer to the influence of historical precedence on affective response to typography. The typeface Fraktur has many associations with Nazi Germany, and Helvetica is commonly associated with the U.S. government since it is used by the IRS on tax forms." ( Shaikh, 2007, pp. 21)

Those fonts acquire meaning through your semantic network. Whenever you see a font (e.g., Fraktur), you associate meaning - based on the context. That includes semantic meaning (e.g., Nazi Germany) and emotional meaning (e.g., disgust).

Whenever you encounter that font in a future context, you modify the original connections in your network:

If the context is SIMILAR, you'll STRENGTHEN the connections

If the context is DISSIMILAR, you'll WEAKEN the connections

If the context is NEW, you'll ADD new connections

That's how fonts acquire meaning (see Shaikh, 2007). It's a never-ending process that we've been performing our entire lives.

STEP 4: Activation spreads to related nodes

When you encounter a font, you activate the perceptual and direct associations in your network. In turn, the activation spreads to related nodes.

Suppose you see the logo for Avon - a women's beauty company:

You'll activate the node for that overall typeface and logo. Thanks to spreading activation, you'll activate direct associations:

Where have you seen it?

Which topics do you associate with it?

How was your experience - good or bad?

In addition, you'll disaggregate the perceptual font traits. Since the typeface is tall and thin, for example, you'll activate those nodes in your network.

But wait...tall and thin? Aren't those traits usually associated with beauty? Aha! Yes they are. When you see those perceptual traits, you'll trigger an extra wave of activation toward the node for beauty.

Good job, Avon.

However, don't jump the gun. At this point, you might be thinking: Well, if their node for beauty is activated, then people will perceive the font - or product - to be more beautiful.

It's tempting. And I used to believe that explanation. When I published my article on advertising, I said:

"Activation spreads toward your node for beauty. That activation gives you a new temporary lens. With your concept of beauty more prevalent, you perceive stimuli in the immediate environment to be more beautiful."

But that's wrong. My bad. I deserve a punch in the face.

Font evaluation is more nuanced. In a few steps, you'll see why that explanation is wrong.

Step 5: We combine the activation into a collective meaning

In the previous step, the font activated related nodes in your network. At this point, you combine those activated concepts into a collective meaning for the font.

The collective meaning is a combination of semantic concepts (e.g., beauty) and emotional feelings (e.g., pleasantness). Because of the concoction of meaning, you often can't articulate it. The font just "feels right" or it doesn't...which is the next step.

STEP 6: We compare the collective meaning to the context

Let's revisit the explanation from my advertising article.

I explained that we associate beauty with tall and thin traits. Because of that connection, tall and thin fonts activate the concept of beauty (which will cause you to perceive stimuli to be more beautiful).

So...why is that explanation wrong? Well, consider the font, Fraktur - which was used for Nazi propaganda:

With the previous explanation, you should NEVER use Fraktur. Since people associate it with Nazi Germany, spreading activation would trigger negative emotions. And those negative emotions would transfer to the immediate stimuli.

But it doesn't work that way. When you evaluate fonts, you consider the appropriateness of the font (see Doyle & Bottomley, 2004).

Once we generate the collective meaning, we compare that meaning to the context:

If the meaning is CONGRUENT, we develop a POSITIVE EVALUATION

If the meaning is INCONGRUENT, we develop a NEGATIVE EVALUATION

That's why you can use Fraktur in certain contexts (e.g., documentaries). It doesn't matter if people associate negative emotions with it. Those negative emotions won't tarnish their evaluation, as long as the font is appropriate for the context.

It sounds like common sense. And it is. But I needed to verbalize that step because the underlying mechanism is important.

So...what's the mechanism? Why does appropriateness lead to a positive or negative evaluation? That's our final step...

STEP 7: We form our evaluation based on the degree of fluency

We evaluate fonts -positively or negatively - through processing fluency.

When you process stimuli quickly and easily, it feels good. And you misattribute those positive emotions to the stimulus. And that's the answer.

Suppose that you see the logo for Avon. That exposure will activate beauty-related concepts in your network (due to the perceptual and direct associations).

You'll then compare that collective meaning to the context. Aha! Here, the context is beauty products. It's congruent with the activated nodes. Because the concept of beauty is already activated, you'll experience higher fluency:

In turn, that higher fluency will trigger positive emotions that you'll misattribute to the context. The font will "feel right."

Now, in that example, you processed the font and THEN the context. But the mechanism also works in reverse.

If you're watching a documentary on World War II, Nazi-related concepts are activated in your network. If you THEN see the font Fraktur, you'll process the font more easily because of the overlapping connections. That ease will make the font feel right.

And that's it. That's how we evaluate fonts. Still with me? Good.

Now that you understand the cognitive process, let's apply it...

PART 2: Which Font Traits Should You Choose?

Fonts differ in their perceptual traits. For example:

This section explains which traits perform better in certain contexts. If you want more detail, Henderson et al. (2004) and Li (2009) are helpful references.

Serif vs. Sans-Serif

Serifs are slight projections at the end of typefaces.

Designers love debating serifs vs. sans-serif fonts. Based on the research, though, it seems counterproductive. Other traits play a bigger role.

Nonetheless, here are some findings:

Serif Fonts Are More Readable Via Print

Well...supposedly. Some designers claim that serifs help guide the eye flow:

"Roman typefaces are more legible because the theory states that serifs assist in the horizontal flow of reading and eye movements." ( De Lange et al., 1993, pp. 246)

But I'm not convinced. We don't read text in smooth patterns. Our eyes jump across lines of text- in movements called saccades (see Becker & Fuchs, 1969).

Since the movement is jerky, the "eye flow" claim seems like a myth.

Sans-Serif Fonts Are More Readable Via Screens

This finding seems more plausible.

Computer screens display information through a pixelated grid. Due to that box-like structure, a serif may be less identifiable.

With today's technology, it shouldn't be an issue. But it might play a role if you're working with very small fonts.

Serif Fonts Convey Elegance and Rationale

Generally, serif fonts are more effective for formal or scientific contexts.

In one study, people evaluated scientific text more favorably when the font contained serifs ( Kaspar et al., 2015). Other research suggests that serif fonts seem more elegant and beautiful ( Tantillo, Lorenzo-Aiss, & Mathisen, 1995).

Sans-Serif Fonts Convey Informality and Innovation

Conversely, people perceive sans-serif fonts to be more informal and innovative ( Tantillo, Lorenzo-Aiss, & Mathisen, 1995).

Light vs. Bold

Light Fonts Convey Beauty and Femininity

I explained the reason in this section.

Medium Weight Fonts Are Most Readable

Luckiesh and Moss (1940) researched the optimal weight for readability. They displayed "Memphis" in different weights, and they found that medium weights were most readable:

Bold Fonts Convey Power and Masculinity

Researchers argue that bold fonts convey an extreme connotation:

"Bold can be made to mean 'daring', 'assertive', or 'solid' and 'substantial', for instance, and its opposite can be made to mean 'timid', or 'insubstantial'. But the values may also be reversed. Boldness may have a more negative meaning. It may be made to mean 'domineering', 'overbearing'." ( Van Leeuwen, 2006, pp. 148)

Lieven et al. (2015) also explain a connection between heavy typefaces and masculinity. Since people associate a bulky stature with men, bold fonts match that visual trait.

Rounded vs. Angular

Rounded Fonts Convey Comfort, Softness, & Femininity

Bar and Neta (2006) published a paper called, "Humans Prefer Visual Curved Objects." They found that...well...humans prefer visual curved objects. Angular shapes trigger an evolutionary threat:

"...sharp transitions in contour might convey a sense of threat, and therefore trigger a negative bias..." ( Bar & Neta, 2006, pp. 645)

Now, if context were irrelevant, then people would prefer rounded fonts over angular fonts. However, context DOES matter. As I explained, appropriateness is important.

That said, rounded fonts are more effective for domains related to:

Angular Fonts Convey Formality, Durability, & Masculinity

Conversely, angular fonts perform better for:

Simple vs. Complex

Simple Fonts Convey Directness

If your message is direct and straightforward, use a rigid typeface without any ornaments ( Li, 2009). The simplistic font will match the simplistic nature of the context - thus increasing fluency.

Complex Fonts Convey Uniqueness

Processing fluency conveys abundance and familiarity. Usually, those traits are beneficial. But not always.

With unique products, familiarity is detrimental. You want some disfluency because it'll reinforce the distinctiveness of your product.

In one study, people perceived more value in a gourmet cheese when the font was difficult to read ( Pocheptsova, Labroo, & Dhar, 2010). The complex font became a signal for uniqueness - which was congruent and appropriate with the context.

Slanted vs. Straight

Slanted Fonts Convey Movement

Earlier, I explained why slanted fonts convey movement and speed (see Walker, 2015).

Straight Fonts Convey Stability

Likewise, straight fonts - with their rigid structure - convey stability and durability.

Lowercase vs. Uppercase

Lowercase Conveys Compassion and Innovation

Oosterhout (2013) examined branding and perceptual characteristics. She found that lowercase letters are particularly effective for "caregiver" brands that promote compassion and altruism. She also found that thin lowercase letters are congruent with "creator" brands that emphasize innovation.

Uppercase Conveys Power and Strength

Oosterhout (2013) also found that uppercase letters are effective for "hero" brands that convey qualities related to energy, courageousness, and focus:

"BWM, Diesel, Duracell, Nike and Sony are also using capitals in their word marks, to express their power and strength." (pp. 39)

Mixed Case Letters Are Most Readable

Garvey, Pietucha, and Meeker (1997) studied legibility in road signs. They found that mixed case letters are most readable.

They proposed two reasons:

EXPECTATION CONGRUENCE: People expect to see road signs in mixed case. Thus, they process words more easily when the format is congruent with their expectations.

GREATER DISTINCTION: Uppercase letters share the same height, thus creating a rectangular block of text. Because mixed case letters are different heights, people perceive more distinction between letters.

Separated vs. Connected

Separated Fonts Convey Fragmentation and Individuality

When letters are separated, fonts convey the perception of individuality:

"[connectivity] has its own metaphoric potential. External disconnection can suggest 'atomisation', or 'fragmentation', and external connection 'wholeness', or 'integration." ( Van Leeuwen, 2006, pp. 149)

Connected Fonts Convey Unity and Collectivism

Likewise, connected letters portray the perception of closeness

Connected fonts aren't necessarily cursive. The letters simply need to touch.

Condensed vs. Extended

Condensed Fonts Convey Tightness and Precision

Earlier, I mentioned that a condensed font performed better for an ad promoting a "slim" cell phone ( Kang & Choi, 2013). That's because of the perceptual overlap:

"Maximally condensed typefaces make maximal use of limited space. They are precise, economical, packing the page with content. Wide typefaces, by contrast, spread themselves around, using space as if it is in unlimited supply." (pp. 148)

Extended Fonts Convey Spaciousness and Relaxation

Conversely:

"Wide typefaces may also be seen in a positive light, as providing room to breathe, room to move, while condensed typefaces may, by contrast, be seen as cramped, overcrowded, restrictive of movement." ( Kang & Choi, 2013, pp. 148)

Short vs. Tall

Short Fonts Convey Heaviness and Stability

Font height resembles our metaphorical conception of gravity:

"The meaning potential of horizontality and verticality is ultimately based on our experience of gravity, and of walking upright. Horizontal orientation, for instance, could suggest 'heaviness', 'solidity', but also 'inertia', 'self-satisfaction'" ( Kang & Choi, 2013, pp. 149)

If you need to portray something as durable or immovable, a short font might work well.

Tall Fonts Convey Lightness and Luxury

Likewise, tall fonts convey lightness and quickness. The meaning can also extend to metaphorical associations of aspiration and ambition ( Kang & Choi, 2013).

Other research has linked verticality with luxury ( Van Rompay et al. 2012). If you need to portray a luxurious product, a tall font might be a good choice.

PART 3: Putting It All Together

I threw a ton of info at you. But you can use this article as a reference guide. Feel free to download the PDF so that you can reference it moving forward.

Or if you need to choose a font quickly, then use the table below (which I adapted from Henderson, Giese, & Cote, 2004). Just look for a group of traits that describe your context. Then choose a font with similar visual characteristics.

Want some more content? My other articles expand on the cognitive aspects of design and linguistics. You might enjoy:

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How to Choose the Right Font (According to Science)

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Welcome to a scientific resource on fonts. Do you spend WAY too long looking for fonts? Do you have trouble finding fonts that "feel right" for your context? Well, this article is for you. I read 75+ academic articles on typefaces. And I compiled the actionable findings into this article.

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Coffee and Connection:

You can't have one without the other

We should not be living without either

The Coffee Connection: it's obvious, isn't it?

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Assumption of emotion before seeing my video:

refer to "schoolyard banter" post above

How do they feel about coffee?

it's just another drink; OR

it's my "fix", my "pick me up", my "drug" to survive

it's not good for me but I can't live without it

How do I want them to feel after they have seen my video?

relieved, relaxed, inspired, invigorated, loved, connected, refuelled

What tone/s or emotion/s will you need to convey to convince your audience of your promotional message?

it's safe, healthy, nurturing, "good for you", part of "self care"

encouragement to participate, connect, nurture, feel "not alone"

social, connected, belonging

there's hope; optimism

warmth and inviting

Colours:

Yellow: optimism, clarity, warmth; uplifting and illuminating; associated with confidence and success; enthusiasm, happiness, spontaneity, positivity

Orange: friendly, cheerful, confidence; encouragement; social and inviting; excitement, warmth and enthusiasm

Blue: trust, dependable, strength; calm, tranquility, serenity, peace; loyalty, integrity, responsibility

Green: peaceful, growth, health; renewal and life; refreshing and peaceful; abundance and plentiful; restful, harmony, balance

Which one would lead?

orange

green would be a close second

blue drives the message home, solidifies it, makes it trustworthy

And is there a way of pulling them together?

fiddle with triad schemes - a tricky way to go but not impossible.

The colours do not need to be equally weighted. Play up the orange. Blue becomes a natural complement. Green completes the triad

If I had to lose one, which would it be?

Yellow. Orange is a combination of yellow and red and so some of the properties of yellow (the ones I am looking for) could be argued as already being subtly present? Or is this wishful thinking?

Saturation: less saturated perhaps? Not quite pastel but very much gentle and harmonious. I'm not wanting a pale or washed out effect but not a bright and bold, in your face effect either.
Is it possible to have an overall low saturation tone with the odd stand out colour?

Brightness: daylight and "sunny"

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graf1x 2019, 'Color Meaning and Psychology', blog post, GRAF1X, viewed 30 July 2019, <https://graf1x.com/color-psychology-emotion-meaning-poster/>

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graf1x 2019, 'Color Meaning and Psychology', blog post, GRAF1X, viewed 30 July 2019, <https://graf1x.com/color-psychology-emotion-meaning-poster/>

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Unless you are a professional artist or art critic it is fair to say that the color meaning and psychology is based primarily on instinct and emotion. How someone feels about a color or design is entirely up to the individual and there are no right or wrong answers. However the way we feel about color can often be attributed to our subconscious and history, as well as personal preference. PURCHASE THIS POSTER Color meaning and psychology poster will be your most useful reference giving you detailed information that will enable you to quickly identify and select the most appropriate color for any project, occasion, or activity.
Throughout the history color schemes has often been used to define different feelings, seasons and ceremonies depending on one's culture and origin. For example early Native Americans used different colored paints to symbolize times of war and death, as well as for spiritual ceremonies and seasonal harvests. Steeped in history throughout many cultures, certain colors are associated with particular feelings and emotions that are still very relevant in modern design.

Colors can affect how we feel subconsciously. This means that one may not even know they are being affected by the color of an environment or artwork. The feeling behind meaning of the colors sees hues grouped into two main groups commonly known as warm colors and cool colors.

Color Meanings and Psychology

The color of passion and drama. This color attracts the most attention and is associated with strong emotions such as love and anger. Red is the color used universally to signify danger, courage, strength, and power. Red is stimulating, vibrant and exciting. Red inspires desire with a strong link to sexuality and increased appetites. In Chinese culture red represents luck and prosperity. Use red when you want to get pulses racing and to inspire action. However, use carefully as red can evoke feelings of aggression and cause visual strain. Lovers of red are passionate with an enthusiasm for life.

Orange Color Meaning

The color of encouragement. The combination of yellow and red makes orange convey excitement, warmth and enthusiasm. Social and inviting, this is the color of the extrovert, exuding happiness and joy, releasing inhibitions. Need to be inspired into action or have a positive outlook on life? Orange is a motivating and encouraging color. Orange is appealing to young people. It stimulates the appetite and is associated with healthy good. However, the negative connotations of orange include insincerity, exhibitionism and self indulgence.

The color of optimism. Yellow is a compelling color that conveys youthful, fresh energy. This color of sunshine is uplifting and illuminating and associated with success and confidence. Yellow stimulates the left side of the brain, helping with clear thinking and quick decision making. Yellow grabs attention because the eye sees yellow first. The downside of yellow is that it can induce anxiety and cause one to be over-critical. It also signifies cowardice.

The color of sensitivity - The passion of red combined with the purity of white create this color associated with love, tranquillity and femininity. Pink has associations with tenderness and nurturing while conveying a sense of safety and even vulnerability. Seeing the world through "rose (pink) colored glasses" is holds a negative connotation as being associated with being unrealistic and overly optimistic.

Blue Color Meaning

The color of trust. Blue, the shade of the sea and the sky, is thought to induce calm and convey tranquillity, serenity and peace. The popular color instils confidence and inspires feelings of trust, loyalty, integrity and responsibility. Cool blue is conservative and can also be perceived as aloof. Blue tends to suppress the appetite - there are not many foods associated with blue in nature.

Green Color Meaning

The color of growth and health. Think of nature and see green in all its glory expressing renewal and life. Green has a strong association as a refreshing and peaceful color. It evokes feeling of abundance and a plentiful environment while providing a restful and secure feeling. The prosperity signified by green can be negatively perceived as materialistic and possessive.

Violet Color Meaning

The color of spirituality. The energy of red with the calm of blue combine to create violet, a color that inspires reflection and self awareness. It is the color of the sensitive, compassionate intuitive soul - the introvert. Also, violet has long been associated with royalty, and characteristics of quality and luxury. Overuse of violet can invoke irritability and arrogance.

Brown Color Meaning

The color of the earth. Stability and a solid foundation is the message that emanates from the color brown. This color relates to things that are natural and simple. Brown is thought to be dull, but is reliable and wholesome. Although frugal and stingy, brown is a color of safety and quiet confidence; warm and reassuring. Sadly, brown is among the least favourite colors, but conveys honesty and sincerity. On its own, brown seems unsophisticated, but when combined with others can become quite elegant.

Grey Color Meaning

The color of compromise. Grey is considered to be an unemotional, detatched color seeking to avoid attention. It conveys gloom and depression. Very conservative, grey has a stabilizing effect as it is very neutral, but can also conjure up feelings of frustration. Grey is linked with maturity and protection, being reliable and practical. Grey would not be considered a glamorous colour, yet is still elegant.

Black Color Meaning

The color of mystery. Black is actually the lack of colour. It covers, hides and implies that there is a barrier. A strong and powerful color, black is formal and sophisticated, sexy and secretive. It is the color of things that are scary and evil. Black conveys pessimism and a lack of hope. While black has many negative associations, it is a colour that signifies power and control. It is considered unfriendly and intimidating, yet still refined, elegant and confident. Black is helpful to other colours, being a strong contrast and making them stand out more.

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Unless you are a professional artist or art critic it is fair to say that the color meaning and psychology is based primarily on instinct and emotion. How someone feels about a color or design is entirely up to the individual and there are no right or wrong answers.

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Connection: critical to mental health - looking after yourself/your mind

Coffee: so many physical health benefits - looking after your body/ honouring the vessel that carries you

The Sisterhood: women supporting women. It takes a village ... and we will create it!

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I need to appeal to the emotional longing of these time poor and weary women and convince them that taking time out for social connection is as important as taking time out to eat. Nourishing the soul is as critical as nourishing the body.

I need to appeal to their intelligence and not just "sell" them coffee as a linear/simple product. Why coffee over tea? Or hot chocolate? Or a glass of iced water? Promote the health benefits of coffee: "hey exhausted Mom, you need to take care of you! Did you know coffee can do that? Here, drink coffee!"

Why Infusi coffee over any other? At its heart is another Mom trying to carve her path along the road also - just like you.

Feeling alone and semi isolated or disconnected or living in the "mummy bubble" and lamenting modern society's lack of "the village" is an all too common Mom conversation. At one point I considered coming at it from the opposite stand point and looking at the ill effects of loneliness, etc but these women already know this. They have felt it. Give them images and sights and scenes that tantalise them: being supported, belonging, being part of a sisterhood, connecting, not being alone - just plain and simple relief.

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United States but still relevant

Latham, M 2017, 'Marketing to the "Mom" Demographic', blog post, Recurly, 29 August, viewed 30 July 2019, <https://blog.recurly.com/marketing-to-the-mom-demographic>

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In marketing and advertising, "key demographics" are the linchpin around which campaigns are formulated. The demographic informs marketers' efforts to create highly tailored messages that will convert the most number of new customers and gain the highest amount of revenue from them. These target demographics of course vary by product and industry, and their interests and relative amounts of spending power, perhaps even somewhat determine, what is ultimately produced and sold.

For example, different genres of television programming such as sports, sitcoms, reality, and drama target very different audience groups. And for a wide range of products and services, millennials are the most critical demographic to convert, due to their sheer numbers, their comfort with leading-edge technology, and the high value they place on convenience and flexibility.

One key demographic segment are mothers who comprise a huge audience: in the U.S. they number 85 million . And women in general are an extremely valuable audience, responsible for 85% of the household income spending in the U.S. each year, amounting to $2.1 trillion, and spanning a wide variety of verticals and product types.

Like many other demographics, mothers have jumped on the digital bandwagon wholeheartedly. According to a recent eMarketer study , "Mothers are a highly digital group and have been for some time, but their usage of digital is constantly evolving, often at a rapid pace.... And while U.S. mothers may share certain characteristics, they are anything but a uniform group." This lack of uniformity, of course, likely poses a challenge to marketers and advertisers.

But that doesn't mean that there aren't some identifiable trends. The eMarketer report found that younger mothers, perhaps like other millennials, spend more time with digital video than do older mothers. And married mothers are more likely than single moms to practice "showrooming" when shopping-visiting a store or stores to see the product for themselves before they buy it online at a lower price.

eMarketer estimates that more than 95% of all U.S. mothers are internet users, spending about three and a half hours per day on it. For many, it is their main source of entertainment and the first place they go for information. And, like many of us, mothers primarily use their smartphone to go online. Today, nearly nine in ten mothers have a smartphone, although in 2013 fewer than two-thirds did.

The report also found that streaming video, which is undeniably popular amongst nearly all demographics, has a big audience among mothers. And internet of things (IoT) technology has begun to gain a following amongst moms as well.

There are also, unsurprisingly, a wide variety of box-of-the-month subscription services that focus on mothers . Yes, there are subscription diaper services, but there's also a number of boxes geared toward the challenges and joys of pregnancy, and of course, boxes for the baby too, with different selections of toys, accessories, clothes, and baby care products. As well, there are boxes that appeal more broadly to women in general, such as boxes with products related to fashion, accessories, cosmetics, fitness, and more.

Of course, marketing to any broad demographic can be tricky, and mothers are no different . Brands need to be sure their messages aren't outdated and their voice is authentic. Once the message is right, (along with the " 4 P's of marketing "-product, price, promotion, and place) and prospects are ready to convert, e-commerce merchants need to make sure the rest of the sales process is as hassle-free as possible.

For subscription businesses, this means having the flexibility to offer a variety of different plans, making the payment process as easy as possible and taking the kind of payments that the target demographic prefers, effectively dealing with failed payments, mitigating churn, and so much more.

Find out how Recurly can support your subscription business. Talk to a Recurly expert at (844) 732-8759 or sign up for a demo below.

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In marketing and advertising, "key demographics" are the linchpin around which campaigns are formulated. The demographic informs marketers' efforts to create highly tailored messages that will convert the most number of new customers and gain the highest amount of revenue from them.

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Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2013, Media Release: Aussie mums by numbers, cat. no. 4215, viewed 30 July 2019, <https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/4125.0~Jan%202013~Media%20Release~Aussie%20mums%20by%20numbers%20(Media%20Release)~6153>

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10 May 2013

Happy Mother's Day Australia!

To help celebrate this Mother's Day the Australian Bureau of Statistics has put together some interesting statistics on Australian mothers.

The median age of mothers who registered a birth in 2011 was 30.6 years, up from 30.0 years in 2001.

2011 was the first time birth registrations in Australia exceeded 300,000 (301,617 in 2011).

In 2011, women could expect to have 1.9 children in their lifetime.

The number of pregnancies resulting in multiple births has increased consistently since the 1970s. In 2011, 4,560 pregnancies resulted in multiple births being registered. Of these, 62 were triplets or higher order multiples.

In 2011, 357,500 women had a job while pregnant, of which 151,200 (or 42 per cent) were employees entitled to paid maternity leave. Of those entitled, 87 per cent took paid maternity leave either on full pay, half pay or a combination of both full pay and half pay for the birth of their child.

A higher proportion of mothers whose youngest child was aged 5 years and under are employed now than in 2006-07. In 2011-12, 53 per cent of women whose youngest child was aged 5 years and under were employed, compared to 50 per cent in 2006-07.

When their youngest child was aged 6-14 years, the proportion of mothers who were employed increased to 75 per cent in 2011-12.

In 2011-12, 65 per cent of employed mothers with children aged 5 years and under worked part time. This decreased to 55 per cent when the youngest child was aged 6-14 years.

In 2011, 86 per cent of mothers who returned to work after the birth of their child used at least one flexible work arrangement to assist with the care of their child - most commonly working part time (76 per cent), using flexible working hours (40 per cent) and working from home (30 per cent).

Grandparents were relied upon by 27 per cent of mothers as their main type of child care when they started or returned to work after the birth of their child in 2011.

To find out more about mothers see the ABS online products: Gender Indicators, Australia (cat. no. 4125.0), Births, Australia, 2011 (cat. no 3301.0), and Pregnancy and Employment Transitions, Australia, Nov 2011 (cat. no. 4913.0).
Media note:
When reporting ABS data the Australian Bureau of Statistics (or ABS) must be attributed as the source.

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4125.0 - Gender Indicators, Australia, Jan 2013

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10 May 2013 Happy Mother's Day Australia! To help celebrate this Mother's Day the Australian Bureau of Statistics has put together some interesting statistics on Australian mothers. The median age of mothers who registered a birth in 2011 was 30.6 years, up from 30.0 years in 2001.

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What would you need for sound and tripod/steady filming, etc?

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IF I figure out the skills and try filming content myself, at least I own an iPhone! phew.

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austinmcconnell 2019, Can You shoot A Feature Film On An iPhone?, video, YouTube, 16 February, viewed 30 July 2019, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzVAdUIBBSk&feature=youtu.be>

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Can You Shoot A Feature Film On An iPhone?

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BestVineVideos 2013, Can a Gum Commercial Make You Cry?, video, YouTube, 7 September, viewed 30 July 2019, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdnFvPamz54&feature=youtu.be>

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Lush Cosmetics North America 2018, Women Supporting Women: Meet Genieve, video, YouTube, 4 May, viewed 30 July 2019, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4LruGhjnf8&feature=youtu.be>

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These mommas are:

tired / drained / exhausted

not wanting to waste time or money

barely get to enjoy their cuppa each day so want it to be sensational

juggling many many burdens and emotions each hour

don't get a lot of time to rest

very little "me" time

their daily coffee is both a much needed pep and a reminder that they are "worth it" (back to it has to count!)

socially isolated

missing connection. disconnected from workforce, old friends, the "before kids" life.

everything becomes an effort

loneliness

feeling judged and not accepted

stressed / anxious / both

at the end of their tether

relying heavily on the sisterhood (if they have it)

Can't always make it "out" (aka to a coffee shop) but that connection with a girlfriend over the kitchen table can be a lifesaver somedays

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Mothers aged 31 - 50 years old.

Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that the proportion of persons drinking coffee in the 31-50 years age group is around 63% - making it the second largest group (next to 51-70 yrs at 66%)
Among coffee drinkers, the largest consumers, according to the Ray Morgan findings, are people who work long hours and parents.

This makes me think mothers aged 31-50 years old are a significant target market.

This is also my demographic. I am a mother, aged 45 years. So, in addition to library, statistical and online research, I am in a unique position to be surrounded by my target market on a daily basis. Talk to the Mums in the school yard, interview various micro demographics in this group - younger Moms, older Moms, young kids, older kids, etc. Not scientific and very very subjective "research" of a very small population but it will certainly feed me with ideas and possibly trigger new things to consider or think about.

The woman who owns and operates Infusi Coffee fits into this demographic also which provides another solid tie in / marketing point.

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Almost touching, but let me sad, not warm and "connected" and rejuvenated, etc

NESCAFÉ UK & Ireland 2017, NESCAFE Gold - For the Moments That Matter, video, YouTube, 9 October, viewed 27 July 2019, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZtEXMBbaZg>

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NESCAFÉ Gold | For the Moments That Matter

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Interesting article further boosting the argument (more specific).

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A review of caffeine's effects on cognitive, physical and occupational performance

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Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2014, Australian Health Survey: Nutrition First Results - Foods and Nutrients, 2011-12, cat. no. 4364.0.55.007, viewed 30 July 2019, <https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/4364.0.55.007~2011-12~Main%20Features~Non-alcoholic%20beverages~701>

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The Non-alcoholic beverages food group includes tea, coffee, juices, cordials, soft drinks, energy drinks and water.

Almost nine out of ten people reported drinking plain water, including eight out of ten who consumed domestic water (including tap, tank/rain water), and one in ten who drank packaged water including mineral water see Table 4.3. The median amount of drinking water drunk by water consumers was one litre (1,000 grams) per day see Table 6.3.

COFFEE AND TEA

Coffee (including coffee substitutes) was consumed by nearly half the population (46%), while tea was consumed by 38% of people. However, consumption of each beverage type was closely associated with age. For example, coffee was consumed by around one in twenty (4.5%) children aged 2 to 18 years, one in three (34%) people aged 19-30 years and two in three (66%) of the population aged 51-70 years see Table 4.1. Among those who consumed coffee, the median amount of daily consumption was 330 mls (equivalent to a large mug), while the median daily amount of tea consumed by tea drinkers was 400 mls (around two small cups) see Table 6.1. Of the 16.3 million coffees consumed on an average day in 2011-12, around two-thirds were made from instant coffee powder, with one-third from ground coffee.

SOFT DRINKS AND FLAVOURED MINERAL WATERS

Soft drinks (including flavoured mineral waters) were consumed by 29% of the population. The level of consumption peaked among 14 to 18 year-olds, with 51% of males and 38% of females in this age group consuming a soft drink on the day prior to interview see Table 4.1. Almost one-third (32%) of all soft drink consumed was intense (artificially) sweetened, with 29% of males and 37% of the females who consumed soft drink consuming an intense-sweetened variety see Table 5.3. Among the population who did report consuming soft drink, the median daily amount consumed was the equivalent of a regular can (375 mls) see Table 6.1.

FRUIT AND VEGETABLE JUICES AND DRINKS

Overall, just over one-quarter (27%) of the population consumed Fruit and vegetable juices and drinks on the day prior to interview see Table 4.1. The overwhelming majority (95%) of these beverages were made from fruit (rather than vegetable or a fruit and vegetable blend) see Table 5.3. Prevalence of consumption of Fruit and vegetable juices and drinks was highest among the 2-3 year olds with 44% having consumed juice or fruit drink on the day prior to interview. The proportion consuming these products declined with increasing age until the 51-70 years group (21%), but was slightly higher again among the 71 years and over group (25%) see Table 4.1. The median daily amount of Fruit and vegetable juices and drinks consumed was 283 mls see Table 6.1.

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4364.0.55.007 - Australian Health Survey: Nutrition First Results - Foods and Nutrients, 2011-12

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The Non-alcoholic beverages food group includes tea, coffee, juices, cordials, soft drinks, energy drinks and water. Almost nine out of ten people reported drinking plain water, including eight out of ten who consumed domestic water (including tap, tank/rain water), and one in ten who drank packaged water including mineral water see Table 4.3.

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Smith, A 2014. 'The brew crew: Australia’s heaviest coffee drinkers', blog post, Ray Morgan, 6 March, viewed 30 July 2019, <http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/5470-brew-crew-australias-heaviest-coffee-drinkers-201403060304>

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March 06 2014

Finding No. 5470

Topic: Press Release

Country: Australia

Is Australia kicking the caffeine habit? In the last decade, the average coffee consumption by Australian adults has declined slowly but steadily, from 10.5 cups to 9.2 cups per week. Or could we just be drinking a stronger brew, thus reducing the need for so many cups? After all, café visitation is on the rise, as is ownership of coffee-making machines.

The proportion of Australians aged 18+ who go to a café for a coffee or tea in an average three-month period has grown gradually from 54% in the 12 months to December 2009 to 56% in the year to December 2013. Meanwhile, the increase in people who own coffee makers has shot up, from 28% in 2009 to 36% in 2013.

Among Australia's biggest coffee drinkers are people who work long hours. In the year to December 2013, those who worked 60+ hours in any given week consumed an average 10.1 cups weekly, compared to 8.6 for non-workers or 8.8 for those who worked 35-39 hours.

In news that probably won't surprise the parents out there, it seems that having children also increases our need for caffeine. Whereas the average weekly coffee consumption for people who don't have kids is 7.2 cups, it rises to 9.6 cups for parents.

Kids and caffeine: average weekly coffee consumption of Australian parents

Roy Morgan Single Source (Australia), January 2013 - December 2013 (n=3,692).

Perhaps a little more surprising is that consumption increases with the age of the kids. So while parents of infants under two years old actually drink less coffee (8.8 cups per week) than the national average, those with kids aged between 12 and 15 drink an average of 10.3 cups.

The rise of the home coffee maker

Even though it's hard to imagine when they'd get time to use it, since they work such long hours, people who work 60+ hours per week are significantly more likely than the average Aussie to have a coffee maker at home, with 44% of them owning one (up from 38% in the year to December 2009). People with kids also over-index on coffee-maker ownership at 39%, up from 32% in 2009.
Angela Smith, Group Account Manager - Consumer Products, Roy Morgan Research, says:
"The increased presence of coffee makers - which can be anything from stovetop cafetières to 'pod' machines such as Nespresso and Expressi - in Australian households is good news for the manufacturers of these items. Interestingly, it hasn't impacted adversely on café visitation: possibly because people are developing a taste for 'real' coffee over instant."While it makes sense that people who work long hours would consume more coffee, their need for caffeine goes beyond this, to the point where they also drink more Cola and energy drinks than people who work fewer hours."The news that parents of older children drink more coffee in an average week than those of infants may seem surprising, considering the stereotype of the sleep-deprived new parent, but this is simply a function of age. Our data shows that older people drink more coffee, and parents of older children are typically older than those of infants. Mind you, their extra caffeine requirements might also be linked to the sleep they lose through lying awake at night, worrying about where their kids are or what they're up to on Snapchat...!"
For comments or more information please contact:
Angela Smith
Group Account Manager - Consumer Products
Office: +61 (3) 9021 9100
Angela.Smith@roymorgan.com

Related research findings

View our extensive range of Coffee Profiles, including People in a household that owns a coffee-maker, café visitors, and fresh coffee buyers. These profiles provide a broad understanding of the target audience, in terms of demographics, attitudes, activities and media usage in Australia.

About Roy Morgan Research

Roy Morgan Research is the largest independent Australian research company, with offices in each state of Australia, as well as in New Zealand, the United States and the United Kingdom. A full service research organisation specialising in omnibus and syndicated data, Roy Morgan Research has over 70 years' experience in collecting objective, independent information on consumers.

In Australia, Roy Morgan Research is considered to be the authoritative source of information on financial behaviour, readership, voting intentions and consumer confidence. Roy Morgan Research is a specialist in recontact customised surveys which provide invaluable and effective qualitative and quantitative information regarding customers and target markets.

Margin of Error

The margin of error to be allowed for in any estimate depends mainly on the number of interviews on which it is based. Margin of error gives indications of the likely range within which estimates would be 95% likely to fall, expressed as the number of percentage points above or below the actual estimate. Allowance for design effects (such as stratification and weighting) should be made as appropriate.

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The brew crew: Australia's heaviest coffee drinkers

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March 06 2014 Finding No. 5470 Topic: Press Release Country: Australia Is Australia kicking the caffeine habit? In the last decade, the average coffee consumption by Australian adults has declined slowly but steadily, from 10.5 cups to 9.2 cups per week. Or could we just be drinking a stronger brew, thus reducing the need for so many cups?

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Fishbane, M 2007, ‘Wired to connect: Neuroscience, relationships, and therapy’, Family Process, vol. 46, no. 3, pp. 395-412.

While geared to therapists, this is a really interesting article about how neuroplasticity of the brain is related to social connectedness and experience. The author highlights how "human connections create neural connections" (Fishbane 2007, p.396). Social relationships have a powerful impact on the synaptic connections and circuits of our brains. In fact, as the author notes, the very structure and wiring of our brains requires the attunement and attentiveness of others. "The brain is an organ of adaptation that builds its structures through interactions with others" (Fishbane 2007, p.396). The evolutionary importance of connection in facilitating survival and neuroscience's discovery that the brain's very design makes it a social organ are a focus.
"we are wired to connect. Neuroscience has discovered that our brain's very design makes it sociable, inexorably drawn into an intimate brain-to-brain linkup whenever we engage with another person. That neural bridge lets us affect the brain-and the body-of everyone we interact with just as they do us" (Fishbane 2007, p.400)

I found this article not only fascinating but it provided backbone and "scholarly clout" to everything I had been reading and coming to understand about the power of human connection in the context of my message. Paragraph after paragraph, it provided me with "facts" that support my argument/cause. You can't ask for better than that.

Holt-Lunstad, J, Smith, TB, Baker, M, Harris, T, & Stephenson, D 2015, 'Loneliness and social isolation as risk factors for mortality: A meta-analytic review', Perspectives on Psychological Science, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 227–237.

This article looks at the health impact of actual or perceived social isolation and how a lack of social connections has been linked to detrimental outcomes including increased risk for mortality. Not only are both loneliness and social isolation associated with negative health behaviours (eg. smoking, lack of exercise, poorer sleep), but there is also a strong impact on all the associated biological processes including blood pressure, C-reactive protein, lipid profiles and poorer immune functioning. These are also tied to a range of psychological factors (eg. depression, anxiety) which, in turn carry their own health risks. The findings? Higher survival rates among those who are more socially connected.

A useful article providing me with the health risks of social isolation and, so, the health benefits of social connection. Not only a good source of "fun facts" but, also, an excellent potential parallel tie in with the health benefits of coffee? A way of linking the two?

McLeod, SA 2018, 'Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs', Simply Psychology, 21 May, viewed 26 July 2019, <https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html>

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a theory by Abraham Maslow, which argues that people are motivated by five basic categories of needs: physiological, safety, love, esteem, and self-actualization. These needs are organised in a hierarchy ranging from more concrete to more abstract needs. As a lower need is met, so the next need on the hierarchy becomes our focus.

The first four levels are often referred to as deficiency needs. They arise due to deprivation and motivation to fulfil them grows increasingly intense the longer they are denied. Once they are more or less satisfied, the go away, making room for the next set of needs.

The top level is the growth level. These needs stem from our desire to grow as a person and perhaps even reach the highest level - self-actualisation.

Every person is capable of moving up the hierarchy and achieving self-actualisation but life experiences cause an individual to fluctuate between levels and may even cause movement back and forth between the different levels or types of needs.

The article also examines the expanded 7 stage and 8 stage models of the hierarchy which include cognitive needs, aesthetic needs and, finally, transcendence needs.

I'm wondering how I can draw on this theory to both sell my concept as well as guide me on how to sell my concept? Is there a way of touching on them all? In a few seconds? Hmmmm. Can I combine any? Can I appeal to the consumer's insatiable need to fulfil certain needs? Do I assume lower level needs are met? Or do I show how my coffee and human connection are meeting them? Ticking their boxes? Lots more thinking needs to happen here. This is not quite as "black and white" as the previous two articles regarding how I can use the idea. For this reason I have included the embedded graphics and a link to the article on my journal page as separate entries. (see above)

de Mejia, EG & Ramirez-Mares, MV 2014, ‘Impact of caffeine and coffee on our health’, Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 25, no. 10, pp. 489–492.

The article contains some interesting "marketing fun fact" statements like:

"coffee is the most frequently consumed caffeine-containing beverage" (de Mejia & Ramirez-Mares p.489)

"Coffee is now grown in 60 tropical and subtropical countries"(de Mejia & Ramirez-Mares p.490)

"The highest caffeine intake occurs in consumers aged 50-64 years" (de Mejia & Ramirez-Mares p.490)

The article gives me some science supported evidence for pro caffeine consumption marketing such as lower risks of Parkinson's and Altzheimer's disease, better liver function, aiding weight loss, decreased risk of developing some cancers and even a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes. These are all useful "selling" facts and can be linked to mental health or listed alongside mental health issues, thus giving them more validity.

The short history of coffee could also be useful. Time will tell.

O'Keefe, JH, DiNicolantonio, JJ & Lavie, CJ 2018, ‘Coffee for cardioprotection and longevity’, Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases, vol. 61, no. 1, pp. 38–42.

Another article packed with consumer swaying information regarding the health BENEFITS of coffee consumption. The list continues: lower risk for cardiovascular death, coronary heart disease, contestant heart failure and stroke. Alongside these findings, coffee is attributed to improving some cardiovascular risk factors such as type 2 diabetes, depression and obesity. Chronic coffee consumption is linked to improved asthma control, lower risk for liver diseases and some cancers, as well as protecting agains tome neurodegenerative diseases. The magic number? 3-4 cups of coffee per day! Wow.

There is some cross over with the previous article but, combined, I have enough to support the information I have found in a number of infographics online. Great marketing fodder.

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Journal Entry #3: Challenging Assumptions

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Journal Entry #3: Challenging Assumptions

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IdeaHow would you portray DISconnection? Could you "sell" the impact/power of disconnection and then somehow cleverly tell a story of steady decline until coffee and connection come onto the scene to ...?
Maybe this is how I solve my "too cliche" or "too cheesy" idea? You see an ad entitled "coffee connection" and you assume it's going to be all sweet and charming and pulling at the heartstrings. Beautiful music, beautiful images, happy people, connected people, yada yada yada.
What happens if you turn that on its head?
sad sounds, jarring sounds, sounds that don't make sense
disjointed images, empty images, stark images, images that don't make sense.

As much as we can all relate to our "wired" human need for connection, so, too, can we all relate to feelings of disconnection, isolation, loneliness, not belonging, etc
How to portray these emotions/states/etc without being boring and deja vu?
We don't want to see more images of people alone in a darkened room or huddled on a stormy beach or crying alone in a corner ...

BELONG - hmmmm, that's a powerful word
The coffee belongs in your kitchen
You belong in your "village" / community

What about a PUZZLE concept?
The quest for meaning in/of life is a puzzle for everyone. The perpetual, unsolved puzzle.
Use distorted or disjointed or "disconnected" images of their opposites (the original idea - human connection stuff)
can do the same with the body and physical health
mental health
as the "story" (or however you do it) Is played out, so the images com together or grow clearer or repair or whatever it is they need to do in order to create a clear, relatable, non jarring, relaxing/accepting/??? image of CONNECTEDNESS.

Do people want facts? If so, instead of the tired, overused wellbeing facts about health and happiness, etc, what about the hard facts about the flip side? The impact of isolation, disconnection, etc? And thereby, in a roundabout way, "sell" the power of connection?

The people who LIKE being isolated? The hermits? etc?
You could give them their place. They are alone and happy. But still drinking coffee.
That could be how you bring in the "humanity slash global" connection idea?
Idea - Maybe their coffee arrives in a parcel and opening that parcel connects them with the person who packed it?

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McLeod, SA 2018, 'Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs', Simply Psychology, 21 May, viewed 26 July 2019, <https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html>

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The Liberators International 2015, World's Biggest Eye Contact Experiment (Global Video), video, YouTube, 5 November 2015, viewed 20 July 2019, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QdnCRWATZ8&feature=youtu.be>

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World's Biggest Eye Contact Experiment (Global Video)

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TV 2 Danmark 2019, All that we share - connected, video, YouTube, 29 March 2019, viewed 20 July 2019, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ15cqP-K80&feature=youtu.be>

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They use only words and music - image of real time typing with music that carries a feeling of mounting excitement and "this is big"

Human Connection World 2017, Human Connection - a nonprofit social network for a better world, video, YouTube, 18 December 2017, viewed 20 July 2019, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7bzU1XMx7Q&feature=youtu.be>

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Human Connection - a nonprofit social network for a better world

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Narratives and storytelling engage consumers’ subconscious and create an emotional connection with the brand and the story.

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How to tie the health benefits of coffee into the mental health benefits of coffee (so to speak) and human connection?

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Research on advertising shows that the emotional response to an ad influences consumers’ intention to buy much greater than the ad’s content itself.

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McLeod, SA 2018, 'Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs', Simply Psychology, 21 May, viewed 26 July 2019, <https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html>

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McLeod, SA 2018, 'Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs', Simply Psychology, 21 May, viewed 26 July 2019, <https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html>

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Princeton psychologists learned that first impressions form in less than a second.

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Smilovitz, S 2018, 'Emotional Marketing Examples Scientifically Proven To Sway Buyers', Instapage, 18 September, viewed 20 July 2019, <https://instapage.com/blog/emotional-marketing>

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Look at these people below. What emotions do they conjure up in you? Does it matter that they're smiling? Does it matter what they're wearing?

Absolutely.

Princeton psychologists learned that first impressions form in less than a second. Sounds crazy but it's not.

Even though we consider ourselves logical and modern human beings, the majority of our decisions are made by the ancient, instinctive subconscious part of our brains, sometimes referred to as our " reptilian brain." That doesn't mean that the quality of our decisions is lowered; some, like Malcolm Gladwell in Blink, argue that quick, gut-level decisions are actually better and save us time and agony.

Let's explore how emotions play into modern-day marketing and why...

Emotional branding

According to Entrepreneur magazine, branding is "The marketing practice of creating a name, symbol or design that identifies and differentiates a product from other products." Emotional branding then, is creating an emotional connection to one company that separates it from the rest, creating brand loyalty over time.

So, what creates this sense of connection?

Apple may be the perfect example of a company that utilizes emotions to create a connection with consumers and brand loyalty over time. Apple's branding strategy uses simplicity, a clean design and most importantly, a desire to become part of a lifestyle movement. This well-crafted desire appeals to our most basic emotional need: to be part of something bigger than ourselves. This is one of the reasons why religion and social movements exist, why one is a Democrat or a Republican (or an Independent), or why you might volunteer at a local public school.

Apple recognizes that we are social animals and want to be part of a revolution of sorts - part of the newest cutting-edge technology, part of something important (and Steve Jobs exemplified this brilliantly). Instead of sending out sterile press releases, he created events (that helped spawn recurring announcements like the latest iPhone 7 release) to unveil new Apple products, fostering a sense of mystery and allowing Apple users to feel a part of something big and important. Steve Jobs set the precedent for these events (and their massive impact on consumer culture), and they continue to this day - even after his passing:

Maslow's famous hierarchy of needs posits that the highest-level human needs have to do with creativity, respect by others and belonging to a group. Apple, then, does a brilliant job at appealing to these human needs. They brand themselves as a platform to unleash your creativity, to be part of a technological revolution, and be respected by others who recognize that you are part of this cultural movement. It's no surprise then, that graphic designers (creative types) have a tradition of using Mac over PCs.

Say cheese!

Other companies create emotional connections through their website and landing page design. There is scientific evidence that states focusing on human faces and exhibiting images of real employees creates a sense of trustworthiness with the brand. Furthermore, smiling faces have proven to increase conversions.

Our brains are hardwired to physiologically react (positively) to another person's smile. When we smile, our brain releases a variety of feel-good hormones such as serotonin, endorphins, and dopamine. These make us feel good, are associated with lowered stress levels and make us feel connected to others. So, it makes perfect sense that emotional branding involves a simple smile.

Sekindo, a leading digital platform for online video, mobile and display advertising, creates an instant emotional connection with a younger, "cooler" generation by their homepage design (first screenshot below). The homepage includes a background video, which shows a casual and fun look at Sekindo employees who are young and fresh-faced in a startup environment.

This video, even while playing in the background without sound, creates an emotional branding connection because the viewer becomes immersed in the likeable and fun company culture. That's great if your web pages can achieve a similar effect because videos are known to bring extremely high ROI and a higher conversion rate. This is especially true when it comes to landing page design because some research shows that videos on landing pages can improve conversions by up to 80%.

Another page (below, also from Sekindo's homepage) has rows of pictures of real Sekindo staff - one with sunglasses, another making a funny face and the rest smiling casually. All of these are in the background of the Co-CEOs photos. As other articles have pointed out, images of founders/CEOs give a sense of legitimacy and, therefore, increase conversions significantly.

Meanwhile, these young, smiling faces (not taking themselves too seriously) sets a relaxed, youthful vibe, creating an emotional connection to be part of the group, an essential human need:

Emotional advertising

Research on advertising shows that the emotional response to an ad influences consumers' intention to buy much greater than the ad's content itself.

We saw this phenomenon with the 2016 Rio Olympics ads. The most-shared ads utilized emotion and universal experiences to foster a sense of connection with viewers.

Gillette's ad (" Perfect Isn't Pretty") exhibited various athlete's personal and professional struggles that shaped their strong characters. PG&E's ad (" Thank You, Mom - Strong ") is a series of small stories from different athletes' lives that show their respective mothers protecting them in a dangerous or traumatic situation, and how they overcame these situations to become the best athletes in the world. These themes - personal struggle and protection from harm by those you love - are universal, and touch a deep emotional nerve with viewers.

Storytelling

Narratives and storytelling engage consumers' subconscious and create an emotional connection with the brand and the story.

Another very popular 2016 Olympics ad that utilized storytelling to engage the viewer is Gatorade's " The Boy Who Learned To Fly " - an animated short film about Usain Bolt's life and his connection to his mother. Watching the ad transports the viewer into Bolt's childhood and subsequent transition to Olympic athlete; we see Bolt running on clouds (flying) with lightning bolts coming from his shoes while he runs. The viewer connects emotionally with Usain, his mother, and in turn, Gatorade:

As the infographic shows below, emotionally-charged storytelling creates a rush of dopamine in the brain, which is linked to memory. The Ted talk " Storytelling, Psychology and Neuroscience " by Amanda D'Annucci, supports this idea about storytelling enhancing the listener's memory of the story. She discusses how storytelling engages the entire brain including the amygdala, the memory center of the brain. So it makes perfect sense then, that companies leverage storytelling to make an emotional and psychological impact to keep consumers remembering a story, and therefore their brand. Emotional branding at its finest.

Storytelling can also be leveraged in landing page design and many companies opt for storytelling on their landing pages to increase conversions.

In 2014, Airbnb created a campaign in New York City that used storytelling to create an emotional connection with potential customers. The Airbnb story below highlights Carol, who uses Airbnb for supplemental income and going back to school. The 30-second YouTube video discusses how she's been living in Lower Manhattan for 34 years, lost her job, but loves hosting people through Airbnb.

This type of story appeals to the universal desire to help others. By using Airbnb, we can have a place to stay, but also get to know new people and help people like Carol maintain her apartment and lifestyle:

Emotional marketing

Neuro-imagery scans show that when consumers evaluate brands, they use their emotions, based on personal feeling and experiences, rather than information about the brand, such as features and facts. This means that whether you're marketing a homepage, landing page, or a squeeze page, etc.; connecting emotionally to the viewer is the most important factor.

Since consumers tend to choose brands based on emotions rather than logic, the more emotional intelligence a brand has, the better they will do with conversions and ROI. The Rio Olympics ads discussed previously touched an emotional nerve with consumers so much that consumers shared these videos at an extremely high rate, showing engagement, connection, and peak brand awareness. This incredibly high level of engagement is the Holy Grail in marketing and happens when emotions are involved.

Color me conversions

Colors are scientifically proven to alter a viewer's emotional, physiological and behavioral states. Gender differences also apply. For example, women are more sensitive to bright colors than men. And different colors evoke different reactions: black and purple are associated with "powerful/strong/masterful," red is stimulating and blue is associated with "tender/comfortable."

Now, think of the most famous brands associated with these colors: Facebook blue and Coca-Cola red. That's no coincidence.

Many marketers take advantage of this color phenomenon by knowing their target audience while playing to the various emotions they want to invoke.

Take a look at a section of Splitit's homepage below. The colors are a mix of black and purple, both associated with luxury and sophistication. The white space creates contrast, a well-known landing page design technique proven to assist with conversions. The CTA button is a contrasting teal color, drawing maximum attention. In conjunction with this, a testimonial video utilizes the next emotional marketing tactic, social proof:

Modern day social proof

Socially-minded services such as Yelp and Airbnb are popular because they utilize the simple yet powerful word-of-mouth recommendation in our modern-day social media dominated world.

Companies that highlight word-of-mouth recommendations from clients as part of their marketing strategy, are saying, "Trust us, because many others do." In turn, our gut-level emotional response says, "If others trust them, I should, too." Social proof can take many forms: testimonials, customer reviews, company logos, or real customer stories.

Social proof theory gives a person (or company) credibility because of others' validation. This creates a sense of trust and legitimacy in the person or the company. Many companies utilize this strategy in ads, landing pages, and homepages because of the clear benefits they provide. Research shows that 70% of consumers read product reviews before purchasing, and these reviews are 12 times more trusted than the company's own product description.

Below you can see the testimonial section on a landing page from a partnership between SumoMe and Jeff Bullas, that displays specific recommendations from clients (along with their real photos) and a list of other big-name partners. SumoMe is a platform that grows website traffic, and Jeff Bullas has a popular marketing blog and offers marketers tools to help businesses grow. As marketers, both brands understand the power of social proof to help companies succeed:

Another company that uses social proof to emotionally connect with potentials customers is Appnext, an app monetization platform that primarily uses in-app video and native advertising for app discovery. The page below uses social proof to highlight the vast number of partners using the platform, which communicates to the consumer that their product is legitimate and trustworthy:

The split-second first impression is positive, as the viewer recognizes that others trust the company. For landing pages especially, the first impression is key - you have milliseconds to emotionally connect with viewers - or not. In this sense, it's best to use a dedicated landing page software with customizable templates and intuitive design. As marketing automation software like Optimove (to be discussed below) build emotionally intelligent connections with customers, landing page customization software can also create emotional connections that work.

Technology and emotion

Technology will never fully replace the human touch, but today's technology smartly uses data and automation to create an emotionally intelligent connection with customers. The martech and ad tech industry have utilized AI and machine learning to mimic connections that humans would otherwise have with customers.

Certain software solutions, such as Optimove, emphasize an emotionally intelligent connection with company's' current customer base. Their marketing automation software focuses on retention and re-engagement, offering highly personalized content; the company practices the use of emotional connection (through data and automation) to appeal to existing customers' tastes and preferences. They use segmentation, past user behavior, and other data points as part of a smart algorithm to send personalized deals more likely to convert and keep customers loyal.

Autopilot is another marketing automation platform, that specializes in a rich, multi-channel customer journey. Because of their use of segmentation and personalization, the interaction with customers builds an emotionally intelligent relationship with the respective company; the multi-channel approach, while integrating with many other providers helps companies connect and convert more.

Love at first click, then what?

"The best marketing doesn't feel like marketing," said the famous "Marketoonist" Tom Fishburne. Does it feel like marketing when you watch a poignant advertisement and connect emotionally with the subject? Does it feel like marketing when you read a genuine positive customer review of kind waitstaff and great service?

Emotional connections happen because we're human, and we're built for these connections, wired for them, and rely on them to live a rich, meaningful life. Despite our significant advances in science and technology, human emotion (mainly our subconscious) will always be core to our DNA. Marketing by appealing to raw and genuine human emotion is essential, smart, and pays off.

So, when you design your next landing page, your next CTA or your next ad, remember the universal themes we've discussed to appeal to the human side in all of us.

Leave a comment below and share how you've experienced emotional connections in marketing, both as a marketer and a consumer.

About the author
Shayna Smilovitz is a writer living in Tel Aviv, originally from the San Francisco Bay Area. When she's not writing about tech and culture, she loves salsa dancing and busting a yoga move or two. She studied Political Science, Psychology and Social Work, so she is great at understanding how human connections and emotion intersect with the business world. You can follow her on Twitter.

Show Me The 35 Best Landing Page Tips

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Emotional Marketing Examples Scientifically Proven To Sway Buyers

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Look at these people below. What emotions do they conjure up in you? Does it matter that they're smiling? Does it matter what they're wearing? Absolutely. Princeton psychologists learned that first impressions form in less than a second. Sounds crazy but it's not.

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- People need people. People love coffee. Coffee involves and connects many many people.
- Simple enough but how not to be totally cheesy and "deja vu"?
- There's a self care / soul nurturing aspect to it also - the act of enjoying a nice cuppa as well as the social connection of sharing one
- We are wired to connect
- too much coffee can make us feel wired. LOL
- When I think of the beautiful lady who owns my favourite coffee business and our chats on the doorstep each time she brings me my order. How I know about her family, her woes and dreams, our shared motherhood and work experiences, etc.

In true theatre director style, I am starting to see scenes play out in my mind that would really capture the mood and what I am trying to say but I don't have the filming skillset or budget to create these scenes so I need to come up with an alternative way of visually expressing them. Photographs? Ok. Maybe. But they would need to be either awesome emotional/candid shots or very dynamic - or both, really. How do I do that?

What would be the pace of the film? Is it a slow, gentle, almost caressing feel? And, if I go with that, can I keep it engaging enough? How?
The quick, dynamic, commercial meets music video approach may be too overwhelming.
What are the alternatives?
How do I draw you in, make my message resonate with you, all the while making your mouth water for my coffee?
Hmmmm, is that what I am trying to do? What do I want? I want you to connect with me, acknowledge our shared human need to connect, long to connect with others in that moment or reflect on the beautiful connections in your life, think of your loved ones, etc and then associate all this with Infusi Coffee.
Warm the cockles - literally and metaphorically.

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Cook, G 2013, 'Why We Are Wired to Connect', Scientific American, 22 October, viewed 10 July 2019, <https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-we-are-wired-to-connect/>

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When we experience social pain - a snub, a cruel word - the feeling is as real as physical pain. That finding is among those in a new book, , and it is part of scientist Matthew Lieberman's case that our need to connect is as fundamental as our need for food and water. He answered questions from Mind Matters editor Gareth Cook.

You argue that our need to connect socially is "powerful." But just how powerful is it?

Different cultures have different beliefs about how important social connection and interdependence are to our lives. In the West, we like to think of ourselves as relatively immune to sway of those around us while we each pursue our personal destiny. But I think this is a story we like to tell ourselves rather than what really happens.

Across many studies of mammals, from the smallest rodents all the way to us humans, the data suggests that we are profoundly shaped by our social environment and that we suffer greatly when our social bonds are threatened or severed. When this happens in childhood it can lead to long-term health and educational problems. We may not like the fact that we are wired such that our well-being depends on our connections with others, but the facts are the facts.

What is the connection between physical pain and social pain? Why is this insight important?

Languages around the world use pain language to express social pain ("she broke my heart", "he hurt my feelings"), but this could have all just have been a metaphor. As it turns out it is more than a metaphor - social pain is real pain.

With respect to understanding human nature, I think this finding is pretty significant. The things that cause us to feel pain are things that are evolutionary recognized as threats to our survival and the existence of social pain is a sign that evolution has treated social connection like a necessity, not a luxury. It also alters our motivational landscape. We tend to assume that people's behavior is narrowly self-interested, focused on getting more material benefits for themselves and avoiding physical threats and the exertion of effort. But because of how social pain and pleasure are wired into our operating system, these are motivational ends in and of themselves. We don't focus on being connected solely in order to extract money and other resources from people - being connected needs no ulterior motive.

This has major consequences for how we think about structuring our organizations and institutions. At businesses worldwide, pay for performance is just about the only incentive used to motivate employees. However, praise and an environment free from social threats are also powerful motivators. Because social pain and pleasure haven't been a part of our theory of "who we are" we tend not to use these social motivators as much as we could.

You devote a section of your book to what you call "mindreading." What do you mean by this, and why do you see it as so essential?

First off, I'm not referring to the ESP kind of mindreading. I mean the everyday variety that each of us use in most social interactions. We have a profound proclivity towards trying to understand the thoughts and feelings bouncing around inside the skulls of people we interact with, characters on television, and even animated shapes moving around a computer screen. Although we are far from perfect at gleaning the actual mental states of others, the fact that we can do this at all gives us an unparalleled ability to cooperate and collaborate with others - using their goals to help drive our own behavior.

The funny thing is that thinking about others' thoughts doesn't feel particularly different from most kinds of analytical thinking we do. Yet, fMRI research shows that there are two distinct networks that support social and non-social thinking and that as one network increases its activity the other tends to quiet down - kind of like a neural seesaw. Here's the really fascinating thing. Whenever we finish doing some kind of non-social thinking, the network for social thinking comes back on like a reflex - almost instantly.

Why would the brain be set up to do this? We have recently found that this reflex prepares us to walk into the next moment of our lives focused on the minds behind the actions that we see from others. Evolution has placed a bet that the best thing for our brain to do in any spare moment is to get ready to see the world socially. I think that makes a major statement about the extent to which we are built to be social creatures.

One of the long-standing mysteries of psychology is the question of where the "self" comes from, and what the "self" even means. Does your research shed any light on this question?

Social psychologists have long speculated that the self is a much more social phenomenon then it intuitively feels like from the inside. There have certainly been studies over the years that are consistent with this idea, however neuroscience is bringing new data to bear that speaks directly to this idea.

There's a region of the brain called "medial prefrontal cortex" that essentially sits between your eyes. This region has been shown again and again to be activated the more a person is reflecting on themselves. It is the region that most clearly and unambiguously is associated with "self-processing." If you think about your favorite flavor of ice-cream, precious personal memories, or consider aspects of your personality (e.g. Are you generous? Are you messy?) you are likely to recruit this brain region.

Given that we tend to think of the self as the thing that separates us from others - that allows us to know how we are different and how to walk our own path - it would be surprising if this same medial prefrontal region was involved in allowing the beliefs of others to influence our own. But this is exactly what we have seen in several studies. The more active the medial prefrontal region is when someone is trying to persuade you of something (e.g. to wear sunscreen everyday) the more likely you'll be to change your tune and start using sunscreen regularly. Rather than being a hermetically sealed vault that separates us from others, our research suggests that the self is more of a Trojan horse, letting in the beliefs of others, under the cover of darkness and without us realizing it. This socially-influenced self helps to ensure that we'll have the same kind of beliefs and values as those of the people around us and this is a great catalyst for social harmony.

What does this research tell us about how we should be raising our children, and what does it mean for education?
I think the most important thing is to educate our children about what we are learning about the true role of our social nature in our happiness and success in life. Intellectually, I know all about these things, but if we don't learn them as children, I'm not sure they ever really get into our guts and guide our intuitive decision-making. I think kids would love learning about how the social world works and how their brain makes that possible.

The research on the social brain also leads to direct policy implications for education. The data are clear that children learn better when they learn in order to teach someone else than when they learn in order to take a test. Learning to teach someone else is prosocial and relies on the social networks of the brain. We had no idea these networks could promote memory but now we do. We ought to be doing much more peer learning, particularly age-staggered learning. My ideal situation would be a 14 year who has trouble in the classroom being assigned to teach a 12 year old. The teacher then becomes a coach helping to teach the 12 year old and the 14 year old will reap the benefits of prosocial learning.

Are you a scientist who specializes in neuroscience, cognitive science, or psychology? And have you read a recent peer-reviewed paper that you would like to write about? Please send suggestions to Mind Matters editor Gareth Cook, a Pulitzer prize-winning journalist and regular contributor to NewYorker.com. Gareth is also the series editor of Best American Infographics, and can be reached at garethideas AT gmail.com or Twitter @garethideas.

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Scientist Matthew Lieberman uncovers the neuroscience of human connections-and the broad implications for how we live our lives

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I am a huge fan of ye olde spider diagram method (aka mind map) and use them all the time when I am approaching new creative work and at many other stages along the way.
This mind map helped me make the human connection and explore various themes and ideas that I could possibly explore/include.  It also helped me to keep reflecting on coffee itself and all the avenues the bean and its production could open.
In this way, I found the mind map super useful for keeping all the major idea areas and themes in focus.
I feel like it is still quite incomplete. I'll keep adding to it as I go.

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Brainstorm online with Bubbl.us. Easily create colorful mind maps to print or share with others. Almost no learning curve. Millions of people are using Bubbl.us worldwide to generate ideas, map out processes and create presentations.

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Brainstorm online with Bubbl.us. Easily create colorful mind maps to print or share with others. Almost no learning curve. Millions of people are using Bubbl.us worldwide to generate ideas, map out processes and create presentations.

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Amazing ideas sketched out on a napkin in a coffee shop.
How often does that happen?
Famous Cases?

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J.K Rowling wrote Harry Potter in a coffee shop

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The soul nurturing power of that first cup of coffee

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There are people who will tell you coffee is the enemy. Coffee wreaks havoc with your system and will pretty much destroy your mind. Then, there are those of us who "know" that coffee is liquid gold ... for many many reasons ...

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Physical and Mental

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Starbucks Coffee 2014, Meet Me at Starbucks, video, YouTube, 30 September, viewed 7 July 2019, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZVCLVGymmo>

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Spary, S 2014, Starbucks celebrates 'real moments of human connection' in global campaign, Campaign 29 September 2014, viewed 7 July 2019, <https://www.campaignlive.com/article/starbucks-celebrates-real-moments-human-connection-global-campaign/1314584>

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'Meet me at Starbucks', which aims to showcase "authentic, unscripted moments" shared by real customers in Starbucks stores, kicked off earlier this month on its YouTube channel. This featured a 'conversation series' showing text conversations on screen in tandem with a voiceover reading the texts to show how face to face conversations can be more "meaningful".

As part of the campaign, a global TV ad kicks off today across broadcast networks including morning and evening TV and cable networks. On Wednesday, there will be a 'YouTube 'takeover' showcasing a mini documentary featuring footage shot over a 24-hour period at Starbucks stores.

Featuring 50 stores, 39 filmmakers and 220 hours of footage, Starbucks said the campaign aims to show the "beautiful moments of connection between our customers around the world".

On Instagram, Starbucks will launch a photo series called #HowWeMet, which aims to encourage people to share stories of getting together at Starbucks. The stories will be amplified across social media channels including Twitter and Tumblr.

"Nothing compares to the happiness we feel when we're actually together," Starbucks said.

"Humans have always been social, and our cultures and communities have always needed and developed places and spaces to gather. But in this modern, digital world, that human connection we crave can be hard to come by.

"We took a look at what was already happening in our stores, and captured the universal moments of connection our customers were sharing."

Starbucks said it filmed in New York, Rio de Janeiro, Bogota, Singapore, Beijing, Mumbai, Toronto, Paris, Berlin and Istanbul where it witnessed "big life moments and every day moments" including birthday celebrations, business meetings, people meeting for the first time or reuniting and the "fresh and exciting beauty of new love".

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Starbucks celebrates 'real moments of human connection' in global campaign

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'Meet me at Starbucks', which aims to showcase "authentic, unscripted moments" shared by real customers in Starbucks stores, kicked off earlier this month on its YouTube channel. This featured a 'conversation series' showing text conversations on screen in tandem with a voiceover reading the texts to show how face to face conversations can be more "meaningful".

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Wilson, P 2004-2019, 20 Health Benefits of Coffee (And How to Get the Maximum Benefits of It), Lifehack, viewed 11 July 2019, <https://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/20-surprising-health-benefits-coffee.html>

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Coffee often gets a bad rap, based on everything ranging from its caffeine content to the stains it leaves on your teeth. But the truth is that the benefits to this beverage far outweigh many of the perceived negatives associated with it. What's often overlooked is the fact that coffee is so much more than just caffeine.

In its original form, it's a whole food that contains a plethora of beneficial nutrients and antioxidants. The key is knowing where to find high-quality coffee and how to avoid losing any of its health benefits by decreasing its nutrient content or adding harmful substances, like artificial ingredients.

Let's look at the amazing health benefits of coffee in this article.

Health benefits of coffee (that will also make you happier)

1. Help you burn more calories

In one Spanish study, athletes who drank the equivalent of 12 ounces of coffee before working out burned roughly 15% more calories for as much as three hours after exercising.

Even if you don't work out, drinking coffee has also been proven to boost your metabolism by 10 to 20%, for those who drink one to two cups per day. As a result, you can burn some calories (and even help you to lose weight if you're on a diet and do exercises.)

2. Improve your circulation

Drinking a five ounce cup of coffee has been proven to cause a 30% boost in capillary blood flow according to a Japanese study.

This level of increased blood circulation results in better oxygenation of your body's tissues which has a number of benefits, such as improved performance in physical activities.

3. Have a pain-reducing effect

Research from the University of Illinois determined that two to three cups of coffee can decrease participants' perceived level of pain, in this case following a workout.

These findings were repeated in a University of Georgia study where participants reported a 48% decrease in muscle soreness, vs. 30% and 25% with naproxen and aspirin, respectively.

4. Improve your endurance

Not only can coffee decrease your perceived level of pain during physical exertion, it can also decrease your perceived level of exertion. By reducing the amount of energy you feel, you're expending (by more than 5%), and your exercise actually feels easier.

As a result, drinking coffee before working out can improve exercise performance by more than 11%, since you feel like you're exerting less energy.

5. Help preserve your muscle tissue

When you drink coffee, your brain releases a substance called Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF), which supports the powerhouse of your muscles. Without this essential factor, muscles are more likely to experience atrophy.

Essentially, the caffeine in coffee helps stave off age-related strength loss which can also reduce your risk of injuries.

6. Make you smarter

Caffeine in coffee induces feelings of alertness and increased energy as a result of its interactions with adenosine receptors in the brain.

This causes an improvement in various areas of brain function such as reaction times, vigilance, and general cognitive function.

7. Improve your memory

Another important brain function supported by coffee consumption is enhanced memory.

Drinking two eight-ounce cups of coffee per day has been proven to improve long-term memory.

8. Lower your risk for depression

Coffee has also been linked to a lower rate of depression, especially in women. Those who consume as many as four eight-ounce cups per day have been found to lower their depression risk by as much as 20%.

This lowered risk is due to the fact that coffee also has an impact on the production of brain chemicals like serotonin and dopamine.

9. Reduce your risk of some cancers

So far, coffee has been linked to a lowered risk for both liver and colorectal cancer, the world's third and fourth most common cancers.

Coffee drinkers appear to be at a 40% lower risk for liver cancer and a 15% lower risk of colorectal cancer if they drink four to five cups per day. Links have also been found between coffee drinkers and a lower risk of basal cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer.

10. Reduce your risk for heart disease

Studies over the years have claimed that consuming caffeine can increase your blood pressure. While this is true, the effect has been determined to be quite small and generally only present in those who don't drink coffee regularly. There is no study found to support the idea that coffee increases the risk of heart disease.

However, evidence shows that coffee can reduce the risk of heart diseases in some individuals, particularly in women. Coffee drinkers are also at a 20 percent lower risk of stroke.

11. Protect your liver

In addition to preventing cancer of the liver, coffee has also been shown to prevent other common diseases affecting the liver, such as hepatitis and fatty liver disease.

Coffee can protect against cirrhosis of the liver, where the organ is majorly damaged by scar tissue, by as much as an 80% lower risk in people who drink four or more cups each day.

12. Helps to combat gout

Gout is a condition caused by an increase in uric acid in the blood. Men who drank four to five cups of coffee a day had a 40 percent lower relative risk of gout compared to men who didn't drink coffee.

Decaf coffee also modestly lowered gout risk

13. Help you obtain numerous nutrients and antioxidants

Coffee has been found to contain a tremendous amount of antioxidants. In fact, many people in Western culture get more antioxidants from coffee than they do from fruits and vegetables combined.

Other important ingredients include riboflavin (11% of the RDA), potassium (3%), magnesium and niacin (2% each). These amounts are increased if you drink more than one cup per day.

14. Lower your risk of type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 Diabetes is an affliction that currently affects around 300 million people across the world. Coffee drinkers have the ability to reduce their risk with every cup of coffee they drink.

Results from various studies seem to indicate around a 7% reduction in risk for every cup consumed, with the heaviest coffee drinkers lowering the risk by as much as 67%.

15. Make you more energetic

This benefit seems pretty obvious. It's the reason many people turn to their morning cup of coffee.

Scroll down to continue reading article

There's no doubt coffee can give you that extra boost you need, especially when you've had insufficient sleep. This is due to the caffeine which acts as a stimulant that helps you feel more alert and focused. It also gives you a boost in energy and helps you keep going when you're low on stamina.

You can even boost your productivity if you drink coffee strategically, here's how: How to Drink Caffeine With Strategy to Boost Your Productivity

16. Lower your risk of Alzheimer's

Studies at both the University of Miami and the University of South Florida have found a proven link between coffee consumption and a reduced risk in dementia, of which Alzheimer's is one type.

In fact, those who consumed around three cups each day were also 65% less likely to develop Alzheimer's. Coffee drinkers also have a lower risk, around 32 to 60%, of developing Parkinson's disease, another top neurodegenerative disease.

17. Make you feel less stressed just by smelling coffee

Researchers at the Seoul National University found that sleep-deprived rats who were exposed to the scent of coffee experienced a decrease in brain proteins that cause stress. It's worth noting that this reduction in stress was tied specifically to stress resulting from sleep deprivation.

That's a piece of good news for those who don't prefer the taste of coffee.

18. Make you feel happier

Being happy is healthy, right? And for those who love coffee, there's nothing better than that familiar warmth and taste that gets you going each morning, or any time of the day.

19. Help you live longer

While it's uncertain in exactly what ways drinking coffee lowers your risk of death, there definitely seems to be a correlation.

Research performed by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) determined that people who drink three or more cups each day are at a 10% lower risk of death. Perhaps the most important ramification of this study is that drinking coffee does not seem to adversely affect your health, as earlier research seemed to indicate.

20. Promote sustainability

Recent years have seen the increasing popularity of fair trade coffee which protects small coffee farmers worldwide.

As fair trade organizations work to improve farmers' rights and earning potential, they also promote social, economic, and environmental sustainability. They encourage shade-grown and organic coffee, part of what makes the beans grown in places like Costa Rica superior to those you might get from larger commercial distributors.

Any potential risks of drinking coffee?

There are a few important factors you should consider if you want to enjoy the benefits of coffee:

Since many of these benefits are directly linked to the caffeine in coffee, you won't get the same perks from decaf. You can also decrease the health benefits by adding things like artificial sweeteners and creamers.

While coffee can certainly help you resist fatigue, drinking it in excess can lead to adrenal exhaustion.

Coffee is also a diuretic. Drinking too much of it can result in dehydration.

As you can see in the following infographic, coffee can be both an angel and evil. If you're not drinking too much of it, it can cause negative results:

You can find out more about the side-effects of drinking too much coffee in this article: What Drinking Coffee Does to You

How to get the maximum benefit from coffee?

To get the maximum benefit from your coffee, opt for whole coffee beans and grind them right before you're ready to brew your coffee. Black coffee is recommended if you want to experience more of the benefits.

You'll also want to go with organic coffee beans since those that aren't pesticide-free are often among the most heavily-sprayed crops in existence.

The best way to find beans that are free of chemicals is to look for the 100% Organic seal or visit a local coffee farm and buy them directly from the grower. Your taste buds and your health will thank you.

Featured photo credit: Kaboompics via kaboompics.com

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20 Health Benefits of Coffee (And How to Get the Maximum Benefits of It)

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Coffee often gets a bad rap, based on everything ranging from its caffeine content to the stains it leaves on your teeth. But the truth is that the benefits to this beverage far outweigh many of the perceived negatives associated with it. What's often overlooked is the fact that coffee is so much more than just caffeine.

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Lee, M 2017, Health Benefits of Coffee, Lee's Fitness Unlimited, 15 May 2017, viewed 7 July 2019, <https://leesfitnessunlimited.com/2017/05/health-benefits-of-coffee/>

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National Coffee Association 2014, 10 Health Benefits of Drinking Coffee, Facebook, 25 January 2014, viewed 7 July 2019, <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=807412512609657&set=a.153670847983830.30283.116627608354821&type=1&theater>

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Matador network 2016, Infographic: 15 Surprising Health Benefits of Coffee, Matador, 16 June, viewed 7 July 2019, <https://matadornetwork.com/life/infographic-15-surprising-health-benefits-coffee/>

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visually 2011, The Coffee Facts, visually, 25 November, viewed 7 July 2019, <https://visual.ly/community/infographic/food/coffee-facts>

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1. Coffee

2. Padlet

3. Ergonomic Chair

4. The local library

5. The local cafe - a community experience

6. Thermal coffee mug

7. Drawing tablet

8. Your local park

9. Local neighbourhood house

10. Sushi - its journey to you and all the people and places and experiences involved

11. Any food - the people and places and experiences involved

12. The produce market and the stories behind the people

13. Ipad - anti promote

14. Playmobil - children's toy

15. A (fictional) play centre that promotes creativity

16. Ortho shoes

17. A pen for arthritis sufferers

18. A pen that inspires great thinking

19. Adult colouring in books

20. Car seats

21. Comfy pyjamas

22. Planet friendly toilet paper

23. A women's centre/resource centre

24. Chocolate

25. A new piece of theatre

26. An artist

27. A specific not for profit organization

28. The local plumber

29. Recycled paper

30. Coconut oil and all its benefits

31. Oil cleansing

32. Art therapy organization/project

33. Marginalized youth performing arts project

34. A dance company

35. Applied theatre company

36. Weighted blankets

37. Heat wheat cuddle toys

38. Mum's bags

39. Fitness app

40. Salt lamps

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1. Basic human need for connection

People need people

2. Children need to play - benefits of play / power of play / play deprivation

3. Benefits of getting outdoors

4. We need to get dirty / back to the earth

5. Violence against women

6. Trauma - the impact/pervasiveness of, how it affects the brain, etc.

7. Trauma in young children

8. Benefits of group singing

9. Benefits of chiropractic adjustment

10. Yoga

11. The body-mind connection

12. Adults believe play is a child thing but it carries great power for adults too ... we need to get back in touch

13. Anti-bullying

14. Challenging yourself

15. This mindfulness craze - is there something in it?

16. Loneliness - prevalence, impact of; it's not just an old people thing

17. Motherhood and all its struggles

18. Sleep deprivation

19. Kindness

20. Altruism

21. Never too old to start something new

22. Invisible illness

23. You never truly know what is happening in another person's life/mind - aka. don't interact from assumptions

24. Karma

25. 25 year anniversary of end of Apartheid

26. Refugees

27. Screen time for kids in schools - overuse? Affects?

28. Getting kids to eat healthily

29. Human trafficking - more prevalent than you think

30. Mental health stigma

31. The hyperactive child

32. Creative thinking

33. Flow (creative state)

34. Thinking outside of the box

35. It takes a village to raise a child - even in our modern society, we still need the village. Maybe we lack it too much?

36. The power of the sisterhood

37. Taking a risk

38. The vagus nerve

39. Getting involved in your community

40. Health benefits of coffee

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Right, so "they" say ...

Record your initial thoughts and feelings about the course and this task. Are you feeling eager? uncertain? overwhelmed? excited? Have you done this kind of thing before? Do you already have an idea you’d like to develop for this assignment?

Initial thoughts?
Whoa! I am way too old, too green, too tired, too last decade, too not in this headspace or even this century, too ... too ... tooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! Yup! That!
Thoughts after sleep and coffee?
<insert childish squeal> This is so excitiiiiinnnngggg!
Then: I am way too old, too green, too tired, too last decade, too not in this headspace or even this century, too ... too ...
My 6 year old daughter tells me a story about how her inner coach overcame her inner critic ...
Yeah yeah, ok, me too. Look, me too.
Gulp. I've got this.

This paldlet thingy
This is cool. I have spent many a $1 on a kid's scrap book from Kmart and filled it with scribbles and cut outs and images and sketches and all sorts. This feels like the digital version of that. Very nice.

Do I have any initial ideas?
I am more about message than product, I think. But maybe that's because I have never in my life thought about promoting a product so all my fear screechies rage free. Could be a good challenge? As for social impact messages, the anthropologist in me is going wild. But all too big and mammoth and thesis like for a first project ... ho hum
Ohhhhh I don't know, I keep thinking about coffee and the fact that I am sitting alone at my computer trying to self talk myself into a positive headspace for this ....
I have the little train rhythm going over and over: "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can, I think ...