Making Big, Bold Assertions to Drive Design Strategy

To create a great design strategy, companies must focus on a series of value assertions that guide creative exploration and describe their commitment to customers. These assertions are promises that focus on emotions paired with utility to deliver a set of strategic boundaries. The process of moving from expectation to assertion to fulfillment can add assessment criteria for judging a design or business decision. It tells us characteristics of how to build a product but doesn't tell us what to build. By articulating a single sentence of expectation, we've ranked and judged customer needs and identified the most important thing.