Do You Matter? How Great Design Will Make People Love Your Company (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Stewart Emery (Author), Russ Hall (Author)
Key Phrases: experience supply chain management, being design, customer experience, Products As Portals, Being Design Driven, Cirque du Soleil (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this mostly well-argued book, industrial design expert Brunner and corporate consultant Emery (Success Built to Last) put forth a design manifesto: building a successful company is not just about the shiny end product but about designing every aspect of the customer's experience. By paying just as much attention to store design, Web sites and customer support as to the product or service being sold, a company can build an emotional relationship with its customers and so secure market share for life. They contend that design should influence every single business decision and—if done right—will lead consumers to become truly invested, and willing to pay extra. The authors return again and again to several well-known brand names as exemplars of their theory. Ikea, Samsung and Whole Foods are all given props, though highest praise is reserved for Brunner's old employer, Apple, so much so that at times this book reads like an Apple promotional product. Combining their knowledge of design, organizational structure, branding and product placement, the authors have essentially repackaged a simple idea: the customer's feelings matter. (Sept.)
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Product Description

More and more companies are coming to understand the competitive advantage offered by outstanding design. With this, you can create products, services, and experiences that truly matter to your customers' lives and thereby drive powerful, sustainable improvements in business performance. But delivering great designs is not easy. Many companies accomplish it once, or twice; few do it consistently. The secret: building a truly design-driven business, in which design is central to everything you do. Do You Matter? shows how to do precisely that. Legendary industrial designer Robert Brunner (who laid the groundwork for Apple's brilliant design language) and Stewart Emery (Success Built to Last) begin by making an incontrovertible case for the power of design in making emotional connections, deepening relationships, and strengthening brands. You'll learn what it really means to be "design-driven" and how that translates into action at Nike, Apple, BMW and IKEA.You'll learn design-driven techniques for managing your entire experience chain; define effective design strategies and languages; and learn how to manage design from the top, encouraging "risky" design innovations that lead to entirely new markets. The authors show how (and how not) to use research; how to extend design values into marketing, manufacturing, and beyond; and how to keep building on your progress, truly "baking" design into all your processes and culture.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: FT Press; 1 edition (August 22, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0137142447
• ISBN-13: 978-0137142446
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (103 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #36,291 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars design is a process, not an event, September 25, 2008

By	fatmav - See all my reviews

The two major premises of the book are that design is important and that design should be approached as a process instead of an event. It is not just about the features of the item under design, be it a product or a building. Instead, it is about the whole user experience, physically and emotionally; the latter of which is what defines a great design. (There is a third premise, which is that good design is not easy. I don't think this needs to be argued for.)

The book uses a lot of tech products as examples, many of which I have personal experience with. While the "whole user experience" point is valid, I am not so sure about the authors' judgement on some of the "successes" to the point that I wonder if they have actually experienced those items themselves. (Or maybe I just happen to have bad luck with many tech products, some of which are touted as "it just works"?) In any case, point well taken.

As for the non-tech examples, I find that most of them strike a chord with my experience. The FiveBucks story on p87 leaves me chuckling as an ex-customer. The Washington-Dulles airport experience on p21 and the W hotel story on p150 are both very real. Becoming aware of many things about my daily life is the most rewarding part of reading this book.

Overall, I would say that the book has successfully put together a collection of short stories that argues for its premises. However, I must note one thing that I really don't like about the physical aspect of the book itself: the text is printed too close to the hardcover binding that at times it makes for an awkward reading experience. You would think that a book about design has been designed as well. I am sure the authors won't mind I take one star off because of this less-than-stellar reading experience of their book. :P

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More than just about Design, February 27, 2009

By	Paul Mark Provencher "ppro" (Morgantown, WV USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As an executive in a large corporation with the responsibility to display to my clients things that differentiate us from other companies with which we compete, I am always reading about ways to achieve this.

Like self-help books, there is a well developed genre of books about how to make your company stand out from the others. I suppose theres a great temptation to read the ideas, run off and implement them chapter and verse, and then wait/hope/pray for great transformation to take place.

But there's no magic pill. And all the great advice in all the greatest books won't make a bit of difference if your company really is different from all the rest.

But there really are ways to stand out. This book is full of ideas. But each idea by itself is not enough to achieve the end goal of making people love your company. And the authors know this well.

From the start they make it clear that having a successful company requires a wholistic approach. Everyone from the very top to the very bottom must be fully committed to a shared vision, with a consistent level of performance to achieve the goals. And the old saw about the customer always being right is constantly reinforced here but in ways that seem obvious when you read them, but may never have occured to you before.

Numerous examples of familiar companies are cited. Their successes and failures are examined in great detail in very engaging ways. These are not boring case studies. These are compelling stories about how companies rise and fall. Ever wonder what happened to Polaroid? Remember them - king of the instant photo? Who would have thought that they'd be left behind by digital photography - the electronic version of the instant photo. But because they didn't have a connection with their customers and the world as it changed, they practically ceased to exist. And certainly in digital photography terms, they don't exist as a major player.

What about Apple? Lots of stories about Apple. Samsung. When I was a young adult Samsung was the ultimate junk electronics company. Crappy products. Dumb designs. Cheap unreliable rubbish. Take another look today. They're near the top of the heap. They found a way to completely transform their company by the way they approached design, and by the way they connected with their market and especially their customers.

The thing that resonates with my experience is the emphasis that is placed on the customer experience. In many ways, the field I am in has very little opportunity to achieve meaningful differentiation. We all sell the same services. We all use the same product vendors. We all describe similar solutions and delivery strategies. But what we all have the potential to do different hinges on what kind of experience our customers have.

At the end of the day, it's all about the people we serve and the way they feel about our products and services. Deliver a wonderful product to a customer who has been made to suffer the whole while and you will not likely get another chance.

For some fields, the reader may at first have trouble connecting with the message. At first I was wondering if anything I was reading would be relevant to my world. But slowly as I read the book, it all started to connect together and make sense. Even before I had finished reading the book I was using the ideas in my daily work. And I am seeing some very rewarding personal benefits.

The biggest challenge is to apply these concepts across a large company that is bottom-line driven. The authors themselves acknowedge how difficult it can be to transform the way a company does business. But notwithstanding my own ability to have such profound influence, I still found this book to be very worthwhile. Don't miss a chance to read what it has to offer. Maybe you work with me and together we can make a difference!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars interesting once you get past the marketing gimmick, December 7, 2008

By	Jon Norris (Oregon, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Books on business success go through cycles. When Marketing was king, tons of books came out about business being "all about marketing." When sales was king, it was "business is all about sales." Accounting types write books about how business is all about accounting, and so on.

There is a heavy aroma of fad to these approaches, mixed with the usual "when your only tool is a hammer, everything looks like a nail" way of seeing things.

There is a certain amount of that kind of marketing gimmick to the approach the authors take in this book. In this case, it is "design" that is the secret key to unlocking the treasures of the ages. The premise is corny and trite.

Well, okay, it is not quite THAT bad, but those kind of marketing ploys wear on me after a while. Marketing types are always trying to find ways to "stand out" from the other products/services, and too often forget the importance of content and value.

Fortunately in this case, the authors rise above the silliness of their marketing concept and deliver solid, valuable business advice backed by strong examples. They get past the premise and take the reader through chapter after chapter of examples from the real world of global business, and their conclusions are (literally) right on the money.

Samsung, Apple, Starbucks, Target, W Hotels, and many other businesses are explored. They examine the successes and the failures with balance, and point out the things that one would think would be obvious, but often are not, which leads to business problems.

The example of Polaroid, which was the leader for decades in instant photography but completely dropped the ball when digital photography (the obvious evolution of instant) came along, is as instructive as it gets. The example of Home Depot, which lost its focus to the myopia of spreadsheet jockeys, and nearly expired because of that, is also clearly instructive.

The thing which I find continually amazing is how there is no shortage of such stories about high-paid business leadership just not "getting it" and sinking an otherwise healthy business. (Aside, of course, from deliberate "poison pills" who are there to trash the place on purpose.) Stories of really dumb moves abound. (The sad part here is how many of the clowns responsible for those stories end up with Golden Parachutes and a chance to ruin another business.)

While the authors push their concept of design being the filter through which modern business must be viewed, they thoroughly cover all the real issues in business, such as high quality products/service, stellar customer service, and a long term view that doesn't treat the immediate sale as the be-all-and-end-all of a good business. The example of W Hotels with their "almost psychic" customer service is one clear example of what really matters in making a business a success. I suppose it is okay to call such over-the-top dedication to your customers "design," but as long as the book delivers the goods, I don't really care what they call it.

The book is dense with examples and solid wisdom in business success. And, while I have poked fun at the authors' design premise, I do consider design to be one of the top factors in business success. (Bucky Fuller and Victor Papanek having had strong influence in my life.) Well designed products and services are so rare that they usually do create a real "Oh, Wow!" experience, that simply cannot be manufactured with phony marketing campaigns.

The importance of design and of listening to customer's needs can be illustrated by the recent success of Asus and the "nettop" computer. (Not from the book) All the usual pundits ridiculed the idea and Sony (a one-time innovator in electronics, long since deposed), even called it bad for the computer business. Customers, on the other hand, responded enthusiastically to the idea, which, despite Asus' odd marketing plan, sometimes poor implementation, and horrific customer support, made the concept an overwhelming success, pulling scores of copycats into the market. (As a writer, I can attest to the fact that the need for such a device is real, as I had been looking for just such a thing for a decade. I've tried PDAs and laptops, but they just didn't meet the cost/performance profile I wanted.)

The clear lesson from this example, which apparently needs to be relearned on a regular basis, is LISTEN TO YOUR CUSTOMERS. Is it really all that difficult a concept to understand? For some, it is apparently impossible.

Read this book. It will remind you of what is important and the penalty for failing to pay attention. Review it often, there is good stuff in here. The concept is fresh and the examples alone are well worth it.