Keith Devens .com

Design Really Matters

Via PHPEverywhere, Design Really Matters.

Brand representation is vitally important. Technology, and how it works, is vital, too. And the copy... well, if your site serves up information, people must be able to read it for it to have any value.

[But] If you look at what really makes the difference for consumers online, you'll learn credibility is what matters.

Online differentiation is difficult. Many analog world cues consumers rely on (such as quality of photographic reproduction, the paper stock a catalog or a mailer is printed on, a store's cleanliness or status location, or customer service acumen of salespeople) aren't available online.

As all consumers know by now, barriers to entry for those wanting to set up an online storefront are fairly low. Taken as a whole, consumes look for something that says, "Yes, this company is credible." It just so happens design and IA are the two major components of that "something."

In the analog world, any consumer receiving a beautifully printed direct mail piece (mailer, catalog, etc.) immediately knows the company sending it is solid. No fly-by-night operation can afford glossy, four-color catalogs on heavy stock with beautiful pictures. Whether they know anything about the process of producing such a piece or not, consumers know expensive when they see it. Expensive means credible.

On the Web, a lack of this kind of tangible credibility cue causes consumers to turn to the intangible. Even if they don't know how much designers cost (or what constitutes good design), they know quality when they see it. Even if they could never comprehend a site architecture diagram, they intuit the difference between sloppy, illogical structure and structure that reflects lots of thought and research. Sites that just work better mean credibility.

Excellent.

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