Sometimes people have the craziest ideas about what makes a great website. Recently, I have met with the CEO of company that told me that he wants me to “Wow him with a design” for his website. He went on to say that he wants “something so amazing that nobody else has.” Now, isn’t that a great idea? No, not really.
I couldn’t disagree with the CEO more. I believe in great design, but not to stroke somebody’s ego. The purpose of design is to optimize the user experience. Great design, as I see it, helps the user to do what s/he wants to do on the website. Let me give you a couple of examples. Google has a great design. Why? Because there are minimal distractions. When you land on google.com the design supports what you are there to do which is to type your search and go on with your day. Could Google hire the hottest new designer or artist to create a new home page every week? Of course, but it would be a foolish thing to do. When people land on google.com, they couldn’t care less about looking at a design without a purpose. Does the design maximize the effectiveness of the site? Yes. Case closed.
Another example, I like to bring up is amazon.com. Again, they could have hired someone to create some design to stroke some creative’s ego, but they know better. The site does an excellent job to support what the user wants which is to quickly search, find, and purchase products. The design is not about creating something pretty. It is about utility, functionality, and efficiency.
If you want a website that rocks, forget about your ego. Instead focus on the following:
- The design is not about you.
- It is about your customers.
- The purpose of the design is the maximize and optimize the user experience.
- The design must support the primary objective of the website.
Before you settle on a design, answer the following questions, better yet, ask your customers for the answers:
- What is your expectation when you visit our website?
- What is your goal when you come to our website?
- What do you like about our website?
- What do you dislike about our website?