Keep it simple

THE PRINCIPLE

Keep your eye on the core functions of what you create

The deeper you get into the process of creating your project, the easier it is to go off on a tangent. One of the most seductive tangents is to keep adding new functions and bells and whistles.

This is what I call the ‘Wouldn’t it be cool?’ trap. You’re creating something and suddenly you have an idea for an element you could add. ‘Wouldn’t it be cool if this also …?’ you say to yourself, and tack on something else. This happens a lot with software, and often this ‘features bloat’ ends up slowing down the key functions that are all most users care about.

Sometimes the temptation to add things is an effort to appeal to a wider group of potential customers. For instance, maybe you start with a product that would make life easier for teachers. That gives you a huge potential target market. But then suddenly you have an idea how to add another element that would make it useful for nurses, too.

Great idea, right?

Wrong!

There’s an old saying that if you try to please everybody, you end up pleasing nobody. The more diffuse your product or service, the less intensely it will appeal to the original target group. That’s not to say, of course, that you couldn’t eventually come out with a version of your product targeted specifically to nurses, but for now you’d be wise to keep focused on the original intention.

These three questions will help you to stay on course:

  • Who is the primary customer for my project?
  • What is the ONE main benefit they will get from it?
  • To give them that one main benefit, what features does it need to have?

I’m emphasising the idea of one main benefit because ‘benefit bloat’ is another trap. As consumers, we are suspicious of products that promise too much. Figure out the one big challenge your potential customers have and make them aware that your product or service will solve it.

The more you know about your field and the deeper you get into your project, the more likely it is that you will make it more complex than it needs to be. Write these words on a Post-it note and put it where you can see it every day:

KEEP IT SIMPLE!

KEEP IT SIMPLE!

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