Brand Experience Proposition: Bridging Branding and Service Design

Brands exist at the intersection between the meaning proposition made by the organization, and customer’s perceptions. For the company, the brand is a proposition, a promise of a future experience; for the customer, the brand is the outcome of their experiences with the brand touchpoints. Brand and Customer Experience are therefore essentially connected.
In that context, Service Design may provide the means to support the development of the interactions through which the customers experience the brand. Conversely, Service Design can also profit from branding’s link to the business strategy. Yet, a gap between Service Design and Branding literature and practice persists. This paper argues for a stronger link between Service Design and Branding, focusing on the means to use of the brand as a guide in the design process.
By exploring the relation between Service Design and Branding, this paper introduces the concept of Brand Experience Proposition. Next, a systematic literature review highlights the gap between the disciples. Two case studies presenting the development and utilization of Brand Experience Proposition in Service Design follows, further supporting the concept. Finally, key activities for bridging the gap between the Brand and the Customer Experience are discussed.