Pictures of the Future      Spring 2005

Strengthening Our Emotional Bond to Products

What does "personalization" mean to you?

Wandke: On the one hand, the need to express oneself through personal statements that can be as simple as a bumper sticker. Such elements communicate something about each of us as a person. On the other hand, personalization also includes devices and systems that are tailored to certain personal tasks.

Are personalized products more attractive?

Wandke: People have a fundamental need to distinguish themselves from one another and demonstrate their membership in groups. Harley riders greet one another, for example, because they communicate a certain attitude via that motorcycle. There is no doubt that users develop a stronger emotional bond to personalized products and are more satisfied with them.

Are there practical advantages as well?

Wandke: Yes. Personalization can make it easier to handle technology. Tailoring something to the user’s own needs means relegating what he or she does not want or need to the background. And this can also be a matter of objective conditions. Handicapped persons, for example, can profit greatly from personalization. However, the expense for personalized adaptation must not exceed its utility.

Has personalization in technology been around for a long time?

Wandke: No. At the beginning, computers, for instance, worked the same way for everyone. The user had to adapt himself to the computer. Apple was a pioneer in personalization and in 1984 for the first time offered users the chance to adjust displays according to their own preferences. With mobile phones, personalization then became a mass phenomenon. Logos, ring tones, individual keypad layouts and interchangeable shells give cell phones a personal touch. In PCs, on the other hand, personalization tends to occur on an aesthetic level, as with desktop wallpaper. Changing menus and icons requires a relatively large effort and fairly specialized knowledge.

Where could personalization play a role in the future?

Wandke: Anyplace where there is not just a functional component but also a hedonistic one. In cars, for example. Vehicle electronics can register individual driving styles and shift an automatic transmission accordingly. The intelligent house is another example. It can regulate room temperature according to the preferences of residents and can even set entertainment programs—things like a children’s station for the kids and a news program for dad when he’s in the shower.

Are certain user groups particularly drawn to personalized products?

Wandke: Age is important. Young people want to develop their personalities, make themselves independent of their parents, and find their position in the group. Many older people, on the other hand, don’t have enough prior knowledge to adapt devices to their needs. They’re glad if a system works. Overall, men are also more playful with technology than women. They prefer to use aesthetic elements and try different things out. Women are usually more pragmatic in that regard. If they find a machine useful in its default configuration, they usually don’t see any need to make changes.

What are the limits of personalization?

Wandke: Automated systems are problematic, like the refrigerator that orders food by itself, which is often described as a vision of the future. In this case there is the danger of a loss of control, which no one likes. Studies have also shown that passengers reject systems that automatically debit the fare. They would rather decide that themselves. Individual adaptation can also have disadvantages if multiple users work with a product. Then there has to be a button for the default setting. Manufacturers should take care to include not as much personalization as possible but only as much as is needed and useful.

What, in your opinion, are the major trends that will affect the future of personalization?

Wandke: Products that automatically evolve are very interesting. Through observation, a cell phone could find out what ring melodies the user likes and then compose one for him or her. That would be an adaptive personalization. That is still very much in the future, but is definitely being researched. Another long-term goal is a personalized service robot that identifies the user’s preferences and takes account of them in its behavior. After a certain "training period," no two of these robots anywhere in the world would be the same, although the manufacturer would deliver all of them with the same functions.

                                                                                              Interview by Werner Pluta