Perceived Quality of Car
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Perceived Quality of Car Understanding the Customers’ First Impression Master’s Thesis in Industrial Design Engineering EMMA CARLSSON & REBECKA MATHIASSON DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL MATERIAL SCIENCE CHALMERS UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY Gothenburg, Sweden 2020 www.chalmers.se Perceived Quality of Car Understanding the Customers’ First Impression EMMA CARLSSON REBECKA MATHIASSON EXAMINER: LARS-OLA BLIGÅRD Department of Industrial Material Science CHALMERS UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY Gothenburg, Sweden 2020 Perceived Quality of Car – Understanding the Customers’ First Impression EMMA CARLSSON & REBECKA MATHIASSON © EMMA CARLSSON & REBECKA MATHIASSON, 2020 Department of Industrial Material Science Chalmers University of Technology SE-412 96 Gothenburg Sweden Telephone + 46 (0)31-772 1000 Cover: The visualisation of the guidelines in a concept proposal, found in section 6.2 Print: Repro Service Chalmers Gothenburg, Sweden 2020 Abstract The customers first impression of the perceived quality of the vehicle interior in a showroom is highly important since it affects the customers final choice of vehicle. This master thesis aims to answer the questions of what it is that affects the customers first impression of perceived quality the most when looking at the interior of a vehicle, and what makes the customers perceive the vehicle as a premium product. These questions are investigated from the perspective that the vehicle should be used for sharing. Theoretical research was conducted on the fields of human perception to understand how first impressions are formed. Furthermore, the field of perceived quality and premium design was researched to gain knowledge about how to apply this within the project. Finally, the fields of car interior and car sharing were researched. To get more knowledge and perspectives to the research, interviews with experts from three different fields – premium design, illumination and material were conducted, and showrooms were visited for a market analysis. User studies with participants from the target group were carried out, and a poll was sent out to gain deeper insights regarding the target group’s perception in terms of the research questions. The knowledge from all research were then analysed and resulted in guidelines and a concept proposal. A total of eight guidelines were established. They covered aspects such as aesthetic appearance, qualitative appearance, appeal to human senses, convey a message through the design etc. These guidelines were visualised in a concept proposal of a re-design of a car interior for a car developed by the company Lynk & Co. Keywords: Perceived Quality, Premium Design, First Impression, Car Interior. Acknowledgements We would like to take this opportunity to give our thanks to all who has contributed with their help and expertise during this project which is conducted together with CEVT. A big thank you to the Perceived Quality team at CEVT who contributed with their knowledge and warm welcome. Thanks to all of the interviewed car dealers, experts and those who participated in the user study and evaluation poll, your contribution has been essential for the project work. We would also like to say thank you to our supervisors at CEVT, Louise Siljefalk and Emelie Heimersson, who have guided and supported us throughout the project. Finally, a thank you to our supervisor and examiner at Chalmers, Lars-Ola Bligård for the guidance. Gothenburg, May 2020 Emma Carlsson Rebecka Mathiasson Table of content Glossary ................................................................................................................................................................... 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................. 2 1.1 Background .................................................................................................................................................... 2 1.1.1 Evaluating cars as a customer ................................................................................................................. 3 1.2 Purpose ........................................................................................................................................................... 3 1.3 Delimitations .................................................................................................................................................. 4 1.4 Clarification of the question ........................................................................................................................... 4 1.5 Project process ............................................................................................................................................... 5 Theoretical Research .............................................................................................................................................. 7 2.1 Human Perception .......................................................................................................................................... 7 2.1.1 Visual Appearance .................................................................................................................................. 7 2.1.2 First Impression ....................................................................................................................................... 8 2.2 Perceived Quality ........................................................................................................................................... 8 2.3 Premium Design ............................................................................................................................................. 9 2.4 Car Interior Design ...................................................................................................................................... 10 2.4.1 Illumination ........................................................................................................................................... 10 2.4.2 Geometry & Appearance ....................................................................................................................... 11 2.4.3 Material Quality .................................................................................................................................... 11 2.5 Car Sharing .................................................................................................................................................. 12 2.6 Conclusion theoretical research ................................................................................................................... 12 Market analysis ..................................................................................................................................................... 13 3.1 Methods ........................................................................................................................................................ 13 3.1.1 Benchmark ............................................................................................................................................ 13 3.1.2 Interviews .............................................................................................................................................. 14 3.2 Results ........................................................................................................................................................... 15 3.2.1 Benchmark ............................................................................................................................................ 15 3.2.2 Car dealers’ interviews .......................................................................................................................... 16 3.2.3 Professional designers’ interviews ........................................................................................................ 17 3.3 Conclusion market analysis .......................................................................................................................... 21 User Studies ........................................................................................................................................................... 22 4.1 Methods ........................................................................................................................................................ 22 4.1.1 Equipment – the vehicles ...................................................................................................................... 23 4.1.2 Pilot study .............................................................................................................................................. 25 4.1.3 Observations .......................................................................................................................................... 25 4.1.4 First impression mapping ...................................................................................................................... 25 4.1.5 Ranking ................................................................................................................................................. 26 4.1.6 Interviews .............................................................................................................................................. 26 4.1.7 KJ-analysis ...........................................................................................................................................