Stop Pitching Features, Start Pitching Feelings

The Feature List Trap

Engineers love feature lists. I see landing pages that look like spec sheets: - "We have 99.9% uptime!" - "We have 256-bit encryption!" - "We have a GraphQL API!"

Users don't buy features. They don't wake up at 2 AM worrying about GraphQL.

Users buy a better version of themselves. - They buy the feeling of being 'Smart'. - They buy the feeling of being 'Safe'. - They buy the feeling of being 'Efficient'.

When Steve Jobs launched the iPod, he didn't say: "It has a 5GB Hard Drive." He said: "1,000 Songs in Your Pocket."

One is a feature (Storage size). The other is a feeling (Freedom/Abundance).

Visual Metaphors: Show, Don't Tell

Humans process images 60,000 times faster than text. If you can show your value proposition visually, you win.

Instead of showing a screenshot of your dashboard (which looks like Excel to most people), show the *outcome*.

Example 1: A Payroll App. - *Bad:* A screenshot of a tax calculation form. - *Good:* A photo of a relieved HR manager leaving the office at 5 PM because payroll took 10 minutes, not 2 days. - *Or:* A visual of money flowing instantly like water through pipes.

Example 2: Cybersecurity. - *Bad:* A list of firewall rules. - *Good:* A visual of a steel vault door closing. Or a shield deflecting arrows.

Use imagery that evokes the *emotion*, not the *process*.

Color Psychology: The Subconscious Language

Colors are not random. They are a language. Your users have been trained for decades to associate certain colors with certain feelings.

• **Blue:** Trust, Stability, Logic. (Banks, Facebook, IBM, Intel). Use this if you are asking for money or data. It says "We are serious."
• **Red:** Urgency, Passion, Danger. (Netflix, Coca-Cola, Clearance Sales). Use this for 'Buy Now' buttons, but use sparingly. Too much red looks like an error message.
• **Green:** Growth, Money, Nature. (Whole Foods, Android, Robinhood). Great for fintech or health.
• **Purple:** Royalty, Creativity, The Future. (Orb21, Loom, Twitch).
• **Black/Dark:** Luxury, Exclusive, Technical. (Apple Pro, Developer Tools, High-Fashion).

The Orb21 Palette

At Orb21, we use Dark Mode with Electric Purple accents. - Dark Mode signals: "We are developers. We work late. We are technical." - Purple signals: "We are building the future. We are magic."

If we used Beige and Times New Roman, we would look like a law firm from 1990. Your color palette is your body language. Make sure it matches your words.