Design Experiences, not Features

Hey, I’m Shane.

Welcome to the second issue of Design for Builders, a newsletter for founders, builders, and operators who want to understand design and apply it to their craft.

If this is your first time here, start with [Issue #1: How to Develop Good Taste].

If you love building products and want to sharpen your design sense so you can create well-crafted, beautiful things, this is for you.

This week: Designing Experiences, not Products

Some quick takeaways before we dive in:

• Your product is only as powerful as it is usable

• The shortcut to good design? Keep removing until it breaks

• Optimize for delight, not just features

• Good design = good retention

Let’s get into it.

A usable product isn’t just lines of code.

Sounds obvious, but a lot of builders still operate like it is. Especially now that AI makes it easier than ever to spin up an app.

Don’t get me wrong, building cool features is fun, especially when the only real limit is your imagination.

But if you want to build a product that actually makes money, you need to internalize this:

Your product is only as powerful as its design

Here’s a Hacker News comment on Dropbox when it first launched:

This is now a classic example of “build products, not features” in the startup world.

To be fair, the commenter was probably right.

If all you wanted was file storage, there were better, cheaper options. And file syncing wasn’t a new idea, even back then.

But, Dropbox changed the game by pairing functionality with great design and user experience. It’s one of the clearest examples of how design can supercharge code.

You could write the most efficient, powerful code in the world. But without good design, it’s a waste of time.

Optimizing for delight, not features

When you’re building a product, it’s tempting to keep adding features. Totally normal. The rush of getting something to work is addictive. Every builder knows this.

But users don’t want more. They want the right amount.

That doesn’t mean more features are bad. But they need to be presented and packaged in a way that brings delight.

And the key to delight? It’s design.

There’s a reason software like Salesforce or traditional ERPs are the butt of jokes. It’s not because they’re not powerful. It’s because they’re aesthetically painful.

Users aren’t just looking for solutions. They’re looking for experiences. Your product shouldn’t just solve problems. It should feel good to use.

When you start optimizing for delight, you’ll see why users keep coming back.

Pro tip: 

Think of optimizing for delight the same way you optimize a sales or marketing funnel.

Map out your user journey and find ways to make every touchpoint a delightful experience.

Remove everything that’s not essential.

So what’s the first step to making your product more delightful?

Start by removing decisions.

Every app creates cognitive friction. Users constantly have to decide what to do next:

• How do I get back to the menu?

• Should I tap this icon?

• I just hit the wrong button. How do I undo it?

• Okay, I did [action]. Now what?

The more friction you remove, the better the experience.

Of course, you can also add delight through things like novel UI, faster speed, or snappier interactions.

But at its core, delight starts with friction removal.

Cut until it hurts

So, how do you know what to remove?

My rule of thumb: keep removing until something breaks.

Once you’ve designed the first version of your prototype, play with it. Look for ways to eliminate unnecessary decisions and friction:

• Can I remove a line of copy and replace it with an icon?

• Can I shorten onboarding without losing key context?

• Do users really need to see [this feature] at [this stage]?

Iteration is everything. That’s why having your product flow mapped out in Figma still beats any AI-generated solution.

The process is simple:
Build → test → remove → test again. But don’t let this stop you from shipping.

It’s easy to obsess over making the perfect product before launch. Don’t.

If you’re unsure how to improve your design, just ship it and get feedback.

If you build it, they won’t come (back)

Users today have endless options. The real battle isn’t just about who can acquire the most users—it’s about who can keep them coming back.

A well-designed product beats highly advanced technical features most of the time. Why? Because users aren’t just looking for solutions. They’re looking for seamless experiences with minimum friction.

This is also a pattern I see with new AI products:

You’ve probably tried some cool AI app out of curiosity. You play around with it, think “Oh, this is cool!” — Then never open it again.

This is where good product design makes the difference. It’s not just about making something look good. It’s about anticipating how users will want to use it again.

A lot of people keep going back to Apple Notes after trying out different kinds of note-taking apps.

Apple Notes ticks all the boxes of a delightful experience

• Minimum friction. It is already on your phone, so there is no setup or sign-up process.

• Great product experience. It’s deeply integrated into Apple’s design ecosystem. It just works.

• Predictable and reliable. There are no extra features to slow you down, no sync errors, and no learning curve. It just works.

Phone cameras are another example of a delightful form factor

Fifteen years ago, everyone was obsessed with DSLRs. If you wanted high-quality photos, you needed a bulky, expensive camera.

Everyone uses their phone today because it offers a better, more seamless experience. You don’t need to carry a big camera. It is already in your pocket.

Sure, a DSLR still takes better photos in certain conditions.

But for most people, an iPhone camera is 80 percent as good, and that is enough. It is small, easy to use, and delivers great results with no extra effort.

The lesson here is:

If two products help users achieve similar results, or even just 80% of it, users will use the one with a better experience. 

If you take one thing away from this: stop thinking in features and start thinking in experiences. 

The best design is the one that keeps people coming back.

Cheers,
Shane

P.S. If you liked this, forward it to a builder friend. Let’s build something amazing together.