Design or Profit? How Design Can Lead to Profit.
Average design yields average profits.
From here, the more time you spend on design, the less your profits will be.
The less tim you spend on design the higher your profits will be. But is more profit really what we are pursuing?
The relationship between design and profit in the design world can be a bit complicated. If you are passionate about design, you probably don't limit your time on your work. you want to spend as much time as possible can be determined by two variables. Design measured in time and design measured in value.
In any business, design in exchange for a service fee is seen as an expense. So the more time spent on design, the lower the profit. In the following example, the graph shows design and profit on opposite sides.
Time is money. What this means is that time has a cost. We can exchange time for money, and that’s a fee. We can also exchange money for time, thats freedom. People who have more money than time, the rich class, invest their money into projects and ideas that they believe in, but don’t want to spend their time for. People who have more time than money, the middle class, invest their time into projects or ideas that they believe in because they don’t have the funds to invest.
But what is money for?
We think of money as a currency. But there are a few conditions that make money valuable, that's the utility of money. These are other currencies, like time and mobility. The dream that comes with having a million dollars in the bank is not just for status, its about the dream of complete freedom that is associated with that.
The relationship between design and profit can be determined by two variables. Design measured in time and design measured in value.
In any business, design in exchange for a service fee is seen as an expense. So the more time spent on design, the lower the profit. In the following example, the graph shows design and profit on opposite sides.
When design is measured in time, design opposes profit.
This model indicates that the more time you spend on design, the lower your profit. The less time you spend on design, the higher the profit.
The future of any service business should be to work towards a model where design leads to profit. This may require ownership the business to own the product.
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Example of design companies that own their product:
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Apple
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Nike
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When design is measured in value, design leads to profit.
This model indicates that the more time you spend on design, the higher your profit. The less time you spend on design, the lower your profit.