Duped by tiny fonts, hidden charges: The role of ethics in product design

Illustration: TBS

Recently, my children went to a carnival where they received some discount coupons for a renowned fun zone in Dhaka. When I reached home from the office, they told me all about those 50% discount coupons. I thoroughly checked the coupons to point out the tiny disclaimer – it said the discount is only on the entry fee, and the rides are not included.

The children know well that the entry fee does not cost much compared to the rides' cost at that fun zone. So they started wondering whether this act by a firm was correct or not. 

I further explained how these discounts work to them, and that they should judge themselves and they should look at the details of such discount coupons. The verdict was the firm did not do anything wrong, but it initiated a discussion on the font size of that tiny disclaimer – was it ethical to be presented in the way it had been? 

A brand's mission and ethical principles are the most vital things to emphasise in marketing and design. After all, these are the parts of a business that directly communicate with potential clients and customers. 

The reality is that marketers and designers may not always prioritise ethics, diversity and accessibility, but it's crucial to examine projects that will be offered to the general public and do so from an ethical standpoint. 

Consumers are more interested now than ever before in a brand's moral principles. According to research, 62% of consumers are drawn to brands with strong and sincere ethical principles. Customers trust those brands which they see as ethical and when they can believe that brands care about their experiences. 

Sometimes consumers also believe that they can identify with a brand. A customer's association with a brand helps to build customer loyalty. 

On the other hand, people lose faith in brands when they employ unethical practices, which may result in a decrease in brand loyalty or sales. For example, if malpractice in a restaurant gets published, they are likely to see a dip in customer numbers in the coming days. 

Brand designs are important because it is a direct communication channel with customers. Each component of a brand's design adds to the message it conveys. One should periodically assess a brand's design ethics, if one wants to produce content that reflects the ideals of the organisation.

The way forward 

Ethical graphic designers consider a few rules while producing marketing content, and one of the priorities should be that the design is not misleading. One should not focus on tricking customers to turn them into brand loyalists, rather one should focus on showcasing values to convert them. 

Sometimes, in the social media marketing technique, marketers trick the visitors into subscribing to be on a promotional email list. This is not the right approach because if the potential customer doesn't want to get signed up for the email, they might complain about the sneaky design, mark the email as spam and unsubscribe immediately. 

On the other hand, even if the potential customer is not annoyed to the point of unsubscribing, they might still not engage with the email because they were not expecting it, or were never interested in promotional content in the first place. This, in turn, could negatively impact email performance and future deliverability.

The second idea of ethical designing is that designs should not hurt the user experience. For example, one has opened a website but too many annoying pop ups or glitches show up, hindering the potential customer's website use. 

Designers should be mindful of creating user-friendly experiences and websites for customers. In doing so, they can nurture an audience member into doing something rather than force-feeding them an offer or advertisement.

Thirdly, disclaimers and policies must be clear and legible in the design. We often see some disclaimers mentioning the subscription will renew automatically and can be cancelled at any time in a tiny font that is easy to miss. 

Because of this, visitors might give credit card information without realising that they will be charged without being asked at the end of their trial. 

This is rather a serious concern. When someone's card is unexpectedly charged for a service they did not want in the first place, because a company decided to place important disclaimer or information in a tiny font, the potential customer might get annoyed with the brand, unsubscribe and potentially complain. 

On the other hand, if the text is legible and understandable, it would help to garner authentic visitors and customers and build brand loyalty. 

Finally, the target group must be defined well in the design. For instance, a road sign on an express road sometimes can be very confusing, which can lead to a wrong road. Designers must think of the customers when they create brand designs; even better if they put themselves in the customers' shoes and try to relate to them. 

Again, things become more tricky when it comes to the design of technology-based products. A design should be very accessible. Like PlayStation Kinect is difficult to use by some physically challenged persons. A designer needs to consider that about 15% of the world's population suffers from a wide array of impairments. It is fair to consider that this percentage roughly translates to the user base as well. So the purpose of the product must be very clear that the use of the product varies based on the accessibility needs of people. 

And finally, designs should promote safety and security. Like many of our lifestyle habits, health data could be sold, stolen or used unethically later on. Because of data concerns, many tech firms are emphasising security in their overall product design. 

One should consider all the potential ethical dilemmas in creating the design. To promote ethics in design, a firm should audit its past designs, review the current projects and do trials to get feedback if required. 

Presently, Bangladesh is not only in the Digital Age but also moving towards manufacturing tech-based products. So, it is high time to advocate ethics in designing promotional campaigns and also in product development.

Dr Mohammad Naveed Ahmed is the Managing Director of Miyako Appliance Limited, Bangladesh and the first DBA from IBA, University of Dhaka. He also serves as an Adjunct Associate Professor at Independent University Bangladesh and Joint Convenor at the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industries.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.