Designing Brand Experiences
Brand experiences reflect the downstream result of upstream organizational efforts. I many cases, these organizational efforts involve a solution set that defies computation. The associated algorithms often are indecipherable, with inputs that are vaguely defined, which yield outputs (brand experiences) that reflect the inherent variability of ungoverned operational conditions. Yet, despite obvious challenges, the ambition to achieve ideal brand experiences is better than dismissing the effort altogether.
Brand experiences are ephemeral because it’s hard to design an experience and deliver it according to plan. Too many uncontrollable variables create a gap that yawns between the ideal experience’s conception and its attainment. And while imagining better is less helpful than doing better, the more we can envision and design an ideal brand experience the better our chances of delivering them.
Brand experience design begins with a basic understanding of the customer cycle (or whatever stakeholder “seed-to-harvest” sequence one must consider). That cycle typically breaks down into discrete transactional phases (e.g., need → acquire → use → service), although some processes can occur in several or all phases of the cycle (invoicing/payment, for instance). In turn, each phase consists of multiple touchpoints, the most critical of which become priority candidates for designing best-in-class brand experiences.
Certainly, prioritizing touchpoints is easier said than done. Taking inventory of every brand interaction is like staring up to a clear, star-filled sky at night and trying to focus on one pinpoint of light among the thousands of other beckoning beacons. And touchpoints have their own hierarchy of genus and species. Some are momentary and perfunctory; some are highly choreographed and ordered; some extend over time through product usage; and some occur unexpectedly. Of course, any touchpoint that functions as a strategic hinge will command priority.
Customer surveys often provide the best starting point for touchpoint triage. If there’s a pattern or prevalence of experiential pain points, the targets reveal themselves accordingly. Absent customer feedback, those involved in customer-facing roles are likely to have first-hand familiarity with touchpoint deficiencies. Ask front-line employees what isn’t working well and you’ll get some valuable input for prioritizing the touchpoints that would benefit from experience redesign. You may also discover that redesigning internal touchpoints (e.g., to address protracted or slipshod handoffs, inadequate or inaccurate information, or bureaucratic administrivia) must come before any external touchpoints can be considered.
By now it should be clear that brand touchpoint experiences are a function of people and processes. We already know that the performance of people can fluctuate. That places a premium on designing experiences around reliable and repeatable processes. Which brings us to the guiding principle of brand experience design: minimize human decision making, process deviations, and band aids; maximize SOPs, protocols, and technology.
As discussed elsewhere, the first step in brand experience design involves identifying and defining the touchstones of your touchpoints. In other words, what are the iconic, brand-affirming characteristics of the experience you want to create for the touchpoint in question? This is a blue-sky process best edified by those proximate to the touchpoint. It should include standards of performance that reflect the brand’s value proposition, which can be both qualitative and quantitative, inasmuch as brand value encompasses both intangible perceptions and tangible performance.
Step two involves mapping the processes, technologies, information, functions/roles, and handoffs required to execute the ideal touchpoint experience. It’s important to stipulate the purpose and performance standards for each of these touchpoint inputs to ensure they suit the intended brand experience. Of these inputs, assess what can be prescribed as an SOP, what can be automated, and what requires defined decision-making protocols. If SOPs, technologies, and protocols already exist across the touchpoint inputs, double check that they sufficiently enable the intended brand experience.
Of course, financial, technical, and other practical constraints will come into play when creating touchstone brand experiences. Just remember that reliable, repeatable processes, procedures, and protocols lead to predictable, demonstrable, and affirming brand experiences. And those experiences should be engineered to uphold the brand promise in both its explicit phrasing and implied representations. In other words, if you know what you want your brand to be known for, design your brand experiences accordingly.