designing experiences
October 21, 2011. Toronto to San Francisco, where figure3′s Jennifer Young and Andrew Gallici speak at the international Service Design Conference – From Sketchbook to Spreadsheet.
figure3′s talk is entitled Spatial Seduction: Using Service Design to Rekindle Customer Loyalty.
It’s been a fascinating journey as we’ve prepared for the conference. People are genuinely interested to learn more about our work with organizations who are investing in this new idea called ‘service design’. Some common questions we’ve been fielding:
Q: What IS service design?
We liked this definition from the Savannah School of Art and Design: “Service design is the practice of analyzing and systematically mapping complex service systems to create user experiences that are sustainable and profitable to service providers and meaningful to their customers.”
Let’s dig a little deeper and look at the key words in this definition:
‘Meaningful’ – a great customer experience is successful in part because there is an underlying purpose, message, or emotional connection that happens between a consumer and the service that was purchased, or enjoyed.
‘Sustainable’ – the experience was so well mapped out that it is repeatable, consistent, dependable and trustworthy – resulting in customer loyalty.
‘Profitable’ – service design is ultimately about a transaction between supplier and customer. The customer is happy to pay for the service because the experience was memorable and enjoyable. The provider realizes a solid return on its investment in building the customer experience.
Service Design is big business. Speaking at the conference, Brandon Schauer of Adaptive Solutions estimates its value in the U.S. as conservatively $2B – and growing fast.
Q: Why is a Canadian interior design firm speaking at a conference about the design of services?
Simply, because every user experience of any service happens within a space. It is not enough to build a smart strategy for a service offering in isolation of the place where the customer receives the service. We see ‘service design’ as a holistic inclusive process where the physical environment is a direct result of the research and strategies that are the foundation of a choreographed experience.
The practice of interior design is undergoing a seismic shift. Designers have an opportunity to not only craft user experience but to drive that experience in all touchpoints in space.
Q: What is figure3′s talk about?
What do telcos and banks have in common? We’ll ask the conference audience, ‘How many of you love your bank? How many of you would recommend your telecom provider to a friend?’ Last week we asked Canadians on the streets of Toronto for their viewpoints: here’s what they had to say.
Financial services and telcos are two of the top five most despised industries in North America. Yet, we know from working with BMO and TELUS in creating new concept stores and branches that transformative solutions are possible. Both these organizations have invested in deep dive research to inform compelling new customer-focused design for their retail locations.
Listen to Paul Dilda, head of physical distribution for BMO share his experience of working with figure3 to create a holistic new environment where both BMO customers and branch employees are learning to interact differently – and building trust, loyalty (and profits) at the same time.
Check in next week for more insights from San Francisco.
