How Design Thinking Can Influence CX

I’m a big supporter of design thinking. I believe that it’s a discipline that allows executives to think carefully, and in detail, about exactly where their company fits in both a corporate and societal ecosystem and how their products are really used by customers. 

 Design thinking is becoming big business now. Some might argue that it’s also becoming a bit too visible, almost a fad or trend. When you can see a 2-month online course that only requires a couple of hours study per week on offer at $1,400 then you know that people are starting to notice. 

 If you search Google for ‘by design’ then thousands of results are returned. Inquiry by design, furniture by design, made by design, winning by design, coffee by design - it’s endless. Marketing departments are clearly applying the words ‘by design’ to almost any product to give the impression that their brand features products designed by Jony Ive. 

 I believe that there are three components that are critical for the use of design thinking in any field, but particularly when designing a customer experience (CX): 

1. Strategic value: at a high level, how does the solution address a particular problem or answer a need for a specific service. 
2. Practical application: how would the product or service actually be delivered? 
3. Innovation: is this design different? Are we pushing beyond what we are currently used to and creating something new and interesting? 

 A very simple way to think about the design thinking process is through the ideas of inspiration, ideation, and implementation. When creating innovative products the pathway often will iterate through these steps many times. 

 You need the ability to create an idea, the inspiration for something new. Then the ability to imagine how it might work, and then to also be able to implement it. Several test versions of products may fail and cycle around through the ideation and implementation processes as pilot studies and beta tests are undertaken. 

 I think that in the context of CX, design thinking is becoming critical as the customer journey becomes so infinitely more complex. Look at a retail brand like IKEA. Their stores are always packed and buying furniture has traditionally been a very tactile process - you want to see and touch chairs and tables before bringing them into your home. However, more than 4 in 5 IKEA customers start their journey to a purchase using online tools - they almost always start their journey by researching the kind of furniture they want online. 

This changes the way that the customer experiences a brand. They are no longer only responding to traditional marketing or advertising and then enquiring about a product, they are actively comparing and doing their own research before making a purchase. 

 Car dealers have seen this happening for at least the past 6-7 years. Car retailers such as Carvana have torn up the traditional branded dealer model. They help the customer choose between different car models from different brands and then can directly deliver the car or make it available at one of their car “vending machines.” Car customers no longer find that the dealer offers much value because they have already done their homework. 

 All this change in the way that consumers behave, and how their customer journey begins in a very different place to how it worked a decade ago, demonstrates the need for strong design thinking. The auto industry has been completely usurped by new brands like Tesla just ignoring tradition and selling cars from shopping malls. 

 Brands across all industries need to think carefully about whether the processes they used in 2019 still have value in 2021 - especially examining how the post-pandemic business environment may have changed the behavior of their consumers. Think strategic, find practical solutions, and build innovation into your solutions. 

 Let me know what you think about the way that design thinking can be used to really explore detailed customer journeys. Do you think design is the right way to describe this process? Leave a comment here or get in touch with me directly via LinkedIn.