Comments on: Website owners need more than web designers

By: Sebastien

Sebastien — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 15:35:45 +0000

Great article. I do agree that when providing a site design, you need to provide more than just a design but solution to each of these.

By: Heidi Cool

Heidi Cool — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:43:36 +0000

Ah, vindication at last! I jokingly refer to myself as a marketer who builds Web sites and consults on SEO and social media. Basically I'm a front end developer. I design, code and build out sites using W3C standard semantic HTML, build with on-site SEO in mind, create custom themes and installations for WordPress and advise on related marketing strategies, primarily those involving social media. I don't do back-end programming and I don't do much in the way of high concept design.

I ended up with this skill set because I came to the Web (back in the '90s) from the marketing side which included copywriting, design as well as product management and direct marketing campaigns (I've always liked variety.) So when I started building sites I always approached them from a marketing rather than a design or tech perspective. Up until last winter I had spent the last several years serving as Webmaster of Case Western Reserve University.

There I wasn't just building sites, but also advising Web maintainers across campus on how best do X, Y or Z. They would ask me anything from "How do I use a server side include" to "Should I promote my event on Facebook." To serve their needs I had to learn a bit of everything and keep reading, reading, reading to keep up with it all.

Last March I set up shop for myself, but my experience at the university served me quite well. Clients who hire me to build sites invariably ask me for social media advice when the site is up and running. Clients who need social media plans may also need help redoing their sites. It all works collectively. And when I can't do it all, I can work with partner firms to bring it all together. Obviously I can't know everything, but with the right skill mix and the right partner connections I can accomplish much more than I could with a more narrow focus.

It's nice to know I can also point to you to justify my strategy!

By: Paolo Sordi

Paolo Sordi — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 13:38:41 +0000

Your article is right on the point, being a generalist fits in what I could call the XXI century webmaster. It's not anymore about weird things like internet, computers, make-the-thing-work, nor simply designing a website, it is about content to be usable, shared, promoted and re-distributed on this new platform called the Web.

By: Simon Carr

Simon Carr — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 20:06:34 +0000

Excellent article! I think this is a great argument for being a generalist.

In my opinion, to be a good Web Designer you need to have a broad and ever changing skill set. That's the best thing about this field, and also the worst.

By: Ann Edwards

Ann Edwards — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 13:10:43 +0000

Malcolm Gladwell spoke at the AIGA Gain Conference in 2008. Not sure if you have to be a member to view the video, but everything right down to his thought process was amazing. http://www.aiga.org/content.cfm/video-gain-2008-gladwell

By: Jason Stockton

Jason Stockton — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 13:02:49 +0000

I agree 100% - for example, I focus entirely on the development aspect, PHP, HTML etc and focus all my energies on that whilst my business partner who is a design purely focuses on the design side. Trying to do everything means you're just average at doing everything and don't really have a worthwhile skill set. Narrow down your service and focus at what you're good at. You can charge more because you're good at it, and team up with other people who are good in other areas. They will refer people to you and you do the same to them.

By: Jason Stockton

Jason Stockton — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 12:56:27 +0000

No see that's the thing, we have the option to deal with the other company and we earn a percentage of each sale for referring the client. So the client only deals with us and is still only invoiced once.

By: Noel Wiggins

Noel Wiggins — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 12:45:49 +0000

I think one of the biggest reasons why a website owner wants a one stops shop is to save money, why hire specialist in each of these sections to only be left with multiple bills.

I agree that hiring one person eliminates blame and the need to have a "project manager" on the website owners staff to keep everybody inline.

If the web designer could take on each of these roles it would be a much smoother process.

I have been thinking of building a pricing model that is a one time fee for the designs then a retainer to cover the other assets. And although I think its a great idea it is being met by customers who think I am trying to sell them, and in fear of being sold they say no for now lets just deal with the website and we'll do the rest later, to not ever hear from them again.

I guess I should forward them this article along with my pitch to show the real value of a one stop shop handling all aspects...

Thanks and Regards

Noel for Nopun.com a graphic design studio

By: Josh

Josh — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 21:47:55 +0000

I think there's a happy medium - if you market yourself as an all-in-one designer, developer, programmer & mountain mover, a lot of your clients will feel overwhelmed by what you have to offer.

Don't necessarily let the client know your whole knowledge base right up front, but more on a need-to-know basis (ie you are hired to design an HTML Wordpress mock-up, then the client asks if you know anyone who can convert it to Wordpress, you simply offer your own services (I know you said you already offer WP development, just an example!)

Jack of all trades; master of none; profficient with most!

By: Kevin Dees

Kevin Dees — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 19:40:34 +0000

I see where your going but I don't believe that designers are the ones who need to be social media experts as well. You need a solid team.

Your right-on about needing to know more then "web sites" Six Pixels of Separation talks a lot about that.

We can play in the vertical and horizontal markets but its best done as a team. One person doing everything is not a "purple cow" its just ok, and ok doesn't sell.

Not saying your wrong. I'm just saying it takes more man power to create something really good. And more importantly... sells!