Simple is great. It isn’t easy.
Going from complex to simple takes a lot of work.
It requires taste and understanding.
For example:
Turning your phone from 10 buttons to 3 is a lot of work, and for it to work seamlessly, you have to master the context of usage.
- How does someone use the phone.
- What exactly would we miss?
- How do we plan for it?
Answering those questions makes the user feel like he or she won’t miss anything, and that is basically the Holy Grail in client service. People love simplicity so, early and often, they push for it.
That’s why it’s important to look out for false simplicity. People go out of their way to look simple because it makes them look good. As a result, things get lost.
The quickest way to see “false simplicity” for what it is to ask follow-up questions.
If they don’t have an answer, they haven’t thought about it; someone will.
From the desk of Adam Thomas 