Quality, Price, Time

There are a couple ‘old sayings’ that follow the service principal Good - Cheap - Fast. You can pick any two.

I recently came to the conclusion that I have a definitive preference when it comes to the priority in which these elements should come. Specifically when helping brands or clients solve problems. That order is 1) Quality over all 2) Price in the middle, and 3) Time (cause good things come to those who wait).

Here’s a little more explanation.

Quality : I personally strive to pursue quality in everything I’m a part of, and would much rather see a client cut scope or features to deliver something simpler done really well. Conversely, anytime I hear of a ‘rush job’ it makes me cringe. I understand deadlines and launch dates etc, but many times these scenarios boil down to trying to do too much or poor planning.

Price : I’ve never felt good about charging a super premium price or seeing a client ‘over pay’ for something I love doing. Although, this philosophy could be to a fault; as a Design community we need to make sure we do our part in pricing our work proportionally to its value and quality.

Time : Similar to what was mentioned before, the ‘rush job’ is the antithesis of quality. So for me, time (or speed) should be a subordinate priority and therefore support quality and price. Because it takes time to do things right. Moreover if you can schedule a project at your convenience it’ll keep things out of that ‘rush job’ pricing.

I’m sure there are exceptions to my ‘rules’, but for the most part this is how I enjoy working and have experienced the best work.