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Let\u2019s go back in time and surprise ourselves a bit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A 1974 study<\/a> found that when it came to sentencing defendants in the court of law, jurors showed leniency towards physically attractive individuals over unattractive ones, even though they had committed exactly the same crime. Another study revealed that social workers found it hard to digest that a beautiful person can commit a crime<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Can you believe it? A more important question: Do people continue to take good looks this seriously?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Very much so. Even when there\u2019s enough information available to make accurate judgments, our brain prefers taking shortcuts<\/a>. The short cut, in this case, is a cognitive bias called the Halo Effect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To an extent,the Halo Effect is a type of confirmation bias<\/a>, since we judge people in a manner that confirms our first impression of them or what we already believe about them<\/strong>. We turn to it to fill the gaps in our understanding of a person, who we don\u2019t know yet. In that sense, it can also backfire<\/a> because if we don\u2019t like them then it will lead to negative biases. X criticizes, X is arrogant.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n It was Edward Thorndike who first introduced the term \u2018Halo Effect\u2019 in a 1920 paper, A Constant Error in Psychological Ratings<\/a>. In his research, military commanding officers were asked to assess a series of traits, including intellect, leadership skills, personal qualities (intelligence, loyalty, responsibility, selflessness, and cooperation), and physical qualities (voice, neatness, physique, etc.) of their subordinate soldiers. The researchers found that high ratings of one quality correlated with high ratings of other traits, whereas negative ratings of one quality pulled down other trait scores. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Although this theory was proposed in reference to people, the metaphor extends to brands, website design, marketing strategies, and advertising. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n In each case, it reiterates one fact: We are not always as objective as we believe we are. Even our most rational decisions are sometimes flawed and misguided.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We are not always as objective as we believe we are. Even our most rational decisions are sometimes flawed and misguided.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n Marketers have actually been benefiting from creating a Halo Effect on their websites and brands for a long time.<\/strong> To get ahead of the game, the key is to know where the limit is – consumers aren’t blind to these efforts, and overdoing it can backfire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, if you\u2019re ready, here\u2019s how to pull all the right strings to create a positive, first impression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When someone good-looking becomes the face of your brand, the perceived value of your product increases. It\u2019s called the attractiveness halo effect.<\/strong> And marketers dig this strategy because it pays off. What really transpires? Scientists claim that, when seeing an attractive man or a woman in an advertisement, people bypass their rational faculty and buy on impulse<\/a>. They assume \u2018what is beautiful is good<\/a>\u2019 and transfer the model\u2019s attractiveness (easily observed characteristic) to the product.<\/strong> Though, what\u2019s interesting is that this phenomenon is mostly restricted to products related to beauty.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Now if you\u2019re a beauty brand, it\u2019s worth noting that some researchers have recorded negative responses<\/a> (pg.22) toward attractive models, especially among female consumers.<\/strong> This, in turn, had a negative impact on the ad\u2019s effectiveness. One likely explanation is social comparison<\/a> with models. That said, even men\u2019s self-esteem takes a blow seeing stereotypical male models. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Other studies demonstrate positive consumer responses to less stereotypical depictions<\/strong>, like the Dove \u201cReal Women\u201d campaign. This has encouraged many brands to feature real, un-photoshopped photos of models to keep it as real<\/a> as possible. Needless to say, the Halo Effect in such cases is phenomenal!<\/p>\n\n\n\nTracing Its Origins<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
How to Create a Halo Effect<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Put Attractiveness to Good Use<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Halo](\"https:\/\/static.wingify.com\/gcp\/uploads\/abtasty\/Halo-Effect-attractiveness.jpg\")