A client recently asked me this, looking at our portfolios:
Does your company provide a service or a product?
Me, as a designer who does not like to put things in boxes, then close them, and them label them either one of two words, i put my eyebrows as high as ai can and said:
that depends on the project!
Some tiny clients are happy-pappy with a predefined-package product and do not want to jump into an expensive, feedback-cloudy long term service contract. They just want a quick simple product about which the price and specs are known. While our biggers clients prefer, of course, the slower project pepperd with weekly brainstorms and meetings. So i think, please correct/add(your comment will be added here) that the difference are with respect tot design:
'PRODUCT' 'SERVICE'
properties beforehand? predefined packages unknown, needs custom quote
properties afterwards? according to specs according to custom inquiry
pricing? known beforehand has to be calculated
bottomlone price? cheap expensive
quality of product? can be very good! can be very good!
collaboration? minimal according to need
feedbacks email/phone email/phone/face-to-face
Now i would like the professional design community / design company owners to speak freely here in this regard:
1. Do we (involved experienced driven designers) provide a SERVICE or a PRODUCT?
2. What are the differences according to YOUR client? (i will append them above)
3. Do we HAVE to choose one or other? this client said, he wanted transparency.