Design for Brand Identity: A Case of Industrial Design Studio Process by Two Projects

Year 2025, Volume: 13 Issue: 3, 543 - 569, 30.09.2025

Ezgi Ilhan , Acar İpek

Abstract

For industrial design studies, understanding the target market and the company/brand for which the design is being implemented is crucial for the success of new products, given the product design ideas of both design-candidate students and professional designers. This study focuses on the relationship between design, designer, and brand identity. It aims to uncover the relationship between designers' research, understanding, and interpretation of the brand, focusing on form and function, and the final product decisions. As part of the research, 26 prospective design students pursuing industrial design education were given two projects regarding product design and brand identity to observe their approach and design decisions. At the beginning of the process, the lecturers gave students the project topics, goals, and expectations for success. The students' design stages were evaluated as a group work for the first project and individually for the second. A comparative analysis was conducted, along with how they reflected their keywords associated with the brand identity in their final product designs. The identical brands designed in different contexts in these projects, which featured physically and spatially, provided a source of information for students studying brand identity, thus preparing them for the expectations they will encounter in professional practice. The study results were interpreted as a guide for designers who continue professional practice in different sectors or adopt similar brand lines by revealing how the adjectives defined by the designers are reflected in the design language, form and function-oriented design decisions of the products.

Keywords

Product design , Design project , Brand identity , Designer , Design studio

Marka Kimliği Tasarımı: Endüstriyel Tasarım Stüdyosunda Yürütülen İki Proje Örneği

Abstract

Endüstriyel tasarım çalışmaları için öğrencilerin akademik hayatta ortaya koydukları ürün tasarımı fikirleri ve profesyonel tasarımcıların iş hayatında son ürünle ilgili çalışmalarının odağında hedef pazarı ve tasarımın yürütüldüğü firmayı/markayı tanımak yeni ürünlerin başarısı için büyük önem taşımaktadır. Bu çalışma tasarım, tasarımcı ve marka kimliği ilişkisine odaklanmaktadır. Tasarımcıların form ve fonksiyon odağında markayı araştırmaları, anlamaları ve yorumlamaları ile kullanıcıya ulaşacak son ürün kararları arasındaki ilişkiyi açığa çıkarmayı hedeflemektedir. Araştırma kapsamında endüstriyel tasarım eğitimine devam etmekte olan 26 tasarımcı adayı öğrencinin marka kimliği odağında ürün tasarımına odaklanan iki farklı projeyi başından sonuna kadar ele alış şekilleri ve tasarım kararları anlatılmıştır. Sürecin başında projelerin konusu, hedefleri ve başarı beklentileri öğrencilere verilmiştir. Öğrencilerin ilk projede grup içinde, ikinci projede kişisel olarak tasarlama aşamaları değerlendirilmiş, onların marka kimliğiyle ilişkilendirdiği keywordlerin tasarım çizgisine nasıl yansıdığıyla beraber karşılaştırmalı olarak yorumlanmıştır. Fiziksel ve mekansal olarak aynı markaların farklı bağlamlar içinde tasarlandığı bu projeler marka kimliğiyle ilgili çalışma yapan öğrenciler için bir bilgi kaynağı oluşturmuş, böylece onları professional practice’te karşılaşacakları beklentiler için hazırlamıştır. Çalışmanın sonuçları, tasarımcılar tarafından tanımlanan sıfatların ürünlerin tasarım dili, form ve fonksiyon odaklı tasarım kararlarına nasıl yansıdığını ortaya koyarak, farklı sektörlerde profesyonel tasarım çalışmalarına devam eden veya benzer marka çizgilerini benimseyen tasarımcılara kılavuzluk edecek nitelikte yorumlanmıştır.

Keywords

ürün tasarımı , tasarım projesi , marka kimliği , tasarımcı , tasarım stüdyosu

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