The benefits of software quality

Some might argue that quality is an obvious good. That the reasons quality is important are naturally understood by everyone. But we’ve still got a lot of crap software, so 🤷.

Attract employees

People want to work for companies that care about quality.

Satisfaction as creators

Everyone involved will feel better about themselves.

Fight fewer fires

Higher quality means fewer problems to fix afterwards. Fewer bugs, fewer reliability issues, etc.

Fight software entropy

All software suffers as it grows. It becomes bloated, harder to use and look at. A commitment to quality pushes back against entropy.

Less employee churn

Care for software generally means care for the people who make it. It encourages skill growth.

Easier to sell

If quality is part of your company identity, the product is easier to sell. Word of mouth will do some of the marketing for you.

Attract users

Quality attracts people. They’re more likely to use your software.

Users become fans

Usable, effective, satisfying software turns users into fans. Fans want to support the company, forgive it more easily, and are happy to help it improve.

A competitive moat

Quality is hard. Your competitors probably won’t put the effort in.

Make more money

People universally pay more for quality.

Beauty improves society

Beautiful artefacts universally improve how we live.

Inspire quality in others

Other people and companies will be inspired by your work.

Leave a legacy

No product lasts forever. But people talk about good software for decades.