Use Haptic Imagery with Tactile Products

The most obvious goes first, of course.

If you can connect an image to the sense of touch, it makes your products feel more tangible.

One recent study found that haptic pictures and text that plays on the haptic imagery result in richer product experiences and a higher product liking. Especially in the case of a tactile product.

Put simply, if your product is physical and stimulates touch, show it.

Let’s take Lush, a cosmetic brand, for example.

Their landing page is full of imagery showing this in action: Skincare cream gently applied, gooey masks, crumbling bath bombs, grainy exfoliants dripping from fingers…

This isn’t accidental. You see it, so you imagine yourself touching it. Your mind knows what a gentle rub or sticky soap feels like from past experience.

In online retail, where you’re starved of touch, this makes the product more trustworthy. And… sensual?

Design Interfaces and Packages That Feel Tactile

A good design anchors the product in the mind.

However, a good and tactiledesignanchors the product in the body as well.

It’s similar to tactile imagery. But here, you’re designing the entire product, landing page, or app around it.

Take Apple’s packaging, for example. Apple is obsessively haptic with its thick matte cardboard, smooth slide-open boxes, and molded compartments.

It feels like luxury before you even turn the device on.

But SaaS can be tactile as well. The Headspace App uses pillowy buttons, soft, smooth colors, and floaty animations. In a sense, it mimics the softness and ease that it promises to its users.

Bonus tip: Try to dabble with haptic technology, if your budget and creativity allow it.

For example, Stoli Vodka once ran an ad on mobile where phones vibrated in sync with the cocktail being shaken on screen, turning a simple visual into a full-body sensation. Interesting.

Leverage Metaphors of Touch in Brand Messaging

Most of the time, you don’t even have to go with haptic images. Haptic words are enough.

Because even in text, describing texture, temperature, weight, or pressure activates the brain’s somatosensory cortex, or the area responsible for touch.

What you can do: Use metaphors that relate to physical touch or embodied sensations to shape emotional tone and brand perception. For example:

• “We’re here with a light touch” can make your brand “feel” non-intrusive.
• “Get a grip on your finances” enhances feelings of control.

These don’t describe literal texture, but they leverage the same sensory systems to build emotional connections.

You can use this in your ad copy, emails, or landing pages.

You can even apply this to your branding. Think of Allstate Insurance, whose “you’re in good hands” slogan is a touch-based metaphor which you’d associate with safety and care.

Sounds like a super effective selling point for someone in insurance businesses…