Design that gets out of the way

We don’t write the content—you do. Web designers don’t speak on your behalf—we create the space and structure that enables you to communicate directly with your audience. The web often seems chaotic, as if everybody is shouting at once—and you don’t want to be just another part of the commotion. So successful web design adds just enough structure to give focus and coherence, without restrictively locking you down.

Design for uncertainty

We don’t know what you’re going to write in your next blog post (and neither do you). We have no idea what new product or service you’ll launch in 18 months’ time. And we can’t predict which part of your site is going to be a smash hit with your customers, and which might be quietly put to bed. But your website needs to retain its identity, whatever you end up writing—and whatever your audience’s reaction.

Create a space for you to communicate

Our disciplines are concerned with creating that identity, structure and coherence—let’s pick three of them, for argument’s sake. Information architecture determines the overarching structure of your website—where the content lives, and how it’s described. Graphic design gives your content a distinctive identity, imparting personality, tone and feel. Content management enables you to get straight to writing, without worrying about the technical details of pages, code and navigation. These are just three disciplines—check out the others.

We’ll make you look good

So what’s the benefit of all of this space, structure and identity—a beautiful website? Well, yes and no. A great website will look professional, feel easy to use, and will communicate with clarity and focus—but the person using it won’t focus on the skill of the web designers. Great web design gets out of the way, but at the same time makes you look good—by adding structure, focus and identity, it allows you to concentrate on what’s most important—communicating with your audience.

Next: User-centered web design »