You’ve designed something great. It solves the right problem, aligns with your strategy, and actually makes life easier for the people it’s meant to help.
So why isn’t anyone using it?
This is one of the most common breakdowns we see. A service is launched, a tool goes live, a policy is rolled out—and uptake falls flat. Not because the solution is flawed, but because it never reached the people who needed it most.
At Problem Hacking, we call this a distribution failure. And our answer is something we call the Watering Hole Strategy—a practical response to the fact that people don’t change simply because you launch something. They change when your idea arrives in their world, in a place they already trust.
What is a watering hole?
A watering hole is any environment—physical or digital—where people habitually gather, share, learn, and decide.
These are what Stanford d.school calls “points of friction or flow”—places where behaviour happens without needing prompts. In design terms, they’re behavioural launchpads.
Why good ideas don’t stick
One of the most common traps we see is teams focusing on the design of the solution, but not the delivery environment.
That often looks like:
- Pushing updates via email when staff don’t use email
- Launching on the intranet homepage when no one visits it
- Hosting training sessions no one can attend
- Requiring tools or logins that create unnecessary cognitive load
From the project team’s perspective, the solution is “live.” But for users, it may as well not exist.
This is why BJ Fogg’s Behaviour Model matters. According to Fogg, behaviour happens when motivation, ability, and a prompt converge. Most failed launches ignore the prompt—or deliver it in the wrong context.
The watering hole strategy: how it works
The strategy is simple:
Embed your idea where your users already are.
To do this, ask yourself three questions:
- Where do users seek help or updates?
Rather than focusing on formal communications, pay close attention to the informal rhythms that actually shape how people engage with new ideas. This includes ambient communication patterns—quick chats in the hallway, manager huddles, or the recurring Slack threads where problems get solved and decisions get made. These informal moments often carry more behavioural weight than scheduled meetings or polished launch decks.
- Who do they trust?
Influence inside organisations is relational, not positional. A line manager, peer, or respected team lead often has far more sway over behaviour than a generic all-staff announcement. This is where social proof plays a critical role: if people see someone they respect using or endorsing a new solution, they’re far more likely to engage with it themselves. - What’s the easiest path to trying this?
Behavioural science—and particularly nudge theory—reminds us that small design decisions have outsized effects. If a solution requires multiple logins, an unfamiliar tool, or cognitive effort to understand, friction builds. When something is easy to try—accessible, immediate, and low risk—adoption follows. So the goal is not just to prompt use, but to reduce the cost of saying yes.
Why does this matter?
The Watering Hole Strategy is a behavioural shortcut. It doesn’t require new tech, complex training, or full-scale campaigns. Instead, it amplifies what already works by moving through real user behaviour.
We use it in the De-risk phase of the Problem Hacking methodology, where delivery pathways matter as much as design quality. It’s particularly effective for:
- Internal process change
- Behavioural nudges (e.g. feedback culture, systems use)
- Low-visibility launches
- Cross-functional adoption programs
Final thought: distribution is design
There’s a reason IDEO teaches that implementation is part of the design process. If your solution doesn’t live in the world of your users, it doesn’t live at all.
So the next time you’re ready to launch, don’t ask: “Is it built?”
Ask: “Where will it land?”
Because where it lands determines whether it sticks.
