The impact of atypical product design on consumer product and brand perception

This article investigates the influence of atypical product designs on consumers’ product and brand perceptions. Drawing on appraisal theory of emotions and research on inference making, the results of three experimental studies conducted among US and European consumers demonstrate that the atypicality of a product’s design positively influences impressions of brand excitement and negatively influences impressions of brand reliability. The former relationship is mediated by the product’s perceived interestingness, while the latter is mediated by the product’s perceived functionality. Importantly, product design atypicality interacts with product positioning in affecting consumer brand perception. Compared to positioning a product hedonically, positioning a product functionally increases the positive influence of product design atypicality on brand excitement and decreases the negative influence of product design atypicality on brand reliability. These findings contribute to research in the field of product design and brand management by demonstrating a dual effect of design atypicality on consumers’ brand perceptions. Managerial implications and suggestions for future research are outlined.