Many businesses operate on quantity. The more cheap items pumped out the door, the higher the profits.
You can often see this effect when someone big makes a mistake. They were too busy cranking out their product to take time to watch the details. And the result is not always pretty.
If you’re starting up your company, here are some things to think through as you figure out where your product or service will fall on the quantity vs. quality spectrum:
1. What end value will result if I make a large quantity?
2. What is the net profit after I factor in all expenses? (Include intangibles, such as your time and emotional energy.)
3. Where is your joy in the equation? If you making your thing or doing your service as a labor of love, that will shine through.
4. How important is quality, anyhow? For many people, the lowest cost toilet paper works just as well as the most expensive.
You can tell where I fall in thinking about this spectrum. But I also understand the need to survive! So do what you have to, but don’t sacrifice what’s important. For many, quality is a luxury that must be sacrificed on the altar of reality.
Candy photo is from Kung Fu Bonanza on Flikr. Diamond photo is from Steve Jurvetson on Flikr.
