Give 'Em the Paisley Duct Tape.

Do customers really care if you look cool as long as you can deliver a great product? Can design be used to enhance customer experience?

The answer is yes; having a product that works, simply isn't good enough anymore. Oh sure you can get by, but can your business truly reach its potential? The United States consumer is more picky today, especially in an age where everything has been commoditized. I will outline some practical examples for you to chew on.

• Altoids: Those mint tins are expensive to produce. Seemingly the company would make more money with a paper box or even a roll. They understand their customers love the nostalgic tins, and will gladly pay a little extra for them. Would you be as likely to buy Altoids if they were in a paper roll?
• Dirt Devil: They hired Karim Rashid to design cool looking vacuums. He came up with Kone. Even though there is no difference between a regular dirt devil, his new design sold more vacuums. It did so well in fact they now have added Kurv and Brum.
• Duct Tape: Have you seen the new designer duct tape? Seriously, I have attached the image to the right.
• Target: They carry designer stuff all over that store, not all of which is stuff you would publicly display in your home. Michael Graves designs items for target from wine racks to ironing boards and toilet brushes.
• Apple: After you buy your iPod, the sale is done. So why does Apple bother making the un-boxing experience so enjoyable? (People even post un-boxing photos online when new products come out) They know that design enhances experience.

These are just a fraction of the many examples that your prospects require great design. Keep in mind that if your product is terrible, good design can't help you. Your customers want both, not one or the other. Do you have any super examples of design enhancing customer experience? How are you enhancing customer experience? Are you giving them form, function or both?