A Reflection on Product Design

Kevin Chung
Aug 22, 2017 · 3 min read

Before I start let me just say that I’m no expert in product design. Actually I’m still trying to figure out what it is. It has such a general definition that almost anything can be product design. For the sake of this article, I’ll just be focusing on digital design.

First, lets talk about what I believe to be a “good” product design. There are a few base requirements that must be met.

  • The product performs consistently and is up to par with industry standards
  • The product has been designed to be used in all of the scenarios possible
  • The product provides some sort of benefit and is never detrimental
  • The product is sustainable and accessible

I think that these requirements are the baseline for if a product is good. If we’re talking about design that is beyond just good, then it would be a product that meets those standards and provides values that exceed those standards.


What attracts me to product design is that we are solving problems for people. Not only that, but we are solving problems in a creative way. A product that is designed very well will not even be evident to the everyday user. I think that speaks volumes about how much thought and work go into the process of designing something.

An example of such a product in digital design is the music streaming platform, namely Spotify and now even Apple music.

Spotify interface

If you take a look at this music player, you can see why these streaming services have become so popular. The amount of useful features that have now become normal is actually crazy to think about, and it’s FREE to use for a non-suscriber.

The reason I chose to talk about Spotify is because it’s probably something that I can’t live without anymore. I’m actually using it right now as I type, streaming hours of music seamlessly. Its accessible, consistent, beneficial, and to my knowledge it is sustainable. On top of that it offers features such as radio, podcasts, new releases, and now even videos. These are all things that we now expect from a music player because of Spotify.


In summary product design can make huge impacts on people’s lives, but at the same time go unnoticed. How many people do you think use Spotify? Over 60 million paid subscribers as of July 2017 and 140 million total active users. How many people do you think, actually think about what Spotify does for them? Probably not many. In reality Spotify is helping people workout, dance, cook, and generally go about their daily lives with their own personalized soundtrack. This is what it means to design a great product.

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