The Insight 💡

Quality provides value in many circumstances where quantity fails. It resists the trials of time and leaves us better off. We value things that solve our problems no matter their quantity. Even though the quality is subjective, its primary purpose is efficacy.

Quality Over QUANTITY

The SIZE doesn't matter!

If you're starting a business or a project, you might find yourself in a situation where you have to provide either quality or large quantity.

I'll provide you with a brief guide that elaborates why you should choose quality over quantity. Let's dive right in!

What is the Concept of Quality Over Quantity?

Quality describes the value of an item, service, object, or just about anything while quantity describes its volume or amount regardless of how poorly or well made or done it is.

The concept of quality over quality is simply the drive to pursue the maximum value of a small number of anything, whether physical or not, over having a large number or volume of poor value of the same criteria.

We have already highlighted that quality is more valuable than quantity. Nonetheless, how do you choose quality?

Quality is relative as different people value different things. To establish what qualifies as quality, you have to soul-search and find out the things that make you happy.

Notable Examples of Quality over Quantity

There are plenty of examples that describe the essence of "quality over quantity." Let's have a quick look at some of them.

1. Memories

One of the most significant examples of quality over quantity is how we regard and use our items.

When we were young, we constantly hoped for new toys and items. However, as we grow older, we tend to use some items more than others. And even in our memories, you won't remember everything you had, but you'll never forget the things that gave you the most joy as you grew up.

2. Machinery and Devices

There are two approaches when buying tools, gadgets, and devices. On the one hand, you can buy a set of cheap hardware tools with multiple attachments or buy one with fewer attachments but with higher build quality and value.

Although the cheap set gives you a wide range of attachments, you might never put them to use, and once the cheap set gives in or breaks, you'll need to buy a new one.

But in the high-quality set case, you may pay more, but you'll get more value for what you've paid for, and it should last you longer and cost you less in maintenance, which makes it a more cost-effective item.

Other than that, in the era of technology, people often get excited in buying the next new device. For example, an iPhone owner who constantly needs to upgrade to the latest iPhone in the market.

As human beings, it is easy to get excited by the newness of something—- the new device, the new relationship, or the new memory. As kids, we often lost the excitement of a new toy within a short period. This trend causes one to have a lot of clutter that is not really meaningful to their life.

Quality is about focusing on what we have as compared to what gives us temporary excitement.

3. Relationships

We might interact with thousands of people throughout our lives, whether they're from school, college, work, or even online.

However, only a few of them remain close to us over the years. Most of our memories are about these people, even if we don't spend as much time with them.

Reasons Why You Should Quality Over Quantity

As you can see, there are plenty of examples of how quality is more significant in our life than quantity.

  • They're More Cost Effective: As you've noticed from the device's example, paying a higher premium for a quality item one time can be a much wiser choice financially than buying a new low-quality item every time it breaks.
  • Quality Doesn't Necessarily Mean Expensive: Although most quality items are pricier than low-quality ones, they're not necessarily expensive. With proper research, you can easily find excellent high-quality items sold at a reasonable price.
  • We Tend to Remember Quality More Than Quantity: Our brains are hardwired to pick quality over quantity, whether it's more quality time or a higher quality item.
  • It's the Key to a Repeat Customer: From a business point of view, a customer who experiences multiple options will always choose to return to the one that provided them with the most value for what they paid.
  • It Creates Trust: When we think of big brands in any industry, we are not merely referring to them as the amount the goods or services they produce but rather the quality of their products. Thinks of brands like Apple, Samsung, or Microsoft, to name a few.

The Opposite Case

Is the quality first mentality optimal though? No

The argument this far was that a customer will prefer quality as far as outcome is concerned; however, it is not always optimal.

In the very unlikely domain— the creative space, putting too much emphasis on quality leads to the curse of perfectionism. It leads to diminishing returns and missed opportunities.

Thriving for quality is good but overthinking it is counterproductive. In some cases, you need to produce as much as possible of potentially average things and improve on them as you go.

Indeed this article and this blog at large are perfect examples. We did not wait until we got everything right to start publishing content or building the website.

We produced and decided when everything was good enough to provide value and publish.

As time goes by, we tweak and improve the website and the content to make it better.

The reason behind this is that as you produce more services or products, you improve therefore tilting toward quality.

Music, filmmaking, writing, design, and making crafts are all examples of creative activities.

I am arguing this case on behalf of creative space because creative people are often perfectionists, and this might be destructive to their creativity.

The more of a perfectionist you become, the less work you produce, and the more you lose the opportunity to receive feedback from the outside world, feedback that is crucial for your growth and ultimately the quality of your output. In such cases, you need to learn how to balance quality and quantity.


Balancing Quantity and Quality: Content Creation Example

Content is arguably the most complex item in regards to quality over quantity. A primary goal for any content creator is engagement, which requires them to often produce content frequently.

In this case, most content creators fail to balance quality and quantity— how do you maintain consumer engagement while still ensuring your content is authentic and compelling?

To effectively balance quality and quantity, you have to determine your purpose. Your content is only quality if it meets the needs of your target audience. Therefore, if your content is tailored to a certain customer base, it is effective regardless of the frequency.

Another important tip is to use analytics that will help you analyze how consumers receive your content. Do the consumers want more content? Are they happy about the type of content you offer?

After that, you have to adjust your content to match the quality and quantity desires of your consumer.

Final Thoughts

This argument wraps it up for this simple guide about quality and why you should prioritize it over quality, especially if you're running a business or a project.

However, when it comes to building particular skills, quantity is helpful since it will get you to quality because the more you practice, the better it becomes.

As you can see, the value of an element will always matter more than its volume, whether it's the quality of a product you sell or the service you provide.

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