Graphic, UX, and Service Design
The differences between the design obsessions that have defined my career.
I've had the privilege of working in the world of design for several years now, and my journey has always (for better and for worse) been driven by obsession. As of late, I've been fixated on the process and systems of service design. I've been captivated by the way it can influence businesses, organizations, systems, and experiences beyond what a user sees and interacts with on a screen. Selfishly, as I've written about before, I've been preoccupied with how my greatest strengths and skill sets as a designer fit well into the service design mindset and process.
This obsession has fueled my pursuit of the craft, as it always has. I used to be obsessed with graphic design, then I shifted my obsession to UX design, and the natural progression for me is now to be deeply engrossed in service design. I want to use these three design disciplines as a framework for my attempt to explore the differences between each design discipline as a learning experience while I continue to grow my service design practice.
The Influence of Design:
Graphic Design influences communication. It helps brands convey their value to customers and assists organizations in communicating information to people. I believe that having an education and background in graphic design is one of the greatest blessings I could have received in my career. Knowing the basics of typography, color, layout, and form informs my practice on a daily basis. The role of communication in UX design is often underrated and overlooked.
User Experience Design influences well…. experiences, especially digital ones. I'll go a step further and say that UX design typically involves improving a single experience within a relatively enclosed period of time. Most UX interactions involve short and concentrated interactions with a product or a website.
Service Design influences systems, processes, and business organization. It impacts multiple experiences over what can typically be defined as a longer period of time in a user or customer journey. Screens are still involved in a service design practice, but at the same time, other touchpoints and service interactions need to be considered. What excites me the most about this is the holistic nature of the practice. I've always been at my best when designing a process and a system. At every stage of my UX journey, I've had the privilege of designing how we deliver the work we do, and that has consistently been my favorite part of my career. While I enjoy drawing rectangles and setting type, I've always found the most satisfaction in building the conditions for good design to flourish. As Lou Downe has mentioned, creating the conditions for great design to happen is one of the core pursuits of service design.
The Benefactors of Design:
Graphic Design enhances the experience of consumers who engage with visual and written information. I believe that graphic design is frequently underappreciated and undervalued, especially when we consider the sentence I just mentioned. This is because most of us are constantly exposed to visual and written information these days, often taking it for granted. A striking example of graphic design causing severe issues in someone's consumption of written information with disastrous consequences is the now-infamous "La La Land Best Picture Announcement." If you're unfamiliar with this incident, you can read about it in this short Vox article here.
User Experience Design benefits (obviously) the users of a product or experience. I also believe that good graphic design often intersects with good UX design, as a positive user experience inherently involves effective communication of visual and written information through graphic design. (I didn't anticipate this becoming a promotional article for graphic design, but here we are, and I'm not sorry about it!). Naturally, there are interactions, flows, and architecture involved in delivering effective communication, and that's where the more traditional UX components come forward and take center stage.
Service Design benefits both the users of a service and the service providers responsible for delivering that service to the users. I ventured into design because I'm a creative individual who wanted to assist people, and design appeared to be the ideal means to achieve that goal. This aspiration has led me to discover a form of design that benefits more people – count me in!
The Outputs of Design
Graphic Design, as Marty Neumier puts it, encompasses both "posters and toasters." The outcomes of graphic design are notably tangible and undeniably practical. This is why, when most people mention the word "design," they often associate it with a logo, poster, or perhaps even a website. Of course, this is not incorrect; it's simply important to emphasize that design extends beyond visual artifacts.
UX Design also produces tangible outputs that manifest through digital products and websites. It is becoming increasingly easy to identify poor UX design, and fortunately, the expectations people have when interacting with a website or product continue to rise as a result. In many ways, for better or worse, it seems that "the West has been won" when it comes to good UX design; there are only so many ways to design a website or app in 2023. I believe this is a significant reason why design systems and the "Figmaism" trend dominate many UX conversations on social platforms. UX has undergone a standardization process, and while there may be both positive and negative consequences to this standardization, it's undeniable that most of our digital experiences have been standardized.
Service Design yields some of the most intangible outputs in the realm of design. One of the best books I've read on service design is titled "Designing the Invisible." Service design can manifest in numerous ways throughout the user or customer journey, often going unnoticed by users or service employees until an issue arises within the service. I personally appreciate how excellent service design can become apparent through co-creation workshop sessions, journey maps, improved interactions between service employees and users, and, yes, a better experience on a screen or better-designed pieces of visual communication. I value the intangible nature of service design, which allows me to consider nearly all forms of design, including branding, graphic design, and UX design. I would argue that most design outputs are integral to service design. To be more specific, as I mentioned earlier, I love how the particular outputs of service design, such as maps and blueprints, help identify areas where UX or graphic design elements can be enhanced to improve the user's service experience.
The intangible nature of service design also makes think of:
Where Design Lives in the World
Graphic Design and UX Design both occupy the forefront of our world and our thoughts. In contrast, Service Design is frequently described as an activity that orchestrates, working behind the scenes. This is particularly significant to me because I've always thrived in the role of coordinating outcomes from behind the scenes. I've been the drummer in the band rather than the lead singer, the basketball coach rather than the star player, and I've never aspired to be the quintessential "rockstar designer." My primary focus has always been on helping other designers succeed, and I appreciate how service design, once again, provides the conditions for designers to make meaningful contributions to the world.
The Impact of Design
Graphic and UX Design have a similar level of impact, as the results of a great user experience and excellent visual communication can be immediately sensed by a user or a consumer. While some may argue that UX has a greater impact than Graphic Design, I would counter that argument by pointing to the poorly designed Oscar card. I prefer to believe that both forms of design have an equal impact. In fact, exceptional branding and visual identity often play a crucial role in shaping a great user experience, and vice versa.
Service Design undoubtedly has a broader impact than its UX counterpart, but I'm not implying that this automatically makes service design more important than UX design, only more holistic. In fact, I firmly believe that Service Design requires a collaborative partnership with UX and graphic design to achieve the depth needed to influence multiple touchpoints and channels.
So, where does this leave us? I do acknowledge that it might seem like I've again written more of a personal catharsis than an informative article. Nevertheless, I hope you've found some value in this exploration of different design disciplines with me. My ultimate conclusion is that I find great satisfaction in connecting the dots between my various career journeys and design explorations. I would be content if this article, at the very least, inspires you to do the same – to connect the dots in your design journey and identify the patterns.
I'm aware that many designers who are just entering the field may struggle to see the value in their previous experiences, but I assure you that there are always elements from your past that inform the career you are pursuing today. For me, coaching basketball, being a musician, and working as a Graphic/UX designer have all served as necessary building blocks for my Service Design practice. For you, those building blocks will be entirely different, but they exist, and you can use them to propel your journey forward.
My Favorite Things of the Week
This article is a little old (2022) but I love the insights Mckinsey has in this article in relation to modern design teams. One of my favorite quotes from the article:
There clearly is no need for diva designers anymore.
I would obviously argue there never was a need.
I love this quote by Dana Chisnell. Of course to many UX and service designers this is stating the obvious but I don’t think it hurts to be reminded of why we are doing this work in the first place. As designers get more involved in designing business outcomes we can’t forget to champion the people we are trying to serve.
You can’t go wrong with the design content that IBM produces and I recently got engrossed with the content and research they published that breaks down the building of a human centered organization. As someone that at every career stop, has crusaded for the adoption of human centered organizational practices, I didn’t mind digging into this “playbook”.
I always love running into a good meeting design/facilitation article so I definitely found some delight in reading MIT’s take on meeting design and facilitation. My favorite fun fact from the article is that 25 meetings take place every day in the US alone. Bring that fact up the next time someone questions the value of a good facilitator!
Finally I leave you with another fire post by Mario Maruffi