Seeing is believing: investigating the influence of transparency on consumers’ product perceptions and attitude

Transparency is a design characteristic enabling consumers to see the technical details underneath the product cover to create a unique visual effect. However, involving transparency in product design increases costs; it is thus essential to investigate the effects of transparency to help designers and manufacturers to determine the cost...

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...

Using social distictions in taste for analysing design styles across product categories

This research uncovers seven cross-category design styles and demonstrates how people’s preferences for these design styles are based on social distinctions. Knowledge of these cross-category design styles and the research approach might assist designers when faced with the challenge of how to address different market segments, and how to play...

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...

The Influence of Product Exposure on Trendiness and Aesthetic Appraisal

Designers use product attributes (e.g., trendiness) to design aesthetically appealing products. The relationships of physical properties (e.g., shape) of product designs with product attributes and aesthetic appraisal are often considered to be generalizable over product categories and markets. However, in line with an interactionist view, we...

Consumer response to aesthetic mass customization

The effect of a business-like personality on the perceived performance quality of products

People use the appearance of products as a cue for evaluating functional attributes at purchase. This research provides an understanding of this form-function interdependency by investigating the effect of a business-like personality in product appearance on the perceived performance quality of the product. A business-like personality is...