Measuring design impact
Our industry is rapidly changing. We see many creative agencies position themselves as ‘for purpose’ as part of personal beliefs and differentiation. The thing is you have to measure impact if you want to be a for purpose creative agency.
Recently we’ve moved from talking about effectiveness to discussing impact. For decades we read about measuring design effectiveness through added sales, increased participation or ‘click throughs’.
We now talk about what impact design is having for our clients, our industry, our society and humankind.
In the mass of online articles about design impact there seems to be some common ground.
We have moved from measuring outputs to measuring outcomes.
If we get it right lives will be improved.
This is how we measure design impact.
Measuring design impact
Attributing business outcomes to a design is essential but in many cases difficult to prove.
A client can link hard metrics to business growth, it’s much harder to do with design because there are so many overlapping activities and no direct pathway.
However we have developed a pathway by breaking it down to qualitative and quantitative measures.
Measuring qualitative design impacts
Metrics are important for measuring design impacts but they’re not the only thing to consider. Moving the measurement to a more humanity centred approach can give better insights.
There are a host of HCD tools that we have identified as useful for designers wanting qualitative research. These are useful in the discovery phase. It’s here you can measure the ‘before’ state and set a benchmark to be measured after the project is completed.
We could also start by asking what customer problem we’re trying to solve and what behaviour they will show if we succeed. We do this by asking what top tasks our design should help someone achieve.
The Nielsen Norman Group defines top tasks as: “a list of 10 or fewer activities that users should be able to achieve using a design. If people can’t do these things, the design has failed.”
While the reference refers to digital design it’s applicable to all forms of visual design. Begin by listing all significant tasks. From there examine the various “jobs” your clients’ customers need to accomplish. This is where you apply Clayton Christensen’s Jobs to Be Done framework.
Let’s look at a branding project.
We begin by defining the jobs the brand has to do for a clients’ customers. This is done by defining which jobs are currently being done by the brand and how the approach has to be modified to get all the jobs done. Essentially we are asking ‘how will this brand or rebrand help the customers achieve the jobs they want done’.
Measuring quantitative design impacts
While it’s still very difficult to draw a straight line from design outcomes to business outcomes there are now ways that data collection can help.
Evidence based design: this helps designers predict return-on-investment for their designs by citing reliable, published frameworks. For example the Customer Lifetime Value framework uses historical purchase data and engagement metrics to help a brand designer quantify the before state. This sets a measure of the existing value of a lifetime customer and hence a total value for returning customers. After implementation the increase in returning customers can be used to measure a revised lifetime value.
Behavioural economics: blends elements of psychology and economic theory to understand how people make choices. They are not always rational choices but often influenced by various biases and emotional, social, and cognitive factors.
This understanding is extensively applied in brand design to make products more appealing, enhance customer experiences, and influence consumer behaviour.
Groups such as the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute at the University of South Australia have developed frameworks for using Behavioural Economics to help brands grow, change behaviour or change attitudes. Here’s six examples.
Wait there’s more
In measuring design impact we too often concentrates on the client and consumer but there is an impact closer to home. Within a creative agency there’s always an impact from developing new brands or design concepts. That impact is on the health and wellbeing of the team.
The DBC with Streamtime have acknowledged this in developing the Happier Healthier Creative Business Canvas. This positions personal and team wellbeing on equal footing with business achievements.
It’s unique because it recognises the human impact of a design project.
Streamtime project management software has introduced a happiness coach which allows an agency owner to track the happiness of the team. By looking at the measurement and comparing it to jobs in the studio it’s possible to gauge the impact of particular jobs or clients.
Take away
Design impact can be measured with qualitative, quantitative, and human factors. Starting with measurement as part of discovery gives a benchmark and encourages clients to invest in end of project impact measurement.
Contact Greg if you would like to learn more about our methodology for measuring design impact.
Greg Branson
Want more?
Here’s more information on the Australian design industry:
- What do clients look for in a design studio
- Defying the status quo.
- Designing a studio culture.
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