The English word ‘cool’ is known and used around the world, sometimes mixed in with local languages as in the vernacular of French teenagers in describing a fashion look as ‘cool et clean’. Marketers seek for their products to be seen as cool, as this attracts customers and publicity alike. And who wouldn’t rather be described as cool rather than uncool?
But what really is cool in the eyes of consumers as they plan purchases?
Research co-authored by Eden Yin, Associate Professor of Marketing at Cambridge Judge Business School, looks at this issue through both a global and national lens. It finds that consumers universally interpret coolness in 2 distinct ways – something can be cool by generating excitement or admiration (which the research classifies as a personal interpretation of coolness, or PIC), or a product can be dubbed cool if its appeal is socially validated (which the research terms a social interpretation of coolness, or SIC).
Examples of PIC include useful AI assistants and robotic vacuum cleaners, while “viral products such as fidget spinners or aspirational products such as designer heritage bags serve as SIC-based examples”, says Eden’s research.
Chinese consumers value exclusivity more than US and German counterparts
Yet the research goes beyond these globally consistent findings to also examine distinct geographical variations of coolness linked to local cultural values. Focusing on consumers in economic powerhouses in 3 parts of the world – North America (the US), Europe (Germany) and Asia (China) – the research finds that Chinese consumers subscribe more to the SIC camp, reflecting how exclusivity is more of a driving force for consumers in China in a way that is not replicated in Germany and the US.
“Exclusivity is a big deal in China,” says Eden, who was born in China. “It’s less of a big deal in the US and especially in Germany, where product desirability and, yes, coolness, are based more on personal experience and utility. Chinese consumers are driven more by socially acceptable norms, so exclusivity is important.”
The research finds further that in addition to placing greater emphasis on exclusivity as a driver of coolness, Chinese consumers also rate cool products as more desirable than do their counterparts in Germany and the US. Chinese consumers also exhibit the largest gap between perceived desirability and being turned off by negative stereotypes regarding trendy or cool products, suggesting that they see cool products in a predominantly favourable light, the research says.
“Together, these results suggest that, while the structural relationships in the integrative framework are largely stable across cultures (that is, consumers across cultures apply similar conceptual processes to assess coolness), the relative importance of specific elements within the framework is shaped by culture,” say the authors.
Exclusivity is a big deal in China. It’s less of a big deal in the US and especially in Germany, where product desirability and, yes, coolness, are based more on personal experience and utility. Chinese consumers are driven more by socially acceptable norms, so exclusivity is important.
Understanding product coolness through cross-cultural research
The research by Eden moves beyond previous studies, which focused mostly on identifying attributes that make a product or brand cool (which Eden’s research terms the conceptualisation of coolness), and those prior studies were predominantly centred on just one country. As summarised in Eden’s research, these previous studies have looked at topics ranging from the use of coolness in social marketing, to factors driving cool experience, to dimensions of coolness.
“To our best knowledge, (our study) represents the first and only study that examines product coolness in a cross-cultural context by empirically assessing the impact of cultural values on customers’ perceptions of coolness,” says Eden’s research published in the Journal of International Marketing. It is co-authored by Gratiana Pol, CEO and Co-Founder of California-based behavioural and consumer psychology firm Hyperthesis, Eden Yin of Cambridge Judge Business School and Gerald J Tellis of USC Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California.
Eden expands on the findings: “We find that personal coolness, or PIC, is stronger than social coolness in every culture, with consumers in the US, Germany and China rating PIC higher than SIC. And while popular culture often suggests that coolness is mostly about impressing others, we find that consumers generally care more about how a product makes them feel than about what others think. This suggests that great products are cooler than merely fashionable products.
“Based on these findings, the implication is that useful products are seen as cool, as usefulness and usability strongly influences PIC in all 3 countries – and this is why AI assistants can be a powerful source of coolness. Demonstrating that functional innovation is cool flies against conventional wisdom that often frames cool products as style-driven rather than practical.”
Surveys examine usefulness, trendiness and product attributes
The research is based on 2 surveys to conceptualise product coolness among US and UK-based respondents, and then 2 further cross-cultural surveys that focus on consumers in Germany and China in addition to the US – as people in all 3 countries use the English word cool in everyday language.
“Despite cultural differences, the overall framework replicated almost perfectly across the US, Germany and China,” says Eden. “The English word ‘cool’ appears to carry a stable conceptual structure across very different societies, though German consumers show the most skepticism toward coolness.”
Survey respondents in the research used a 7-point scale to indicate a product’s coolness (from not at all cool to extremely cool). They then completed a question that asked: “A product is cool when ….” – and were given a pool of items that includes some PIC-related and some SIC-related.
These include, related to PIC:
- “it is perceived as cool by most people”
- “it is endorsed by people who are trendsetters”
- “it starts a popular trend”
Other options related to PIC include:
- “it makes me happy when I use it”
- “I find it exciting or fun to use”
- “it possesses outstanding attributes”
In addition, respondents were questioned on product attributes, such as:
- design/style/visual attractiveness/sleekness
- uniqueness/novelty/creativity/interestingness
- usefulness/functionality/practicality
The research at its heart uses a definition of coolness stemming from a 2014 study: “a subjective and dynamic, socially constructed positive trait attributed to objects inferred to be appropriately autonomous”.
As Eden and his co-authors say: “This definition places the concept of ‘bounded autonomy’ at the core, implying that a cool product needs to be different and stand out, but do so in a way that is positive and socially appropriate. Importantly, the definition juxtaposes the socially constructed nature of coolness perceptions (coolness requires a social validation mechanism) against the individual subjectivity involved in such perceptions (something is deemed as cool only if an individual sees it as such).”
How findings guide product marketing strategies for cool products
So what are the marketing implications of these findings?
“Making a product stand out from its competitors by appearing cool to a broad and diverse consumer base is a reliable pathway to global product success,” the research concludes. “To effectively achieve such success, managers need to first understand what consumers mean when they label a product ‘cool’, and how such perceptions vary cross-culturally.”
In addition, the findings provide managers with 2 approaches for creating cool products. The first builds on PIC and “involves triggering excitement and/or admiration, via either symbolic or functional product attributes or, ideally, a combination of both” (such as an iPhone). “By focusing on a product’s intrinsic qualities, this approach reduces vulnerability to negative stereotypes that may arise when coolness is socially derived.”
The second approach, grounded in SIC, involves socially validating a product’s appeal via associations with desirable entities such as trendsetters, celebrities or cool brands.
“While the PIC-based approach has broad, cross-cultural appeal, the SIC-based approach is particularly effective in ascription-oriented and collectivistic cultures, such as China,” says Eden’s research. “There, consumers are often more sceptical of new products and rely heavily on social endorsements to gain insights into which products to buy.”
Says Eden: “Our findings help product managers in design strategies by highlighting aspects that are globally consistent, such as utility, while also identifying how products can be modified for certain consumers, such as those in China, in order to best optimise local perceptions of coolness. We think this has important marketing and managerial implications.”
Our findings help product managers in design strategies by highlighting aspects that are globally consistent, such as utility, while also identifying how products can be modified for certain consumers, such as those in China, in order to best optimise local perceptions of coolness. We think this has important marketing and managerial implications.
Featured research
Pol, G., Yin, E. and Tellis, G. (2026) “What makes a product cool? Consumers’ perceptions of product coolness across three cultures.” Journal of International Marketing, 34(2): 24-42 (DOI: 10.1177/1069031×261440313)
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