Web Design Lessons I’ve Learned Along the Way

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Lessons Learned in Web DesignSince starting this journey of owning and managing an Internet marketing agency more than 14 years ago, I’ve been lucky enough to enjoy the good, bad and sometimes odd things that go along with being creative, and owning a business. Several lessons my team and I have learned about web design in the beginning are still as relevant in 2014 as when we started 2000, and will probably remain relevant for the next 14 years. Here are a few of the more memorable lessons in web design I took with me into 2014, and will likely remain relevant in coming years.

1. Don’t stretch yourself too thin. Yes, this is a cliche heard over and over from parents telling a stressed out child to drop an activity or two, or from a friend advising another that to decrease stress they need to drop some commitments, and become less diversified in their life. It sounds funny to compare yourself or business with a portfolio or parents, but when we started, nothing could be further from the truth.

We did everything, offered every service to everyone that needed it. Because of this, we became so busy with small design and website projects that we couldn’t focus on larger, more profitable and more interesting projects. Well, you can’t be everything to everyone, another cliche we learned. So we picked what we were best at, which was web design, SEO and ecommerce. Once we defined our focus, it was obvious that we were better at attracting the clients and projects that we wanted. Our clients were happier with us too, because we became really good at a few things, instead of just okay at a lot of things.

2. Design is really cool and a big deal! In the beginning while my team and I geeked-out about the web designs we were creating, following trends, and staying on top of design elements that would make our clients websites produce the results they wanted, we thought we were the only ones that thought what we were doing was really cool! Turns out, web design is really cool, and not just to us! At first we didn’t know our value, and worked for all clients, large and really small, including being paid peanuts or for an “equity” stake in a great idea. But custom work of any kind is not easy and has a value! So now that we know our value and skills, we waste less time and energy on projects that aren’t in our company’s vision or scope.

3. Client politics are normal. When working with a client, often there are several stakeholders that are involved or have some type of input in the web design project like marketing, IT, the owner, etc. I’ve learned that to avoid any confusion or miscommunication you have to know who the primary decision makers are, find out how they like to communicate, and if there are any additional people that need to be involved and in what capacity. Know the decision makers, gatekeepers and influencers when working with clients on web design projects. If you don’t know who to listen to, you make take feedback from the wrong person and change the project entirely, making the client unhappy with your work. Have the client define a primary contact who will consolidate the feedback and finalize the action items the design firm it to complete. A shared vision must be developed within the client stake holders.

4. Have fun! Web design is a creative process, and if we take ourselves too seriously the design can suffer and mistakes can happen. Often we get too caught up and serious about a project that we can lose focus on the client’s web design goals, leaving a client unhappy. So if we have fun, our designs will show it, and our clients will naturally have fun working with us too!

So there you have it, words of wisdom from someone that has been around the web design block a few years. If you want to talk web design, or learn more about my journey as a web design company owner, give me a ring or send me an email. I love this stuff and love talking about it!

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As co-founder, Jim brings his vast creative design skills and project management abilities to the firm. Creating beautiful AND functional web solutions for every client is Jim’s #1 Priority. He manages the creative and development teams and oversees support services to ensure total client satisfaction.
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