Lower Price vs. Higher Design

By Peter Granata, president, Granata Design and the Marine Design Resource Alliance — If the product you are selling needs a price cut in order to sell, then it’s very likely that the design appearance of the product does not measure up to the asking price.

We base almost all of our choices on how something looks! From spouses, to houses, to cars, to boats.

“That looks expensive” or “That doesn’t look like it’s worth it” are only two common refrains that you often hear when a judgement is based on something’s appearance. We, as consumers, make those judgements every day. Yet when a manufacturer decides on what he will build, does he “settle” or “strive” on the appearance? If he “settled” then it’s very likely that the design of the product does not measure up to the asking price. If he has simply waited too long to redesign the product, the impact to the consumer is the same. The product just doesn’t measure up.

Good design is the only tool that can elevate a product in the hierarchy of product desirability. Bad design, in turn, will denigrate it to a point to where the manufacturer of the product needs to lower the price of the product. However, excellent design creates a sharp-looking and appealing product that can cut across price points with “gotta have it” desirability.

So, take a look around your showroom, does anything need to sell for less? If so, contact your manufacturer immediately and tell him you need a design increase or a price decrease.

In this economy, as with every economy before it, product is king.