Measuring individual differences in active smelling to evaluate products – The ENFAS-Instrument

Consumers evaluate products with all their senses but exhibit considerable variability in the extent to which they actively use and rely on a specific sense. We know little about the variability in consumers’ propensity to actively engage their sense of smell in the context of product evaluation in purchase decision making. This research...

Designing product metaphor to promote sustainable behaviour: A proposed method

Within the scope of Design for Sustainable Behaviour, the connection between behavioural change strategies and design idea generation has received limited attention. This paper highlights metaphorical thinking in product design to stimulate sustainable behaviour. In particular, the current study proposes a metaphor-based design method to guide...

Auditory and visual contributions to affective product quality

A product has multiple sensory properties, each of which can be evaluated on its affective quality. In the current study, we investigated differences in the evaluation of the affective quality of auditory and visual product appearances and their potential contribution to the overall (auditory-visual) affective quality of domestic appliances....

Towards the maturation of design: From smart to wise products

Recent years have shown the introduction of several types of smart products. These products gather data about user behaviour and try to determine an optimal response, in order to make the user’s life easier. However, some smart products also lead to user behaviour that is undesirable. Hence, we would like to introduce a new design paradigm...

The experience map. A tool to support experience-driven multisensory design

Product designers may struggle to materialize their initial, abstract idea into tangible sensory features forming a product. Being aware of the role of every sensory modality in conveying a specific experience, they are more likely to come up with original and meaningful solutions. However, it can be challenging to manage an experience-driven,...

The Design of Smart Product-Service Systems (PSSs): An Exploration of Design Characteristics

Smart Product-Service Systems (Smart PSSs) integrate smart products and e-services into single solutions. Smart products make use of information and communication technology (ICT) to collect, process and produce information, while e-services are web portals, apps and means alike, which facilitate the communication between service providers and...

The effect of (un)pleasant sounds on the visual and overall pleasantness of products

A product is a nnulti-sensory object and eacli sensory property can contribute to the product experience. In this study we investigated the effect of sound (pleasant, unpleasant, original, and no sound) on the perceived pleasantness of products (i.e., visual pleasantness and overall pleasantness). Results indicate that ratings for visual and...

Challenges in the design of smart product-service systems (PSSs): Experiences from practitioners

Smart Product-­?Service Systems (Smart PSSs) are market offerings that integrate products and services into one single solution through the implementation of IC technology. Smart PSSs allow organizations to develop relationships with consumers in new ways and have a growing presence in the marketplace. As designers’ involvement in the design of...

Characteristics of Smart PSSs: Design Considerations for Value Creation

This article draws the attention of design academics and practitioners to a new type of market offering: Smart Product-Service Systems (Smart PSSs). Smart PSSs integrate smart products and e-services into single solutions, bringing the potential to create innovative interactions between consumers and providers. The article outlines six defining...

Distinctive Characteristics of Smart PSSs

Advances in technology have facilitated the integration of products and e-services into innovative solutions, Smart Product-Service Systems (PSSs). This paper discusses six distinctive characteristics of Smart PSSs that can be influenced by designers, and have an effect on the perceptions of consumers: Consumer empowerment, individualization of...

Surprise and humor in product design: Designing sensory metaphors in multiple modalities

When information from two or more sensory modalities conflicts, this can evoke a surprise reaction as well as feelings of amusement, interest, confusion or disappointment. In concurrence to joke theory, we argue that people appreciate and enjoy appropriate incongruities that can be related back to the product, whereas they are confused by and...

The influence of sensory product properties on affective and symbolic product experience

Creating pleasurable products requires understanding of the influence of sensory product properties on affective user experience and symbolic meaning of products. This paper gives an overview of a series of studies, in which we investigated the impact of sensory product properties (color, material, sound, smell, and taste) on affective user...

Noisy products: Does appearance matter?

Noisiness is an important product experience that is not restricted to the auditory properties of products; bright colors and cluttered visual patterns can also be experienced as noisy. The aim of this study was to determine to what extent the overall product noisiness is attributed to the sounds that the products make and to what extent is it...

Should Mary smell like biscuit? Investigation scents in product design

In attempt to influence how a product is experienced, designers can manipulate all aspects of a product, including odor. The effect odor has on a consumer’s experience of the product is still not yet understood. Two experiments were conducted in order to shed more light on the influence odor has on consumers. In Experiment 1, differences in...

Consumer-product attachment: Measurement and design implications

Due to differences in the attachment consumers experience towards the durable products they own, they hang on to certain products whereas they easily dispose of others. From the viewpoint of sustainability, it may be worthwhile to lengthen the life span of many durable consumer products. Hence, there is a challenge for designers to strengthen...

Effects of visual-auditory incongruity on product expression and surprise

Product experience is influenced by information from all the senses. Our experiments provide insight into how sounds contribute to the overall experience of a product’s expression. We manipulated the sounds of dust busters and juicers so that they either did or did not fit the expressions of the products’ appearances. In some, but not all cases,...

The effects of sensory impairments on product experience and personal well-being

To determine the roles the sensory modalities play in user-product interactions, one modality was blocked during the execution of eight simple tasks. Participants reported how they experienced the products and how they felt during the experiment. Blocking vision resulted in the largest loss of functional information, increased task difficulty...