How to apply the KISS principle to your startup?
“If you can’t explain it to a six year old, you don’t understand it yourself.”
Albert Einstein
The KISS principle simply refers to keep it simple stupid. In marketing it applies when you try to explain ideas to your audience in order to get them to remember and recommend you. This principle can be enforced to a wide range of simple strategies where businesses could use to increase sales, boost profits and create loyal clients. In every organization, for example, there are complex operations that could be broken down into smaller parts and executed accordingly in order for the entire process to run. Simple operations of 2- 3 steps can be managed easier and more effectively opposed to tasks requiring 10 steps. That is why keeping them as simple and straightforward as possible will reduce employee training costs and shorten the time to complete the company’s operations.
Reduction the number of avenues for error is only one way this principle could be applied to. Simplifying wherever possible in your communication with your customers – verbal and written, is a marketing practice producing excellent results. However, simple and stupid should not encourage negativity or nonsense. KISS in fact implements intelligent tactics to decision-making in order to deter unnecessary complication, red-tape or complexity and entice positive outcomes and changes.
Applying the KISS principle to designing a product and website, it is proven that success is mostly achieved when the design is at its maximum simplicity. What does a simple web design mean? The best way to imagine it is to think about a site you visit every day – Facebook, Amazon, Google, Wikipedia, etc. They all have a simplicity in their designs and user experience in common.
A good example for a simple product in history of the most technological products in the world, are the “i” products. Steve Jobs executed the vision of simplicity applied to design and the results are phenomenal. Even though the iPhone is widely popular and successful, to design something easy to use and beautiful, according to Steve Jobs, is not a short process to execute. It requires working hard to get you thinking clean and simple.
It goes without further saying that if you concentrate more on what is important and execute it right in its simplest most clear way, you can eventually “move mountains”. So keep it simple stupid principle somehow not only makes life easier but also helps you achieve your ultimate goals.
