Remember when product design was about buttons, features, and user flows? And brand design was about logos, colors, and marketing campaigns? Well, grab a coffee—those days are gone. The line between product and brand design isn’t just blurring; it’s disappearing faster than my motivation on a Monday morning.
Let me tell you a story. I recently downloaded a new meditation app. The onboarding was smooth, the interface was clean—classic good product design. But what kept me coming back? The gentle voice guiding me through sessions, the calming color palette that shifted with my mood, the way the app “felt” like a trusted friend. That’s not just product design; that’s brand design baked into every pixel. As Marty Neumeier, author of “The Brand Gap,” once said, “A brand is a person’s gut feeling about a product, service, or organization.」 And guess what? That gut feeling is now shaped by the product itself.
So, what’s driving this shift? It’s not some mysterious force—it’s the brutal reality of modern business. In a world where apps compete for seconds of attention, your product can’t just work well; it has to feel right. Think about Apple. Their products aren’t just functional; they’re extensions of a brand promise—simplicity, elegance, innovation. When you unbox an iPhone, the experience is meticulously crafted to reinforce that brand. The product is the brand.
But here’s where it gets tricky. Many teams still treat product and brand design as separate kingdoms. Product designers focus on usability metrics, while brand designers worry about visual guidelines. Meanwhile, users don’t care about your org chart. They experience your product as a whole. If the branding screams “premium” but the product feels clunky, you’ve created cognitive dissonance. And in the Qgenius Golden Rules of Product Development, we emphasize that reducing cognitive load is key to product success. When brand and product clash, that load skyrockets.
Take Slack, for example. Their playful branding—with its quirky copy and bright colors—isn’t just for marketing sites. It’s woven into the product: the loading messages, the emoji reactions, the way bots interact. The result? A cohesive experience that builds trust and loyalty. Contrast that with some enterprise software I’ve used—where the brand promises “efficiency” but the product delivers frustration. It’s like ordering a gourmet burger and getting a soggy bun.
Why is this happening now? Technology and user expectations have evolved. With SaaS products and subscriptions, users engage with your brand daily. Every interaction is a brand touchpoint. As Brian Chesky of Airbnb often notes, design isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s about creating emotional connections. And emotions are the currency of brands.
But let’s be real—this shift isn’t easy. It requires tearing down silos. Product teams need to think like brand stewards, and brand teams need to understand user journeys. It’s messy. It’s political. But it’s necessary. Because in the end, users don’t remember your feature list; they remember how you made them feel.
So, where does this leave us? Product design is no longer just about solving problems—it’s about embodying your brand’s soul. And brand design isn’t about pretty logos—it’s about shaping experiences. They’ve merged into something new: experience design. And if you’re not designing for that holistic experience, you’re already behind.
What do you think? Have you seen products where brand and design seamlessly blend—or painfully clash?