Webforumz Newsletter - January 2008
Articles
The NEW Web A Designer's Perspective
I like to tell people that I've, been on the web since before there was a web
. Back in 1992 while spelunking through BBSs (bulletin board systems) I could not imagine watching a video on a site. It was exhilarating enough to be able to talk
(well, type really) to folks around the world in real time. So I was around when the World Wide Web was born and I've watched it evolve along the way. I find it fascinating that the new Web (I dare not even use the term, Web 2.0
anymore as the people-in-the-know are already dismissing the term as pass) seems to give a respectful nod to its origins. Instead of plain-text bulletin boards, we now have Facebook and many other destinations designed around user interactivity.
As a designer I do feel a responsibility to my clients to be educated on what the hottest trends are, how the web is evolving, and how to use the latest tools and technology to build an effective website.
Off to Market
Having a background in graphic design, I created my first website way back in 1995. I found then, as I often do now, designing for the web is sometimes infinitely harder than designing for a printed medium. You can only get your user to interact with print on so many levels whereas the internet is a multi-layered experience. To truly understand how to design for today (and tomorrow's) web, I feel a designer must first understand the driving force behind many of the new technologies: marketing.
Today, technologies and concepts such as streaming video, rss feeds, RIAs (rich internet applications), widgets, social networking, blogs and the mobile web are now seen as opportunities for companies to reach their target markets.
For instance, over the last year the use of widgets (coincidentally another blast from the past
that has been re-tooled for the new web) has steadily increased in the blog and social networking market. These self-contained, no-programming-required tools have quickly become a way to not only add functionality but to also add branding and link-building. This popularity has also given way to new companies such as mixercast.com, who offers users a way to mix
their media with professionally created content to make their own channels, ads, movies, photo galleries, rss feeds and more.
Know When to Widget
It's just as important for the designer to not only be able to incorporate these new technologies but to understand when and where they are appropriate. To utilize a streaming video just for the sake of having a streaming video is neither good design nor good marketing. Just like in the fashion world, trends aren't always your best bet.
In the case of widgets they seem to be most effective when placed within a blog, a MySpace page, or on a website if they really do add to your content. Throwing a game widget on a corporate website probably will have more viewers scratching their head than spending more time on the site. Widgets are also pre-designed, meaning their design, and the lovely website design you have created may not have anything in common.
However, a savvy designer might spin the tables so to speak and devise a way to create a new widget with the company's branding to reach a larger market. So the widget may not appear on the corporate site, but it might be able to drive people to it.
Knowing the target market and what appeals to them can help a designer interpret when to utilize other technologies such as animation, video, audio and 3D. Video has become so popular that there are few markets now where it wouldn't work. Combine the video with Flash animation to add interactivity to the site and a design takes on an almost three-dimensional appeal, pulling a user in by catching their interest and engaging them. Even with all these positives, the designer should still be taking web usability into consideration when creating interfaces and remembering the old saying about too much of a good thing. Statistics still show that we only have about 2 seconds to catch the attention of the average web surfer. A great designer shouldn't look at this as a downside, but more of a challenge, and again, it helps to know the market and what appeals to them.
A Refresher Course
Even with all of these great technological advances for the web, designers shouldn't lose sight of what still makes for a good website: a design that works for the target market, consistency, informative content and easy to use navigation. When creating concept designs, keep the finished product in your mind. When coming up with a concept for a Flash animation, ask yourself if it will truly add to the design or appeal to the viewers, or be more of a bell-and-whistle. Even when creating the most straight-forward non-dynamic business website, think of the possibility of adding in some of the newer web technology to help build brand identity, add value, and keep viewers returning. This is the line where design and marketing meet and why I think the two are inevitably and irreversibly intertwined on the new web.
Conclusion
The web is a dynamic, ever-changing, interactive medium. It's important for a designer to not only keep up with the technology, but also have an understanding of marketing and how best to combine new tools with design in a way to appeal to their selected audiences.