People like to complicate things. Nevertheless, this obsession with complexity is detrimental to entrepreneurs and small business owners. Why? Because complexity can cause companies to drop out and customers to be confused. And small business owners who have multiple hats don’t have time to deal with complexity.
A business owner’s best friend is simplification. The KISS (keep it simple stupid) approach can help increase business efficiency, improve customer experience and drive commercial success.
The KISS concept, which has been around for decades, is based on the idea that simple procedures or systems perform best. It is a reminder that simplicity is the goal and unnecessary complications should be avoided.
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Apple is known for integrating the KISS principle into business practices. Steve Jobs ever said: “That has been one of my mantras: focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: you have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But in the end it’s worth it, because once you’re there, you can move mountains.”
Various aspects of the business can benefit from the KISS concept, including business focus, goods, services and solutions, and communications. Here are some reasons why you should apply the KISS approach in each of these situations.
Business focus
Entrepreneurs often strive to be everything to everyone in their field. If you lack concentration, you generally do a lot of things badly and nothing particularly well. To keep it simple, entrepreneurs should focus on one item where their company excels. Then maintain laser-like concentration on that core talent.
Our main business focus at my company is to simplify payment processing for small and medium sized businesses. This one area of concentration is important for all the services and solutions we offer. By keeping it simple and focused on SMEs, we can serve this market better.
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Products, services and solutions
Using the KISS principle in designing products, services and solutions implies building offerings aimed at making the user experience simple and uncomplicated. Complicated goods and solutions with numerous functions and services make it difficult for companies to attract and retain customers. Customers are easily disappointed with products and services that are difficult to understand and use.
Technology-based services and solutions should be easy to use for non-technologists. Consumers are usually not concerned with the bells and whistles of the underlying technology. They are looking for a simple solution that fits their requirements.
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Simplified goods and solutions have minimal to no setup, short learning curves, and intuitive design.
Avoiding overthinking solutions and delivering basic goods and services that address customer pain points improves the customer experience. Companies that embrace simplicity in their offerings see an increase in customer base and customer loyalty.
Communication
By applying the KISS concept in communication, the impact of communication is maximized. The simpler the explanation, the stronger the relationship with customers.
Clean, concise, jargon and acronym-free communication promotes better customer engagement and helps build trust. Customers will respond and act when organizations properly explain their offerings, value and differentiation.
Businesses can avoid information overload by focusing on presenting concepts correctly using simple language and short sentences. The message must also be consistent across all media.
While applying the KISS concept to business procedures is difficult, it is worth the effort. “Complexity is your enemy. Any fool can complicate something. It’s hard to make something simple,” in the words of Richard Branson.
