What is the Double Diamond Model and Should You Use It?

Experienced designers are well aware of what the double diamond model is about. They know how useful this model is when it comes to the design thinking process. The model will help you organize your ideas and improve your creative process.

Not only that, but it also helps you put your ideas in the right order. This will make sure that your team can move forward and does not discard valuable ideas or lose focus. Usually, UX and UI designers use this model to solve problems within the design process. But, the Double Diamond Model is also helpful in product marketing. 

If you’re unaware of it, then this article will help you understand what the Double Diamond Model is about. We will also outline the stages of the model and how you can use it for product marketing.

What is the Double Diamond Model?

The Double Diamond Model is a process model for coming up with a solution for a problem with designing. It is based on problem analysis and is inspired by the professional design process. UX and product designers work with people outside the team and include users’ participation to find solutions.

Just like other design thinking process models, it uses critical thinking to use design features. This way, designers can come up with creative solutions and ideas. The difference is its incorporation of users’ opinions and views about the design.

The Four Stages of the Double Diamond Model

The Model consists of four stages: discovery, definition, development, and delivery. To better grasp how each stage works, we’ll consider an example.

You’re working for a startup that offers gifting services for diamond jewelry. They just released their new collection of tennis bracelets. The problem at hand is how to market these diamond tennis bracelets and gifting services.

So, how are you going to do that?

• Discover

The first stage of the model reflects the start of the project. This is when designers try to come up with new ideas, think outside the box, and gather insights. At this point, you should focus on market and user research. This means you should think about everything you know about your target audience.

The first step is to understand who your target audience is and what they want. Finding out their problems as compared to your competitor will also help you during this stage. This way, you can use them to frame your marketing message.

Let’s go back to our example. If you want to market diamond bracelets as gifts, you should know everything about diamonds. This includes the different types of diamonds, and the distinct diamond shapes and sizes. It helps to know which of these your audience loves.

The simplest way to do this is to chat with them or interview them. You can also view their previous transactions with the company. Which of the company’s products has the highest sales? This will tell you which diamond style or type your customers love.

Finding out how they use diamond jewelry in their everyday lives will also help you in this matter. Some people love pairing tennis bracelets with diamond earrings like studs. Some even consider the product as wedding jewelry.

You can use this information to come up with a solution in the later stages.

• Define

At this stage, product designers will filter and expand on all the data they gathered earlier. This includes finding bottlenecks and hidden possibilities or compiling a list of dos and don’ts.

But, as a good product designer, you need to throw more data into the mix. At this stage, you can allow your users to narrow the problem down for you. 

A/B testing is your best option during this step. You can do this by making similar ad groups and managing the design, text structure, and creatives. You can also alter the pain points stated in the message. The ad group with the greatest engagement rate will be the foundation for your campaigns.

In a nutshell, the defining step is a filtering of the concepts and data from stage one. It also examines how it aligns with the company’s identity.

The corporate sign-off marks the end of the defining stage. You can consider this stage a make-or-break moment. This is when the senior management either dumps the project or accepts it. When they accept it, they will provide funding and resources for it to continue.

• Develop

This is the first step of the model’s second diamond. Now that you have narrowed down on the fundamental issue, you should allow for additional expansion.

Product designers should take this phase to develop a large number of creative ideas. This includes texts, designs, concepts, and frames.

It’s important to know that there will be lots of testing and feedback throughout this stage. This way, you can be sure that framing tennis bracelets as wedding jewelry is what your audience wants. Or maybe adding in some engagement rings or diamond stud earrings is the way to kick off your campaign.

Your goal is to have a large number of advertisements on each platform. Choosing the right social media platform to post your ads on will help you achieve this. If you did not meet this goal, then you’re not done with this step.

• Deliver

The last step of the Double Diamond model is the delivery of the product. As a designer, your work does not stop at the product’s release. Instead, the real work has just begun. Once the advertising material is out there, you can expect a lot of opinions on how you put out the product.

To solve these problems, you need to listen to your customers. This will help you get their opinions on the product design, which you can incorporate into the campaign. 

To do this, you need to dig through the A/B test results that you ran throughout the development stage. The goal is to find the messaging and creatives that generate the most interaction on each platform.

Two Ways of Design Thinking: Divergent and Convergent

Design thinking is distinct from other types of thinking. The creators of the Double Diamond Model-based it on divergent and convergent thoughts.

Divergent thinking is non-linear, free-flowing, and considered creative. It allows you to work from various angles and views. Using divergent thinking as a designer means you can think in unconventional ways. But, it has limitations, such as losing track of time or becoming distracted by little things.

Convergent thinking is concentrated and linear. It makes you feel like you’re getting closer to finding the right solution. It helps you reduce the scope of your projects to make them more manageable and achievable. But, too much convergent thinking is also bad since it prevents you from discovering new things.

In a project, knowing when to diverge and when to converge is an art. Transitioning between the two thoughts means you will experience the “groan zone.” The name speaks for itself. You’ll find it hard to let go of the ideas you have during divergent thinking. Abandoning ideas may be difficult, but it is important to move forward with the project.

Final Thoughts

The Double Diamond is a useful model for understanding and explaining design. Its strength relies on how you can create a map with it depending on the design’s complexity. But, when you try to follow the model like a recipe, you’ll definitely run into issues. You should use the model as a map to organize your work and convey the design to non-designers.

Every designer has their method of working. But having a road map to follow helps you concentrate all of your efforts on the task at hand. As a result, you will have more time on your hands in the long run.