5 Compelling Reasons to Consider a Product Design Career in 2025

Overview

Are you a design enthusiast considering a product design career in 2025? Do you have a flair for creativity and get intrigued by world-class design but do not know where to start? Are you considering enrolling in the top product design colleges in India, but doubtful if you are taking the step in the right direction? If your response to any of the above questions is 'yes,' this article will help you explore product design, its significance, and why it is a suitable career choice in 2025.

Table of contents

• Understanding Product Design as a Career
• What is Product Design?
• Product Designer Salary and Benefits
• The 5 Key Reasons for opting for a product design career

Understanding Product Design as a Career

Ever wondered why the Apple iPhone is the most sought-after smartphone globally? The answer lies not only in its functionality but also in its ability to offer a blend of aesthetics, convenience and experience—all rolled into one compact device. This demonstrates the power of product design, which is a critical determinant of success for businesses. 

Good design not only enhances the product's perceived value; it also drives business efficiency, fosters innovation and helps businesses establish their brand. 

What is Product Design?

Product design and development combine the power of science, art and technology to offer aesthetic, intuitive and functional products that enhance the user experience. A typical product development process involves ideating, creating and iterating products that solve users' problems or address the specific needs of a given market. A Google search engine, an Uber ride-sharing app, Lego building blocks and Netflix streaming are examples of successful product design.

   

Product designers leverage design thinking, constantly pushing boundaries to create innovative, easy-to-use products. They oversee the design process from start to finish or improve upon the existing product. Their work involves brainstorming product design ideas, gathering input from various stakeholders, working with product design sketches, and acting as a liaison between designers, engineers, and researchers. 

As a practice, product design encompasses various career paths such as industrial design, user experience design, user interface design and packaging design across healthcare, technology, retail and automotive sectors. 

In recent years there has been a push towards product design courses in India as a result of rapid digitalisation, government thrust on design education, and initiatives by commercial companies. The Grand View Research predicts that the product design and development industry in India will generate approximately US$ 2713.9 million in revenue by 2030 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.9% from 2023 onwards, demonstrating significant scope of product design in India. 

Product Designer Salary and Benefits

The salary of a product designer depends upon the level of experience, industry, job title, and location. According to CareerFoundry, product designers earn an average salary of $98,676 globally. According to Glassdoor, the average salary of a product designer in India is ₹ 13.10 lakhs per annum. According to Ambition Box, entry-level product designers with one year of experience usually earn around 2.8 lakhs per annum.

Beyond salary, the job of a product designer comes with its own set of benefits. Their role is varied not only in terms of the day-to-day tasks but also in the products that they work on. From coffee machines to websites, mobile apps, and medical devices, the scope of product design spans various sectors. 

The product design process offers scope for cross-disciplinary collaboration, which not only enriches the design process but also enhances the user experience, builds brands, and positively impacts the bottom line of businesses. 

The rise in emerging technologies like AI, Web3, and metaverse implies the vast scope of product design roles and their contribution to business goals. This demand is foreseen to grow further due to the increasing focus on user experience, growing digitalisation and mobile penetration, and the need for innovative product design to stay ahead of the competition.  

So, if you are a design enthusiast, here are the top reasons why a career in product design is an apt choice in 2025.

The 5 Key Reasons for opting for a product design career

1. Growing Design Thinking Demand

In this era of stiff competition and innovation, the industry is increasingly seeking 'design thinking' as a skill set. Design thinking is a mindset and approach to solving problems and fostering innovation rooted in human-centred design. The salient feature of this approach is that it is solution-based and user-centric. 

For instance, a team may be struggling with low productivity in the work-from-home model. In such a case, design thinking at design schools and workplaces explores better ways to keep teammates engaged instead of focusing on the problem of low productivity.

Interestingly, this approach is derived from designers' workflows for mapping various stages of the design process, though it can also be applied to non-designers. The various stages of design thinking–Empathise, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test are the foundation of the product design process. Hence, design thinking, as a skill set, is intrinsic to product design and development. Reading graphic novels is one of the ways to develop this skill set.

  

The importance of design thinking lies in its ability to offer a standard framework to foster innovation. Though other methods, such as trial-and-error, exist, they are too cumbersome and expensive. On the other hand, design thinking aims to follow a concrete methodology to develop impactful products, services, and processes. This brings umpteen benefits to businesses, such as understanding the needs of the audience, mitigating the risks associated with the new product development process, generating disruptive and not just iterative solutions, and fostering better collaboration among teams. 

Design thinking is adopted by some of the world's top companies, such as Starbucks, GE Healthcare, Coca Cola, Fitbit, Airbnb and many more. There has been a surge in roles demanding design thinking as a skill set. A simple Google search of 'job roles with design thinking' revealed 4000+ vacancies in design thinking jobs in India on LinkedIn.

It is now a proven fact that jobs requiring the use of the design thinking process command higher salaries in India than in others. In an age where AI has taken over most tasks, human-centred solutions and user empathy will remain irreplaceable and heavily reliant on human intervention. Hence, design thinking roles are future-proofed from technological disruption and economic downturns.

The global design thinking market is anticipated to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate(CAGR) of 7.38% to reach a value of USD 11352.7 million by 2028, as per  Market Research Guru. Emerging technologies, a focus on social impact, and inclusive design are some of the trends redefining design thinking.

2. Dynamic Product Development Process

The product design and development process is highly dynamic, implying that a product designer's job is diverse, with no two similar days. For instance, one day, a product designer might brainstorm creative ideas and interview product stakeholders while researching competition and building wireframes on the other. Particularly exciting is the new product development process, which combines research, design, and engineering to bring a new product to the market that meets the customer's needs. Examples of new product development include Beyond Meat, a meat substitute company that created the first meatless burger and Apple, which created an iPhone based on the idea of its founder, Steve Jobs and Tesla Model 3, which offers electric vehicles at a more accessible price point. 

The various stages of new product development, spanning ideation, research, prototyping, testing, production, and commercialisation, provide a structured process for taking the product from inception to market launch. These steps increase the chances of developing a product that meets customer needs and stands out in the market. 

Product design and development offers unique opportunities to foster innovation by bringing new products (products that never existed before, such as an iPhone), expanding the company's existing product line, maximising the customer experience and building businesses and their reputation. 

Product design is a highly dynamic field where new trends, such as sustainability, iterative animation, accessibility, etc., are redefining the landscape. Hence, it allows learning and unlearning simultaneously to stay relevant in the job landscape. Careers in product design and development foster continuous learning and lifelong development. 

Moreover, product designers usually work in a team, collaborating with engineers, researchers, product managers, and top management. Hence, they benefit from the cross-disciplinary expertise of various team members. Collaboration is also known to improve problem-solving, provide access to learning opportunities, enhance job satisfaction, and lead to personal development. 

3. Product Design Career Opportunities

Product designers work across healthcare, technology, consumer goods, e-commerce, interior design, and manufacturing sectors. Depending on their preference, they may choose to join multinational corporations or startups. While MNCs offer exposure to diverse cultures and work environments, employees in startups have a steep growth trajectory. They may also choose to work in an individual capacity as freelancers, where they work on various projects. 

A product design course also offers the opportunity to specialise in various fields described below:

Industrial design:

Industrial Design (ID) refers to the design of products, devices, objects, and services people worldwide use daily. Industrial designers focus on ergonomics, functionality and manufacturability of the products to offer lasting value to users. 

Set and exhibition design:

Set and exhibition designers create spaces and layouts for events and exhibitions such as museums, film shoots, trade shows, and art installations. They apply design principles to convey information in an innovative manner to the audience. 

Interaction design:

Interaction design involves creating engaging and intuitive user experiences for digital products. Interaction Designers are mandated to design the interaction between a system interface and its users, ensuring a smooth and accessible flow.

Packaging design:

Packaging design involves creating attractive and functional packaging that protects the product, conveys important information, and attracts customers' attention. 

Product designers work in several settings, such as remote, in-office, or in a hybrid model. They get the opportunity to design products for audiences across geographies, cultures, and languages. This helps them learn from best practices worldwide and understand the uniqueness of each market at the same time. The product design process exposes professionals to diverse settings. Hence, they are known to possess high cultural awareness, great access to networking and career advancement opportunities, and enhanced language proficiency compared to others. 

4. High Earning Potential and Competitive Salaries

Product design professionals are in high demand worldwide due to the emphasis on product differentiation and customer experience, rapid technological advancements, and the growing need for sustainable design, among other factors.

 

Hence, they are among the highest-paid professionals in the design industry and are likely to earn above the national average in some countries. Like other professions, salary prospects improve with a strong portfolio and a certain degree of experience in the field. It is worth remembering that the salary for a product designer varies from country to country and even region to region. Below is the countrywide salary breakdown for a product designer (Source: CareerFoundry).

Within a demographically diverse market like India, the salary of a product designer varies from city to city. The city-wise breakdown of product designer salary is given below (Source: Fynd.Academy)

Location	Average Product Designer Salary per Year
Bangalore (B.Des)	₹10 - ₹18 LPA
Mumbai	₹9 - ₹16 LPA
Hyderabad	₹8 - ₹15 LPA
Pune	₹8 - ₹14 LPA
Delhi NCR	₹7 - ₹13 LPA
Chennai	₹7 - ₹12 LPA
Kolkata	₹6 - ₹10 LPA
Ahmedabad	₹6 - ₹9 LPA
Jaipur	₹5 - ₹8 LPA
Chandigarh	₹5 - ₹8 LPA

Factors such as location, experience, company size, skillset, and job profile affect product design salaries worldwide. Investment in upskilling through professional certifications, gaining technical proficiency, and developing soft skills like leadership and problem-solving improve the likelihood of salary hikes for product designers.  

Beyond lucrative salaries, product designers are entitled to attractive stock options and bonuses as they rise up the career ladder. Starting as junior product designers, they may progress to senior management roles such as chief product officer and senior principal product designer.

5. Impact-Driven career as a product designer

Product design has a significant impact on everyday life by influencing the manner in which people interact with objects of daily use, accessibility and overall experience through informed design choices of usability, sustainability, among others.

 

The significance of sustainability for businesses has further provided an impetus to product design. By developing eco-friendly products that minimise carbon footprints and factoring in environmental implications during the entire product lifecycle, product design is a significant enabler of sustainability. Similarly, enhanced customer experience due to superior product design helps businesses improve efficiency, reduce costs, and foster innovation. 

Emerging technologies like AI, Metaverse, and Augmented Reality have reaffirmed the significance of human-centred design and ensured that solutions are created that are tailored to evolving human needs. The demand for ethical design is also growing as consumers are becoming aware of the socio-environmental implications of products.

This has generated demand for products that are responsibly sourced and accessible and lead to an overall positive impact on society. Generative AI in design has also highlighted the significance of transparency, accountability and fairness amid concerns about deepfakes, user privacy and plagiarism. 

Conclusion 

Shifting consumer preferences, evolving consumer needs, and the government's thrust on design education imply that product design is here to stay and will grow further on the back of sustained demand for superior products and increased focus on user experience. 

Pursuing a career in product design provides an opportunity to shape how users interact with various products and services and play an important role in shaping the quality of life in society.

 

Explore More About Product Design

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