Thursday, March 11, 2010

Open Letter to the Manufacturers of the World

Dear Sirs or Madams,
   When writing assembly directions to include with your product, never underestimate the power of the written word. Yes, a picture is worth a thousand words, but sometimes a few simple sentences included with said picture is worth even more than a thousand words. Don't get me wrong, I like my diagrams as much as the next consumer, but those diagrams can be tricky little buggers. Take for example a diagram of a metal pin to be stuck into a baby gate. When one needs to get out a magnifying glass to examine which is the correct end of the metal pin to stick into the gate one may make the mistake of sticking it in the incorrect way. This may lead to problems like the gate not seeming to fit the opening. Which may lead to a phone call to your help line. Which may lead to many minutes of being placed on hold and finally speaking with someone who doesn't really seem to grasp the English number system. This may lead to the incorrect assumption that the gate was mis-manufactured. Which may lead to thinking that the gate needs to be returned. Hopefully the consumer will then realize their error and be able to install the gate correctly. Hopefully. But why even go there? Why not simply include a few words with any diagrams for the literate consumers of the world.
   Thank you for your time in this matter. Sincerely,
Kristi Consumer

1 comment:

Emily @ imperfect said...

Yes! Words work so much better for me than mediocre drawings. Even good drawings leave me frustrated!