The importance of aesthetics on customers’ intentions to purchase smartphones

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how potential purchasers of a personal information, communication and entertainment device such as a smartphone, perceive the aesthetics of such a product. It then examines whether appreciation of the product’s aesthetics influences their purchase intention through different dimensions of perceived value drawn from perceptions of the product’s aesthetics, or whether there is a direct relationship from aesthetics to purchase intention. Design/methodology/approach Mixed methods consisting of two focus groups, a pilot and large online surveys were used for instrument confirmation and data collection. Data were analysed and hypotheses were tested using partial least squares structural equation modelling techniques. Findings Aesthetics’ primary effect on purchase intention is not direct, but rather indirect through perceived social and to a lesser extent, perceived emotional value while the importance of aesthetics on perceived functional value is far less. There was also support for a formative approach in the construction of an aesthetics scale with the identification of four different latent factors of aesthetics. Research limitations/implications This study is product specific but should be extendable to the product category. The possibility of other variables affecting the aesthetic appreciation of a product also needs consideration. Practical implications The study provides managers with insights on how aesthetics can be used to strengthen purchase intention in terms of both product development and promotional strategies. Aesthetics’ appeal to social and emotional perceived values, rather than functional value, provides guidance on how to use aesthetics in promotional campaigns. Originality/value Despite the richness of the literature on aesthetics, only a limited number of studies have researched the factors influencing aesthetic appreciation of a product and the effect on purchase intention. This research expands knowledge in the area thereby providing new insights on the influence of aesthetics on marketing.

Does Sustainable Perceived Value Play a Key Role in the Purchase Intention Driven by Product Aesthetics? Taking Smartwatch as an Example

“…Later, Swilley (2012) treated overall appearance as an independent construct for testing and developed a measurement method for six constructs [37]. Toufani, Stanton, and Chikweche (2017) used Swilley's (2012) six constructs of aesthetics in their study of the aesthetics of smartphones [14]. The product form aesthetics in this study used four constructs of aesthetics from Swilley (2012) and Toufani, Stanton, and Chikweche (2017) [14,37], namely, color, texture/touch, shape, and overall appearance.…”

“…Toufani, Stanton, and Chikweche (2017) used Swilley's (2012) six constructs of aesthetics in their study of the aesthetics of smartphones [14]. The product form aesthetics in this study used four constructs of aesthetics from Swilley (2012) and Toufani, Stanton, and Chikweche (2017) [14,37], namely, color, texture/touch, shape, and overall appearance. In addition, according to a recent study by Dehghani and Kim (2019) on smartwatches [38], this study added two constructs to the conceptual model, namely, screens size and uniqueness.…”

“…Their consumer perceived value scale conceptualizes perceived value as a combination of functional, social, emotional, and other constructs for pre-or post-purchase product evaluation environments. Many scholars have argued that the motives access to products and services are associated with functional requirements, social values, and emotional values [14,53]. Based on these theories, the three first-order constructs of hypothetical functional value, social value, and emotional value in this study were considered a construct of sustainable perceived value.…”

“…Aesthetics is viewed as a non-instrumental quality, which forms an important aspect of product attractiveness and experience [12]. A diversified design is needed at the mature stage of product expansion to meet consumer requirements for aesthetics, which may affect the consumers' purchase intention [13,14]. From the consumer perspective, this kind of experience plays an important role in determining consumer preferences and then influencing their purchase decisions [15].…”

And the nominees are: Using design-awards datasets to build computational aesthetic evaluation model

“…Among all the factors, visual aesthetics is proved to be critical in product design evaluation [3,4] by physiological analysis approaches [5] and user experience study [6]. The existing studies indicated that visual aesthetics is significantly influencing user preference [7] and stimulating users' purchase behavior [8][9][10], which has a crucial effect on promoting product acceptance [11]. Consequently, quantifying the visual aesthetics of design works by computational means is promising for various industries.…”