Chapter 7
Strengthening Aesthetic
Individualization in Product Design
to Enhance Customer Loyalty
and Sustainability
Lisa Hagedorn, Gerald Kremer, and Rainer Stark
Abstract This paper analyzes how the aesthetic individualization of products affects
product sustainability. Furthermore, it depicts the need to strengthen the degree of
individualization in mass customization concepts and reveals ways to enable stronger
participation by customers in design processes. Customers often replace products
before the functional end of the product’s life cycle. This psychological obsolescence of products is caused by multiple factors. Frequently addressed reasons are
the unsatisfied need of customers for uniqueness in product design and the absence
of sufficient attachment to the product caused by insufficient functional/aesthetic
identification of the customer with the product. One way to tackle these deficiencies
is by addressing and implementing the concept of mass customization. A demographic survey presented in this paper indicates that the majority of customers want
more creative freedom in designing their products and a stronger participation in
the design process. It also shows that stronger individualization leads to a higher
degree of product attachment. A qualitative follow up study held a workshop for
user-centered design with relevant stakeholders: designers, manufacturing engineers
and customers of different age groups. In this workshop the needs of potential users
were analyzed, and possible solutions were created and subsequently evaluated.
Keywords Sustainable product design · Customer loyalty · Individualization ·
Aesthetic principles in product design · User-centered design
7.1 Introduction
The greatest challenges that the industrial sector is facing nowadays are the reduction of resources that are being used in production processes and the reduction of
consumer consumption. At the same time, the quality of life and the customer satisfaction should at least be maintained, if not increased. When considering the growing
L. Hagedorn (B) · G. Kremer · R. Stark
Department of Industrial Information Technology, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
e-mail: lisa.hagedorn@tu-berlin.de
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
Y. Kishita et al. (eds.), EcoDesign and Sustainability II, Sustainable Production, Life
Cycle Engineering and Management, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-6775-9_7
97
Strengthening Aesthetic
Individualization in Product Design
to Enhance Customer Loyalty
and Sustainability
Lisa Hagedorn, Gerald Kremer, and Rainer Stark
Abstract This paper analyzes how the aesthetic individualization of products affects
product sustainability. Furthermore, it depicts the need to strengthen the degree of
individualization in mass customization concepts and reveals ways to enable stronger
participation by customers in design processes. Customers often replace products
before the functional end of the product’s life cycle. This psychological obsolescence of products is caused by multiple factors. Frequently addressed reasons are
the unsatisfied need of customers for uniqueness in product design and the absence
of sufficient attachment to the product caused by insufficient functional/aesthetic
identification of the customer with the product. One way to tackle these deficiencies
is by addressing and implementing the concept of mass customization. A demographic survey presented in this paper indicates that the majority of customers want
more creative freedom in designing their products and a stronger participation in
the design process. It also shows that stronger individualization leads to a higher
degree of product attachment. A qualitative follow up study held a workshop for
user-centered design with relevant stakeholders: designers, manufacturing engineers
and customers of different age groups. In this workshop the needs of potential users
were analyzed, and possible solutions were created and subsequently evaluated.
Keywords Sustainable product design · Customer loyalty · Individualization ·
Aesthetic principles in product design · User-centered design
7.1 Introduction
The greatest challenges that the industrial sector is facing nowadays are the reduction of resources that are being used in production processes and the reduction of
consumer consumption. At the same time, the quality of life and the customer satisfaction should at least be maintained, if not increased. When considering the growing
L. Hagedorn (B) · G. Kremer · R. Stark
Department of Industrial Information Technology, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
e-mail: lisa.hagedorn@tu-berlin.de
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
Y. Kishita et al. (eds.), EcoDesign and Sustainability II, Sustainable Production, Life
Cycle Engineering and Management, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-6775-9_7
97