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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.
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