Researchers at Indian Institute of Management-Kozhikode and Amrita School of Business find that, regardless of the retailing or professional services theme, another benefit of a nature servicescape is restoration of attention. Concentration on what’s being offered to the consumer often flags in the busy marketplace.
Nature’s restoration of consumer attention occurs subconsciously. The draw derives from our evolutionary roots. We are fascinated by and find a comforting rhythm in the changes we observe in the natural environment. Also comforting is the harmony with which the different elements of nature fit together.
All this might convince you to sprinkle in a few live non-allergenic plants. Still, installing a waterfall, let’s say, could be over the top. Fortunately, the researchers also verify that using the shapes of nature in place of nature itself achieves the same types of benefits. This includes nature images, such as in framed photographs, posters, wood-textured walls, and sculptures. In all of these, however, we’ll want to regularly swap in new for old and even depict hints of change and growth, since this is how the natural environment behaves.
Another set of validated techniques used the shapes of nature—curvilinear forms in décor, servicescape layout, and more. The researchers warn against sharp angles, saying that, because of our evolutionary history, these are usually perceived as threatening. Other studies, at University of Leeds, concluded that consumers are more likely to purchase a packaged item when the package is rounded rather than angular. They used chocolate products, bleach bottles, and water bottles in the studies. Because of how the experiments were conducted, the researchers say the preference differences between smooth and pointed can’t be accounted for by perceived ease of use of the package or the typical package design for that sort of product.
There are exceptions to this. Would you prefer mayonnaise in a slender, angular jar or the same contents in a jar with a smooth bulbous shape? The angular jar probably wins out. Mayonnaise buyers like thinking slender more than bulbous.
More generally, a complete absence of angles can position a servicescape as excessively female in tone. It’s in the nature of males to want a few sharp edges.
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