Workarounds
Finding a workaround is like striking gold
What is a workaround?
Sometimes a user tries to do something with your product, but it’s not possible. Then they either accept that what they’re trying to do is impossible, or they will work around the issue by solving it in an alternative way. This can be done by extending the product (physically or with code), using it in an unexpected way, or finding other creative solutions. Don Norman calls these workarounds and hacks “The soul of innovation”.
For example you might discover that one of your users wrote a plugin that connects your software to some other software. This means that this software connection was so important to this user that he wrote his own code to fix it. Maybe he’s the only user who finds this an important issue, but it might be that more users would be excited if they could connect with that software. The best part is that the plugin was already built by the user and that he’ll probably be happy to help integrate it into your official application.
Why are they so great?
- They show that the problem was so important to the user that they spent effort or money to fix it
- They offer a potential solution to that important problem
So be grateful when you find a workaround. It’s like a shortcut to a great design.
