Finding Design Strategy

Likely because of the traditional silos that often exist within organizations and the historical view that design should be relegated to focusing on the way a product looks, few companies use all components of design as strategy effectively. However, those that do are taking full advantage of this approach.

Walt Disney World is my favorite example—not just because it is magical, but because they design everything from the trashcans to the roller coasters, the food to the way people move around the park, even to the smells. Everything is designed. Their newest innovation, the MagicBand not only improves the experience of entering the park and going on rides, but simplifies payments—maybe to an alarming degree—and informs logistics around the park. Now Disney knows where the lines are heaviest and where there is the most traffic, so they can redirect people using spontaneous parades or character meet and greets. Not only does this fuel the experience, the bands also provide another merchandising opportunity for Disney, with customizable bands available all across the park.

Disney is one company that is pursuing this tactic well, but there are others. It is important to know that this approach works best when designers can understand and work across multiple departments. Any industrial designer worth his salt can design a good / better / best series of products, but the real value of design strategy comes from understanding not just the product, but the whole ecosystem around it.

Finding an Integrated Approach

My quest to define design strategy began when I faced the complete absence of a definition for this term. While there may be more than two types of design strategy, I am confident that those I’ve described in this article cover at least 80% of the design strategy discipline. Although you can apply each approach separately, the greatest value derives from pursuing an integrated approach. However, to do this, you need both a strong design process that lets you identify insights and opportunities as well as a design capability that enables you to create a differentiated product. A single design strategist rarely has all of the skills necessary to both identify and define the strategy and execute any number of design outputs—ranging from process design to industrial design to brand design. You need a strong, multidisciplinary team working together to create the best outcomes.

Design strategy can produce compelling experiences that increase brand loyalty, save money, create differentiated products, and increases sales. However, the greatest business value comes from integrating design strategy with other approaches. Design strategy cannot exist in isolation. It needs an accompanying financial analysis to ensure a product’ s viability in the marketplace, market research to ensure a differentiated product, and corporate direction to ensure everyone is working in concert toward the same goal. While design strategy can inform anything from customer experience to business strategy, marketing plans to digital roadmaps, getting it right requires expertise and an open organization.

I’ll end with an anecdote: A friend of mine just finished business school, and he is hyped about becoming a design strategist. “No!” I say. “Leave design strategy to the designers!” We also need people who can analyze financials and develop marketing strategies. We need people in other roles to inform design strategy. While design thinking is dead—or, more accurately, has been misapplied and overused—there is still great value in both strategy through design and design as strategy.