Developing Meaningful
Experiences
Nathan Shedroff
UPA 2009

Slides and templates posted:
nathan.com/thoughts

The big thing!

The big thing!
Meaning

Why experiences?

Price/Value
Commodity Product Service Experience
From: The Experience Economy, Pine and Gilmore

Price/Value
Experience
Commodity Product Service Event/Environment

Experiences are designable

Everything we create
is an experience

We recognize some
experiences easily

We recognize some
experiences easily

We recognize some
experiences easily

People don’t just
travel to see things

They travel to
experience

Design is the process
of making experiences

But what, exactly,
is an experience?

SIGNIFICANCE DURATION
TRIGGERS EXPERIENCE BREADTH
INTENSITY INTERACTION

EXPERIENCE BREADTH
Product
Service
Brand
Name(s)
Channel/Environment
(Space)
Promotion
Price

Breadth

TRIGGERS EXPERIENCE BREADTH
Sight Product
Sound Service
Smell Brand
Taste Name(s)
Touch Channel/Environment
Concepts (Space)
Symbols Promotion
Price

Every sensorial decision is a trigger:
color, texture, smell, taste, typeface,
sound, music, voice, pattern, icon,
symbol, interaction, layout, concept,
temperature, expression, etc...

TRIGGERS EXPERIENCE BREADTH
Sight Product
Sound Service
Smell Brand
Taste Name(s)
Touch Channel/Environment
Concepts (Space)
Symbols Promotion
Price
INTENSITY
Reflex
Habit
Engagement

Intensity

Intensity

Intensity

DURATION
Initiation
Immersion
Conclusion
Continuation
TRIGGERS EXPERIENCE BREADTH
Sight Product
Sound Service
Smell Brand
Taste Name(s)
Touch Channel/Environment
Concepts (Space)
Symbols Promotion
Price
INTENSITY
Reflex
Habit
Engagement

DURATION
Initiation
Immersion
Conclusion
Continuation
TRIGGERS EXPERIENCE BREADTH
Sight Product
Sound Service
Smell Brand
Taste Name(s)
Touch Channel/Environment
Concepts (Space)
Symbols Promotion
Price
INTENSITY INTERACTION
Reflex Passive
Habit Active
Engagement Interactive

SIGNIFICANCE DURATION
Meaning Initiation
Status/Identity Immersion
Emotion/Lifestyle Conclusion
Price Continuation
Function
TRIGGERS EXPERIENCE BREADTH
Sight Product
Sound Service
Smell Brand
Taste Name(s)
Touch Channel/Environment
Concepts (Space)
Symbols Promotion
Price
INTENSITY INTERACTION
Reflex Passive
Habit Active
Engagement Interactive

SIGNIFICANCE DURATION
Meaning Initiation
Status/Identity Immersion
Emotion/Lifestyle Conclusion
Price Continuation
Function
TRIGGERS BREADTH
Sight Product
Sound Service
Smell Brand
Taste MEANING Name(s)
Touch Channel/Environment
Concepts (Space)
Symbols Promotion
Price
INTENSITY INTERACTION
Reflex Passive
Habit Active
Engagement Interactive

MEANING
VALUES
EMOTIONS
PRICE
FEATURES

Function (Performance):
Does this do what I need?

Price (Value):
Does this do what I need at a
price that’s worth it?

Emotions (Lifestyle):
Does this make me
feel good?

Status/Identity (Values):
Is this me?

Meaning (Reality):
Does this fit into my reality?

Core Meanings:
Accomplishment Harmony
Beauty Justice
Creation Oneness
Community Redemption
Duty Security
Enlightenment Truth
Freedom Validation
Wonder

Core Meanings:
Definitions:
makingmeaning.org

Meaning is at the core of Values:
Priorities and Expressions

Nike:
Accomplishment Harmony
Beauty Justice
Creation Oneness
Community Redemption
Duty Security
Enlightenment Truth
Freedom Validation
Wonder

Apple:
Accomplishment Harmony
Beauty Justice
Creation Oneness
Community Redemption
Duty Security
Enlightenment Truth
Freedom Validation

Apple:
Accomplishment Harmony
Beauty Justice
Creation Oneness
Community Redemption
Duty Security
Enlightenment Truth
Freedom Validation
Wonder

Accomplishment Harmony
Beauty Justice
Creation Oneness
Community Redemption
Duty Security
Enlightenment Truth
Freedom Validation
Wonder

Beauty, Community, Wonder...
Films Cars & Buses?
TV & Radio Phones & PDAs?
Music Furniture?
Theme parks Security Systems?
Travel (cruises, etc.) Food & Agriculture?
Clothing Education (schools)?
Souvenirs Financial Services?
Toys Healthcare?
Computers Governments?
Games

Successful experiences are
meaningful
(and not merely novel)

Design is the process
of evoking meaning

How does this relate to
business & strategy?

Strategic Design:
Corporate
Meaning
Priorities Your Focus
Team Customer
Meaning Meaning
Priorities Priorities

Strategic Design:
Corporate
Meaning
Priorities Your Focus
Team Customer
Meaning Meaning
Priorities Priorities
Competitors’
Meaning
Priorities

Strategic Design:
Corporate:
Accomplishment
Beauty
Wonder
Team: Customer:
Harmony Security
Beauty Beauty
Wonder Wonder
Focus: Beauty & Wonder

Strategic Design:
Corporate:
Accomplishment
Beauty
Wonder
Team: Customer:
Harmony Validation
Justice Creation
Wonder Duty
No Focus!

How do you put this into the
development process?

A meaning-filled development process:

A meaning-filled development process:

A meaning-filled development process:

A meaning-filled development process:

Research Techniques:
Interviews
Careful Surveys
Shadowing
Games, etc.
The Meaning of Things
by Csikszentmihalyi

DESIGN SUSTAINABILITY
BUSINESS

DESIGN SUSTAINABILITY
MEANING
EXPERIENCE
BUSINESS

Some questions:

Who’s doing this?

Who’s doing this?
You

What meanings do
your customers prioritize?

What experiences
do they seek?

Is meaning manipulation?

Should companies
evoke meaning?

Does everything we design
already evoke meaning?

Are you creating
anything meaningful?

What’s meaningful to you?

nathan.com/thoughts

makingmeaning.org
experiencedesignbooks.com
nathan@nathan.com