According to Merriam Webster, Desire paths are the unplanned routes or paths (such as one worn into a grassy surface by repeated foot traffic) that are used by pedestrians in preference to or in the absence of a designated alternative (such as a paved pathway)
Desire paths are the way the user uses a path, rather than how the designer designed the path for use. College planners have been known to wait for students to create their own desire paths on a new campus before actually putting paved surfaces in. Saving time and aesthetics.
And that got me thinking, what are the desire paths in your industry? What are the ways customers use your product or service versus how your engineers / designers / marketers have created those products or services?
(there is a fabulous article about desire paths here ). BTW I used Google Earth to look at Michigan State University and 10+ years after the article was written, the desire path inspired paths are still the only paths visible...
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