Maybe you ordered something online and tracked it to your door. Maybe you hailed a taxi through an app or checked into a hotel with a couple of taps on your phone. Chances are, it was smooth, predictable, and in some way reassuring. You knew what to expect, you could see where you were in the process, and if you needed help, support was there.
Now imagine applying for help from a charity, contacting a local council, or reaching out to a healthcare provider. Too often, those experiences feel worlds apart. People are shuffled between departments, asked to repeat the same details multiple times, or left waiting for a response that may never come. The difference is jarring. It makes people feel not just frustrated, but undervalued.
What has shifted is not the need for support, but the expectations of those seeking it. People now compare every experience to the best they’ve had, no matter the sector. The bar has been raised, and rightly so. We live in a time when services are expected to be intuitive, responsive, and above all human.
For charities and purpose-led organisations, this creates a defining challenge. Support is not a luxury, it is often critical to someone’s wellbeing, stability, or dignity. A clunky process can deter people from asking for help at all. A delayed response can cause unnecessary distress. A lack of clarity can leave people feeling lost at a time when they most need reassurance.
Service design responds to this shift in expectations. It takes the principles of clarity, dignity, and empathy that should sit at the heart of every service, and translates them into practical structures and experiences. It helps organisations not only keep pace with the world people are living in, but also provide something better: an experience that feels thoughtful, personal, and rooted in care.
It is tempting to view service design as a framework, or another methodology to add to the long list of toolkits you already have in your charity. In reality, it is a mindset shift focused on reimagining the entire experience for your service users (and your employees), not simply bolting on improvements at the edges.
Customer service steps in when something goes wrong. Digital transformation is about systems and platforms; the tools we use to deliver. Service design is different. It asks us to look at the whole picture: from the first moment someone gets in touch, through every interaction, and on to long-term connection. Ultimately, it help you to understand if the experience you provide reflects the needs of the people you serve, across every interaction.
Done correctly, service design creates what we call a Human Experience Standard. This is a benchmark that every interaction should meet, whether online, on the phone, or in person. It should guide decisions, shape behaviour and remind teams that every form, phone call, or visit is more than a task; it is a moment that shapes trust.
And when it comes to service, trust is the most valuable outcome of all. It cannot be demanded, it must be earned, and it is built through experiences that feel coherent, considerate, and human.
Our team comes with decades of experience designing services, experiences and products for a wide range of organisations, from startups to enterprise businesses, as well as non-profit organisations and local and national government. To this end, we've developed an ebook that explains the process in detail relevant to every type of charity. The guide acts as the basis for conducting your own service design project from beginning to end, rich with frameworks, methodologies and real-world examples:
If you would like a copy, simply send an email to hello@andwethrive.co.uk from your charity email address, and we'll sort you out with access to it.