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How Silly Design Mistakes Spoil Otherwise Good Products

There’s a proverb that goes: for want of a nail the shoe was lost, for want of a shoe the horse was lost… until, eventually, the battle was lost. 

Also, the maritime version, don't spoil the ship for a ha’p’orth of tar.

They are reminders that small oversights can cause big consequences. In business, especially in product design, this lesson is just as relevant today as it was centuries ago.

Take a recent example from my own life: assembling a treadmill. The product itself was sturdy, well-engineered, and clearly built to last. Yet, when it came to putting it together, the experience swiftly fell apart. 

The screws were supplied with an Allen key, straightforward enough you'd think, but the plastic cowling around the frame meant that the Allen key couldn’t actually fit properly. The result? Half-turns, scraped knuckles, unnecessary frustration and several swearwords. I completed the task eventually but it took longer than it should have.

That single flaw undermined the entire customer experience. For want of a few millimetres of clearance in the cowling, the treadmill felt clunky, fiddly, and less premium than it should have. 

And that’s the key point for businesses: you can invest heavily in quality materials, branding, and marketing, but one small design mistake can damage the customer’s perception of your product – and, by extension, your brand.

Common Culprits in Business

We’ve all seen it before:

Packaging that requires scissors or knives, even when the product is meant for quick use. Highly frustrating when you buy a pair of scissors but actually need scissors to open the packaging. 

Remote controls or apps where the most important functions are buried.

Stylish kitchen appliances that are impossible to clean properly.

Furniture kits with “all the parts included” but tools that can’t reach the fixings. Or a set of instructions in a multiplicity of languages, but not one you are fluent in.

Each of these examples has something in common: they were designed without enough thought about real-world use.

Why This Matters for Business

In a competitive market, the small details are what build loyalty. Customers rarely complain about the headline features that work – they complain about the one detail that doesn’t. And thanks to reviews and social media, those complaints can echo far and wide.

Worse still, these issues are often avoidable. They’re not caused by budget constraints or lack of technology. They happen because teams don’t take the time to step outside the design process and test products like real users.

The Lesson for Entrepreneurs and Product Teams

If you’re developing a product or service, ask yourself:

Have we tested this in real-world conditions, using only the tools we provide?

Have we asked someone outside the design team to assemble or use it?

Have we stripped away assumptions and looked at the customer’s actual journey?

A few hours of user testing can prevent years of bad reviews.

The Bottom Line

Silly mistakes don’t just spoil products – they erode trust. Customers may forgive a missing feature, but they rarely forgive needless frustration. 

The good news? Paying attention to the small details, and testing them properly, can turn a good product into a great one – and give your business the edge.

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