Influence of Exterior Design Attributes on Consumer Preference for Electric Vehicles
Abstract
What is the relationship between a product's design and acceptance of the product? We examine consumer preferences relative to the fast changing automotive industry to understand how the various physical design elements of new car models, including electric vehicles, influence consumer vehicle preference. This research explores product design perceptions and aims to understand specific attributes of the visual form that underlie consumer interpretations of products. Eye tracking methods and measurements were employed to empirically examine if attention can predict consumer judgements and behavioral outcomes. Study 1 investigated consumer level a priori variables--including prototypicality, processing fluency, and information entropy--which were hypothesized to influence consumer aesthetic liking. In Study 2, car-level attributes were specifically looked at to see if the same variables relative to a cars design influenced annual car sales. Variables in these studies were measured with both conventional eye tracking measurements and newly established composite metrics to analyze the scan paths of participants and understand how the visual entropy of an object influences consumer preferences. Findings reveal the importance of the grille as a feature that consumers rely on to recognize and make judgements about a vehicle's design. This study also confirms Mandler's hypothesis (1989) that a moderate level of prototypicality is preferred by consumers when evaluating vehicles, suggesting that a vehicle's design elements should be moderately unique so that they are memorable, while also consistent relative to the product category's typicality to alleviate confusion. The research findings are relevant to both designers and marketing executives as they attempt to align new model designs with the expectations of consumers while also trying to stand out amongst competitors in a saturated market. Understanding which design features consumers use to make evaluations during the purchasing process is an important first step before launching a new vehicle model to the market. The measures and methods in this study offer useful measures for marketing and design practitioners if design enhancement is of interest.
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