Consequently, the early users of the system felt that they were doing something wrong by violating information security measures they considered critical in safeguarding the information they were handling. Because the system I presented them with didn't seem credible and supportive of their work and their values, the early adopters never generated the momentum that would draw other team members to the system, and the system was ultimately shelved. The system in this case was better constructed than in the first example, but the users didn't feel right using it. Despite the failure in my example, an ineffective metaphor won't always kill a project. In many cases, you can customize software to make it more acceptable to users, and some systems are capable of a high degree of personalization that makes the system easy to tailor to individual users.
Training can also help users understand a difficult system metaphor.
All of these techniques, however, require more time and money to implement, and this higher investment can be avoided by choosing the proper metaphor from the beginning. The use of metaphor is a powerful way to relate new concepts to users. If you choose one that helps your customers see your product or service in a familiar and sensible way, you have a good head start on acceptance of your brainchild. Even the most creative metaphor isn't a cure-all, though. Designers still have to do the fundamentals right.