What the Circular Economy Means for Service Designers: A Starting Framework

16 opportunities to design sustainable, user-centric experiences

Sustainability is complex, and no one said it better than the Australian architect Andrew Maynard:

“Sustainability is like teenage sex. Everybody says they’re doing it, very few people actually are doing it. Those that are doing it are doing it badly.”

That quote is more than 10 years old, and sadly, still relevant.

As a service designer, I’ve been trying to define what value I can bring to the sustainability conversation. There’s no single solution to the climate crisis, but there are smaller problems we can tackle as individuals, companies, and nations. An area I’m particularly excited about is the circular economy, and the possibilities it brings to re-invent industries, businesses, and experiences. This is because the way I see it, the circular model is a service model.

As we transition from the old, linear model in which we own a product until the end of its life, then toss it away, to a circular model in which we use products in new contexts such as sharing, borrowing or repairing, the role of the service designer will be to define what those experiences and relationships should be like. It doesn’t matter whether customers can rent an outfit for a night, or get their TV repaired, if the process and experience of doing so is not easy and convenient for them.

More importantly, the challenge for service designers will be to flip the circularity principles that many companies are starting to implement — such as in-store collection boxes for used clothing — and look at them from a customer-centric perspective, building value around this experience so that people actually take part in those services. How is the experience of repairing an appliance like for the user? What’s the experience of buying a used sofa like? What about buying in bulk?

After many, still ongoing iterations, I developed the framework below as a way to re-consider the circular principles of a product (or service) from the customer’s perspective.

The best way to use this chart is to go though the four phases of a product’s life and answer the questions below to identify opportunities. Not every single service makes sense for every business, but maybe one or two do make sense. Let’s look at the four phases:

1. Sourcing and manufacturing:

• Upgrade: Instead of selling a new product to your customers, can you help them only replace key components? Think about parts that could be modular. How would customers understand what’s the broken part that needs replacement. What would this upgrading experience look like?
• Refurbishing: Are you offering refurbished products as an option? Is the experience of buying your refurbish products just as good as that of buying a new product? What could you do to push for more refurbished sales
• Longevity: What kind of care information and maintenance education are you providing so that customers maximize the life of their product?
• Packageless: What if your product came in bulk, eliminating packaging? How would customers get it in a way that’s convenient to them? Would you deliver to their door? What if you product packaging could be reused? How would the package be returned? What if customers would buy only the amount they need? This means only one or two units, or enough supplies for months. How would customers buy or order your product?

2. Distribution and use:

• Pay-per-use: Can you provide service on demand, and only charge users for the use of the product, not the ownership? What kind of platform do you need to have in place? How would users notify you of their need to use the product? How would you bill users every time they use the product?
• Service as a Product: Could you rent or lease your product instead of selling it? What’s the experience of renting like? Are you spending enough time thinking about the end of the experience (return)? Are there any barriers that would make your users want to buy the product instead of rent it?
• Share: Can many users share ownership of the product, or use it on demand? How would users interact with one another? How do you build trust amongst users?
• Reuse: Can a product be collected after use and prepared for re-use? What does the collection experience look like? What does the delivery of the used product look like? How are you servicing and cleaning the product between uses?

3. Life Extension:

• Repair: Are you offering customers the option of repairing their product?Are you directing them towards a location in their community that can help with repairs? What’s the repair experience like, and how could you make it better? How are you motivating customers to try repairing their product before buying a new one?
• In-Situ Repair: When a product is too large to be taken to a repair shop, are you offering customers in-situ repair options instead? Do they know they have this as an option, and is booking a technician a seamless, effortless experience?
• 3D Printing Parts: Instead of tossing away a damaged product, could your customers print a broken part at their local 3D printing shop? Could you print it and send it to them? How is this experience like? Are you helping them understand this is an alternative to throwing away their product and buying a new one?
• Refills: Are you providing customers the option of refilling key supplies instead of having to re-order a whole new product? How does the re-order, delivery and re-installation experience look like? How could you eliminate packaging?

4. End of Life

• Buy-back: Can you incentivize customers to return their product when they no longer need it? What does the experience look like? How are you making it more valuable for customers to return the product instead of sending it to the landfill?
• Recycling: If your product is recyclable, are you making it clear for your customers which parts are recyclable, and how to take apart each component? If any material is not recyclable via traditional curb collection, are you providing information on how to properly recycle it?
• Cradle to Cradle: If your product is biodegradable, are you educating your customer on how to dispose it? Are the instructions clear to them?
• Collection: If you’re not offering a buy-back and your product is not biodegradable, how are you collecting it? Are you providing the right information for customers to understand how to return it? Are you offering any incentive to ensure customers return the product for proper disposal? Could you charge them a small fee at the time of the purchase that you can return to them when the product is returned?

This framework is not final or perfect, but it’s a starting point to bring service designers into the circular economy conversation. Would love to keep this conversation going. Please get in touch and share your thoughts: chercoles.maria@gmail.com.