site-logo
  • HOME
  • SERVICES
    • Conversion Rate Optimization
    • Web Development
    • E-commerce development
    • How We Work
  • PORTFOLIO
    • Development Work
    • Landing Pages
  • ABOUT US
  • OUR BLOG
  • CONTACT
Get in touch
  • All Categories
  • Conversion
  • CRO
  • Team
  • Usability
  • User Centered Design
  • User Research

Are Web Designers Strategists at Heart?

November 6, 2022 | All Categories, User Centered Design  | Author: Daniel Chabert

In most businesses, design is still seen as ‘the arty thing’, ’the colouring in’ or the least important part of the process. Low down in the pecking order or lumped in with stuff like marketing.

C-suite level professionals are constantly bombarded with so many aspects of business that they can become ‘MOBD’ (Microsoft Office Blind) with emails, spreadsheets and boring PowerPoint presentations. So when a designer walks in with something colourful, considered and tangible, they are sometimes overwhelmed. Not to dissimilar to their child bringing home a painting from school.

And that’s the way designers are viewed, the creative child who has toys on their desk and draws pretty pictures but who doesn’t really belong at the adult table…

This is why there needs to be a change. Not just changes in the way designers are viewed but the way designers see and portray themselves.

Designers should be accountable for the knowledge we all possess, the ideas we generate and the ideas we can bring to a business as a whole. After all, this is what we are good at, solving problems and lets face it, every business has problems on some level.

Design has always been about problem solving. What differentiates us is that we use a variety of tools to illustrate our ideas and concepts. Yes, we use Photoshop and draw pretty pictures, but this is necessary to transfer our ideas into a medium that can be easily accessible by everybody. We are not artists. We are not creatives. We are not here to solely entertain or provoke reactions. We are idea engineers who create the world we live in. We will find the solutions to problems, find the most efficient way to execute them and show you in the easiest way possible.

Think about where you are right now, as you are reading this. Everything you see and touch has been designed:

The clothes you’re wearing.
The seat you’re sitting in.
The phone in your pocket
and the website you are reading this on.

All designed by someone else. A Designer.

A Fashion Designer from Paris.
A Product Designer in Sweden.
A UX Designer in California and
a Web Designer in Manchester.

These are all people that are impacting your life right now as you read this. They have impacted their business in such a profound way that it has encroached into your daily life. They made you want to buy that t-shirt, sit in that chair, buy that phone and read this blog.

The design industry doesn’t help itself though. It tries to siphon itself off from the business world and all the negative connotations that comes with it, choosing to identify itself as a separate entity. No more obviously can this be seen than with fluffy, self-prophesising job titles like Experience Wizard, Dream Planner, Digital Warrior. The industry seems to be full of Ninjas, Pirates, Rockstars, Gurus and Monkeys!

wizard designer

Here, use click this link and find yourself your very own novelty job title that’s ‘outside the box’!

What professional business person would want to work with these people – would you want an ‘Engine Monkey’ fixing your car or a ‘Financial Pirate’ finding you a new mortgage?

Come on guys, we are better that this! We are architects. We are engineers. We are thinkers. We can bring so much more to a business than just ‘next level Photoshop skillz’!

Getting designers involved in at the very first stages of business decisions will ultimately benefit the entire company. Introducing designers earlier into the process means not only can they have a bigger impact on the overall strategy and outcome of a given process, but can change the suggested solution for the better and earlier.

Most of the time, businesses work like this:

‘Brand X’ wants to sell a product or service online.
‘Brand X’ hires ‘Web Agency Y’ to build them a website.
‘Agency Y’ builds an ecommerce platform using ‘complicated code and techy stuff’.
‘Brand X’ are super happy they’ve got a new revenue stream and they are an ecommerce business at last.

‘Brand X’ is happy they are making more money!
‘Agency Y’ is happy they got a new client and are making money!

Everyone’s happy right?

designers say your process is wrong

No. There is a person missing in this process. The user!

At no point did anybody think about the user. The consumer. The person who is actually buying the product/service.

This is where a designer is incredibly useful. Not only could they identify a problem early on in the business decisions, but by nature they are empathetic to user concerns and demands.

This is where new businesses need to sit up and listen. There is no business without your customer/user. Even if you are selling the greatest product in the world, if your customer isn’t happy then they won’t be your customers for long.

This recent article from InVision says “By 2020, UX will overtake price and product as the key brand differentiator.”

This just shows that the most important thing in business is customer experience and the end user. By the time most businesses incorporate a designer into strategy, it is too far down the chain to get the benefit of their value.

I hope this post has gone some way into changing the perceptions of designers. If you won’t take my word for it, why don’t you try it for yourself and introduce your in-house designer into strategic meetings earlier. Remember, designers are more than ‘colouring in’.

Daniel Chabert
Daniel Chabert is a leading expert on Conversion Rate Optimization. He has worked in the industry for 10 years. He has sold 3 eCommerce businesses for 7 figures combined. Today he is the CEO at PurpleFire.
Our 3 Recent Videos

  • Convert.com - How to start A/B testing on your Website (Webinar)

    Convert.com - How to start A/B testing on your Website (Webinar)

  • Jones Road Beauty - Let's do a Full Customer Journey Redesign in Shopify

    Jones Road Beauty - Let's do a Full Customer Journey Redesign in Shopify

  • Warby Parker - E-commerce Brand - Before/After case study - Conversion Rate Optimization

    Warby Parker - E-commerce Brand - Before/After case study - Conversion Rate Optimization

Contact us
CRO specialist
Let's discuss how we can boost your sales via CRO

Recently posted

How to Use Surveys to Boost Your Conversion Rate

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dPM8IMvuxo&t=1s[/embed] Surveys are an underrated tool for boosting your conversion rate. In this article, we’ll show you how to set up surveys, what software to use, and...
Read More

10 Best A/B Split-Testing Software Compared in 2023

If you’re a conversion rate optimization marketer or just a marketer looking to expand your repertoire, you need the best tools in the market. Split testing proves your experiment ...
Read More

The Art of Persuasion: Psychology Principles and Optimisation

Seeing how psychological principles can influence website visitors in various ways is one aspect of website optimization that I find most fascinating. Within the industry, ‘persuasion’ could be seen as something of a ...
Read More

Contact us

Drop us a line and we will get back to you asap to discuss your awesome idea or provide answers to your technical questions.
Get in touch
  • Home
  • About Us
  • How we develop
  • Contact
  • Web Development
  • Blog
49 reviews
image
Copyright © 2023 PurpleFire - All rights reserved.