Aesthetic Design - Remembering Basics
Relation based thinking is the key to successful design. A good designer, regardless of media, has the ability to communicate on the level of his/her consumers; (s)he understands what they are looking for and satisfies that requirement.
We are no different. Our medium is web design; our consumers are the visitors we receive every day though search engines, linking, word of mouth and direct marketing.
Needless to say the design of a website should not be taken lightly. Your well-written PHP, SQL, XHTML and CSS wont mean a thing should you fail to visually pitch your website correctly. In terms of success you can also forget about web standards too - what your visitors see will often dictate whether your website will succeed or not.
Accessibility is different however; many disabled users are visually impaired - the look and feel of your website is less about graphics and more about information clarity.
When designing any website try to identify who its visitors will be and what they are looking for. Are they old or young? Do they expect informality or a serious natured persona? Ultimately, what do they want? Keep those questions in mind and you're on the firm path to success.
I know this is pretty simple stuff for the competent individuals who regular this site, but it's nice just to remind ourself of the basics from time to time.
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- Dated: 16 December 2006
- Comments: 5
- Spam Blocked: 46
About the Author
Steve Tucker is a 23 year old web developer living and working in Huddersfield, England
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02/04/2007 
8 Comment(s)
On 16/12/2006 Elessar said:
See, I'm taken with slightly flashy graphics and such. I can't have just plain text. I prefer dark over light if possible but other than that, I'm open to most designs.
It seems like people are too caught up with flash and such when they make their sites and i can't stand it. Yeah, it looks great, but i feel as if I'm watching a movie rather than browsing a site...
On 17/12/2006 J Phill said:
Yeah it's pretty sad to see some people design for themselves and not for the client/users. For the most part, I can't stand flash sites, I just don't have the patience for them.
On 18/12/2006 Ty Gossman said:
Hi Steve,
Hey I noticed you positive comment on my stylegala review. Would you be interested in helping with reviews for stylegala?
I'm only an invited guest myself, but I've written up several reviews.
I'm so sick of all the hater's getting in the comments thread. I'ldl like to see people writing reviews who love website design not those who are irked by every little thing. There's something positive to be said for any site, small criticisms aside.
Do you use the stylegala forums, if so what's your nickname on there?
If you are interested, I'll forward your name to Simon.
Thanks,
Ty
PS: I've recruited a few other people, but nobody's writing up to many reviews except me and Simon currently. My writing is maybe formidable, lol.
On 18/12/2006 Owen said:
Bringing it back to basics Steve. Never a bad thing. There are far too many so-called 'professionals' out there who completely ignore acessibility and I have to say it really gets my goat. Grrr....
On 18/12/2006 Steve Tucker said:
@Elessar & John: Designing for visitors should be the no#1 goal for every web designer. You're both very right; people often do design for themselves too much. I'm sometimes just as guilty too! ;)
@Ty: You are dead right about the haters. Bad should be taken with good - some people just focus too much on rubishing good design. Anyway I would certainly by interested in the gig. I've been a SG reader since it started, so to be on the other side of the review panel would be quite interesting :). I do have a SG forum account, but I havent been on there in a while and cant remember the password! My username (I think) is steve852. If you want you can drop be an email at:
contact[at]stevetucker[dot]co[dot]uk
and feel free to pass my name onto Simon :). I'm sure we'll talk soon. Cheers, ty.
@Owen: Basics are good. All too often people overlook them in search of bigger and better things. Before you know it they're building beautiful houses on sandy foundations, so to speak ;)