Solving Problems as They Emerge
Design is a living-breathing creative act. We tend to think that by applying a core idea on many applications, we create a brand or a product. But they are being created and recreated every second in every interaction with the audience.
How can you track it and design an interaction as it happens?
Offline is dying as global shifts and circumstances has accelerated everything Online, live and immediate. It’s true for media and soon it would become the reality of brands and businesses. Service Design serves the needs of an audience as it emerges, shaping solutions as things change. As Brenda Laurel said: “A design isn’t finished until somebody is using it”. It’s an ongoing process of needs assessment and services or products adjustments.
Understand a need as it emerges is super challenging. Changes are sometimes so incremental that we won’t notice them until they become a vital part of our lives. Other times people just don’t know how to define what they need; they just know that they are unpleased with the way thing are right now. In Service Design they're a prototyping and experimentation stage. Little failures are built-in here, against all business instincts. It’s not about getting it right the first time, because it’s impossible to do so, when needs are half-defined, half-changing. it’s about getting it wrong less and less, until you get it right.
How many times did you hear businesses declaring that they know their audiences best and that they are prepared for changes happening in the market? Surely Blockbuster and Nokia didn’t want to fail. Confidence is important, but ego must be put aside. No one understands your audience because they don’t understand themselves. Changes are happening all the time and if you stop developing your product or service it will soon become outdated. A business must be curios, mindful and humble to succeed.
Here are some points to pay attention to regarding Service Design
Having the perfect solution is great. Most of the time there isn’t one. Audiences will have some amount of patience if they feel that you really thought about them and you care.
One solution to one need at a time. Anything more than that and you might just miss the audience. Furthermore, you won’t be able to review and evaluate you’re results if you try multiple variations at once.
Be aware of what’s changing in the world and be aware of how your audience experience your product or service.
It will be tempting to forsake this process when it gets hard and right into the old ways. Service Design requires commitment and long-term effort.
