Love At First - Sit
It was love at first -sit
The very first time he tried out the little orange chair, he knew he could sit in it forever. He was a bit surprised, just never expected that orange was his color. But once he got to know the chair’s curves, the way it cushioned his landing and supported his back, there was simply no question. He had found the perfect chair.
This little love story would have never happened had this homeowner been shopping online. His decision to take the chair home was based on, what I call, a 3 Dimensional experience. The sensations of sitting in this particular chair were crucial in his decision to bring it home. The experience of sitting in the chair is the kind of information you can’t get from a digital buy.
How many of your online purchases were exactly what you expected?
Shopping online is a vast 2 Dimensional experience, mostly curated by an algorithm that we navigate with keyboards and clicks. In contrast, shopping at brick-and-mortar stores, though it presents a mere fraction of the internet’s possibilities, provides a much richer experience that informs the purchases we make.
This 2D / 3D contrast brings up many questions;
What’s the difference between a digital purchase vs. in store?
If the internet brings so many options to your doorstep, why bother with traffic?
Why not shop at 3am and get the best price?
Who has the time to shop these days anyways?
Simply put, a 2D digital experience tells you about a product, while 3D allows you to experience it for yourself.
DESIGN AS A 3 DIMENSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Imagine you’re able to walk around a table, envisioning where each of your family members will sit. Being able to test-sit a cushion, ensuring it will provide ample support and comfort for everyday use. With a 3 dimensional experience, you can run your fingers across the upholstery, and find the texture that suits your needs. Even the simple act of opening and closing a drawer gives insight into how a product will serve your home. 3D shopping allows you to ponder a purchase and even walk away from something that’s not quite right. A 3D, live experience allows you to take in richer information about the furnishings that will live in your home.
When you enlarge your experience of design in real life, you enlarge your experience of home.
Your home is in the real world after all -a daily experience of 3 dimensional space. While contemplating how to furnish and decorate it, think in 3D. Don’t get hung up online and depend solely on your favorite influencer or HGTV. Invest your time testing products in store. Take advantage of the rich 3 dimensional insights they have to offer. When it comes to digital purchases, I think we all know that there’s always more than what meets the eye, or what a 5 star review might tell you.
The cost of not having 3D experiences to inform our purchase and design decisions often gets pushed aside. Understandably, the real 3D world can be a bit inconvenient to navigate. Thank heavens the 2D digital world is making this much easier for us. But...and there’s always a but...pushing 3D experience aside for matters of cost and convenience incurs the potential costs of mistakes and missed opportunities.
Which brings me back to the love story of the little chair. Do you need help finding yours? I love helping people navigate the 3 Dimensional world of design. If you’re ready to go offline and enlist a guide, I’d be happy to share my exciting 3D world of quality home furnishings with you.