Service and UX design have the same goal: to provide an excellent user experience. But, when should you opt for one over the other? In this blog, we dive deep into their discrepancies - and when you should use each!
What’s the difference?
Service design and UX design are not the same. Service design is all about crafting remarkable end-to-end customer journeys, from a customer becoming aware of your service to building a relationship over time. It's a holistic look at the entire ecosystem that powers your product or service, considering not only the customer's journey but also the internal processes, policies, and technologies that enable the service to function.
On the other hand, UX design is focused on designing the user experience of a specific product or service. It includes designing the interface, interactions, and overall experience of a single product, such as a website or mobile app. UX design is concerned with making the product easy to use, engaging, and effective at meeting the user's needs and goals.
While service design and UX design have different scopes, they are closely related. Good service design requires a strong understanding of user needs and preferences, which can be informed by UX research and design. Similarly, a well-designed product will be more effective within a well-designed service ecosystem.
When to use service design over UX?
Often used in industries such as healthcare, finance and transportation, service design is typically used when designing a comprehensive service ecosystem that encompasses multiple touchpoints and interactions between customers and an organisation. If you are designing a complex service that involves multiple touchpoints and interactions, service design is the way to go.
On the other hand, if you are designing a specific product or service, UX design is likely the more appropriate approach.
However, it's important to bear in mind that these two approaches are not mutually exclusive. A successful service design should integrate UX design principles to ensure that the individual touchpoints and interactions are designed to meet user needs and expectations.
Can I ask my digital agency to do service design - or do I need another agency?
Before asking your digital agency to do service design, consider the following:
1. Assess the scope of work: Determine if the scope of work requires service design or if UX design would suffice. If the project involves designing the entire service ecosystem, service design is likely the more appropriate approach.
2. Check if the agency has experience in service design: Look for evidence of the agency's experience in service design, such as case studies or client testimonials. Ask them about their process and methodology for service design.
3. Consider working with a specialised service design agency: If the project requires a comprehensive service design approach, consider working with a specialised service design agency that has experience and expertise in this area.
Ready to take the next steps in designing a remarkable service for your customers?
At Engine, we know how powerful the right connection can be between products, people and places. That’s why we’ve made it our mission to help make the world a better place, one service at a time, by designing remarkable services and experiences for our clients that create value through revenue generation, cost savings, customer satisfaction and obtaining investment.
Our Service Design System helps organisations such as Virgin Group, BMW and Dubai Airports to create award-winning service experiences with a measurable impact.
If you’d like to achieve results like this, we’d love to chat with you! Click below to book a meeting with a service design expert.
To learn more about Connected Service Design, click here.
