Good Design vs Right Design: Why Process Alone Doesn’t Create Exceptional Products

In the product design industry, there’s a growing obsession with process.

User research frameworks.

Ethnographic studies.

Design thinking workshops.

Four-book strategy decks before a single concept sketch.

Process has become a badge of seriousness.

But here’s the uncomfortable truth:

Good process does not guarantee the right design.

And confusing the two is costing companies brand equity, product clarity, and market differentiation.

The Industry’s Hidden Trap

There’s a dangerous comfort in heavy process.

When months are spent on:

• UX research

• Stakeholder interviews

• Customer journey mapping

• Competitive benchmarking

• Design strategy documentation

Everyone feels reassured.

The client sees effort.

The agency sees billable value.

The team sees structure.

But the end user?

They don’t experience the research.

They experience the product.

Product Design Is Not Just a System — It’s a Signal

Whether you’re developing:

• A consumer electronics enclosure

• A medical device

• A renewable energy product

• Automotive interiors

• Industrial equipment

The product is communicating something instantly.

Before usability.

Before documentation.

Before performance metrics.

It communicates identity, intent, and positioning.

And that’s where process alone falls short.

Process Is a Tool — Not the Product

In industrial design and mechanical product development, process exists to:

• Reduce risk

• Improve manufacturability (DFM / DFA)

• Ensure regulatory compliance

• Validate usability

• Align stakeholders

It is a risk-management mechanism.

But risk management does not equal differentiation.

Differentiation comes from:

• Craft

• Taste

• Brand understanding

• Commercial awareness

• Engineering fluency

Process supports these things.

It cannot replace them.

Why “Thorough” Isn’t Always “Right”

A design can be:

• Fully user-researched

• Strategically aligned

• Market validated

• Engineering-sound

…and still feel wrong.

Why?

Because products operate on two levels:

1. Functional Performance

Does it work?

Is it manufacturable?

Is it compliant?

2. Emotional & Brand Performance

Does it feel premium?

Does it signal quality?

Does it align with the brand promise?

Would someone choose it over a competitor instantly?

Too many design processes optimise only for level one.

Market leaders win on level two.

Automotive Is the Clearest Example

Automotive design is industrial theatre.

It is ergonomics, yes.

It is HMI design, yes.

It is user experience, yes.

But it is also ritual, anticipation, tension, identity.

If an interior doesn’t feel aligned with the brand’s DNA, it fails — even if it’s objectively well researched.

This applies equally to:

• Premium consumer electronics

• Specialist industrial tools

• Renewable energy hardware

• Medical equipment

• High-end retail installations

When brand expression collapses into generic usability, you lose distinction.

The Right Lens for Product Designers

When approaching any complex product development project, ask:

• Are we designing for usability, or for brand identity?

• Is our research informing judgement — or replacing it?

• Does the product feel inevitable, or committee-approved?

• Would this design stand out without explanation?

The right design is rarely the safest one.

It’s the one that aligns engineering, aesthetics, usability, and commercial reality into something coherent.

At PORU® Design, We Balance Craft and Commercial Pragmatism

Effective product development requires:

• Industrial design excellence

• Mechanical engineering integration

• Design for manufacture (DFM)

• Cost optimisation

• Supply chain awareness

• Brand alignment

• Regulatory understanding

But above all, it requires clarity of intent.

Process helps us de-risk development.

Craft ensures the outcome is worth manufacturing.

The goal isn’t to produce documentation.

It’s to produce products that:

• Stand out in competitive markets

• Align with brand positioning

• Feel intentional

• Convert customers

• Scale commercially

Final Thought

Process is valuable.

But it is not the product.

People don’t buy research.

They don’t buy frameworks.

They don’t buy slide decks.

They buy objects that make sense — functionally, commercially, and emotionally.

Good design follows process.

Right design leads with judgement.