Ten principles form the essence of good design
Consider two items that could, in the twenty-first century, be considered “everyday objects”. The first is the glass Coca Cola contoured bottle. The second is the iPod music player from Apple. The classic Coke bottle was launched in 1915, the first-generation iPod in 2001. Since their relative inceptions, one nearly a century ago, the other just over a decade ago neither of these two objects has significantly altered in form; a Coke bottle, taken from any date in its history, is unmistakeably recognisable as a Coke bottle, and the same principle applies to the Apple iPod. These are just two items of many that are considered “design classics”; objects whose design fulfils its purpose so perfectly that little or no further refinement is necessary.
Good design is no accident. For an object to achieve widespread recognition and acceptance as being of good design it must adhere to certain criteria and exhibit certain qualities.
- Bogdan
Bogdan is the founder of Top Design Magazine.
http://www.topdesignmag.com/what-is-the-essence-of-good-design/
Welcome to the Era of Design
All businesses, no matter what they make or sell, should recognize the power and financial value of good design.
Obviously, there are many different types of design: graphic, brand, packaging, product, process, interior, interaction/user experience, Web and service design, to name but a few.
In this post, I am referring to design as a broad and deliberately applied discipline, with the aim of creating simpler, more meaningful, rewarding experiences for customers.
You see, expecting great design is no longer the preserve of a picky design-obsessed urban elite—that aesthetically sensitive clique who‘d never dare leave the house without their Philippe Starck eyewear and turtleneck sweaters and buy only the right kind of Scandinavian furniture. Instead, there’s a new, mass expectation of good design: that products and services will be better thought through, simplified, made more intuitive, elegant and more enjoyable to use.
Design has finally become democratized, and we marketers find ourselves with new standards to meet in this new “era of design.” To illustrate, Apple, the epitome of a design-led organization, now has a market capitalization of $570 billion, larger than the GDP of Switzerland. Its revenue is double Microsoft’s, a similar type of technology organization but one not truly led by design (just compare Microsoft Windows with Apple’s Lion operating system).
Every day my Twitter feed populates with astounding growth facts about the likes of Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Pinterest and the more recent travel site, AirBnB. It is no coincidence that these successful brands seem to really value design and utilize it to secure a competitive advantage.
Even the UK government has issued its “design principles,” naturally on a clean, easy-to-navigate website.
But why have people become so design sensitive? Why does that credit card mailer look so bad and dated now? Why can’t you access my account details? Why does airport signage seem so unhelpful? Why doesn’t that technology plug and play?
Perhaps Apple’s global dominance has elevated our design expectations, or Ikea’s vision to bring great design at affordable prices to everyone on the planet has finally taken effect, or perhaps the Internet has taught us what well-designed user experiences and good design really are. Likely, it is a combination of all.
What is certain is that the design bar has been raised and design-oriented businesses are winning.
Think how swiftly and strongly a design experience shapes our opinion of that brand, company or store, for good or bad. For instance, we know quickly when a website is bad. And we associate that feeling of frustration, or worse, disappointment with that brand.
Design-oriented organizations invest in thinking this stuff through. They put design at the heart of their company to guide innovation and to continually improve products, service and marketing. They recognize that a great design leads to differentiation, customer loyalty and higher profits.
Top 5 Web Trends of Next Year
1. Mobile, Mobile, and more Mobile
Many web designers will have to take their designs and use their skills to bring them to the small screen. According to Search Engine Land, more than 1/5 of all searches will be conducted on mobile devices in 2012. For this reason, it is extremely important that all company websites can be easily navigated as well as read on the small cell phone screen.
2. More 3D Effects
The web has slowing been moving into 3D web effects to help draw in readers. This next year 3D graphics are expected to grow in popularity, so be sure your 3D skills are ready to go. Use shadows and textures to help create dimension, but remember not to go overboard!
3. No more flash—think CSS3 and HTML5
Flash was once extremely popular amongst web designers, but it has slowly lost momentum. In 2012, flash will likely lose all momentum forever. It simply does not work well with mobile devices, and CSS3 and HTML5 offer many benefits (interactivity for users, faster loading, etc.). If you’re afraid to leave flash, consider learning about these newer methods from the Web Design Ledger.
4. Think Typography
More browsers now support different types of font, which means more and more websites will start to utilize more creative ways to use lettering. While past years typography was tangled up in copyright issues, CSS3 will allow designers to use free and/or subscription-based typography services. This will help get you away from those boring Arial and Times fonts you’re so tired of seeing.
5. QR Codes will explode
Last year was about consumers understanding Quick Response (QR) Codesand trying them out for fun. This year, many companies are hopeful that QR Codes will make a big difference. They are completely free to create, and many more people understand how they work. Because they are so easy, your boss will likely have you throw up a QR Code whenever possible.
Design is one of the aspects of business that every gets to see evolve with the times. For this reason, it is important that your designs continue to improve and grow with all the latest trends. The great part about it all—you will likely be able to create better designs with the same amount of work. Things often get easier for designers, and 2012 will be no exception.
Want to make the most of the social web?
It’s more complicated than just posting status updates at random and seeing what sticks.
When is Facebook most effective? When are you better off using Twitter, or LinkedIn? And what exactly is Google+ good for, anyway?
The business consultant network Zintro recently pulled research from more than a dozen sources including Mashable, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google and Quantcast to put together this nifty infographic, which will help you develop your social strategy. Check it out below for the full report.
Do you use different social networks for different purposes? Let us know in the comments.
Stephen Hull Design
Updated my site. http://www.stephenhull.com
Track Who’s Tracking You With Mozilla Collusion
LONG BEACH, Calif. — Mozilla CEO Gary Kovacs took the TED stage Tuesday morning to introduce Collusion, a Firefox browser add-on that lets you track who’s tracking you across the web for behavioral targeting purposes.
Describing the medium as “an area of consumer protection that’s almost entirely naked,” Kovacs argued that the price we’re now being asked to pay for connectivenss is our privacy, and in turn, it’s “now time for us to watch the watchers.”
Freebies: Black & White Minimal Social Icons Pack
We are eager to release a set of social icons for our esteemed readers. This release is a set of minimal design social media icons in black and white, which consist of the most popular social icons including Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and more.
20 Great Examples of CSS Used in Web Design
In this article you can see how much CSS can help you built a better website. Using this style sheet language you can make quick and various changes to your website. Starting from changing colors, fonts or backgrounds, and all the way to creating intricate designs, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) is a vital tool. In this article you can see a showcase of 20 website designs based on CSS.
Merry Christmas
Have a great holiday!
30 Hilarious Print Advertisements
The printed format, whether it is for magazines, newspapers or billboards, sets specific challenges for ad designers. An idea or message must be communicated simply and swiftly, it must be eye-catching enough to grab the viewer’s attention and convey the important information in an instant. When a print designer employs humour to carry this information, the result can be become a visual ‘one-liner’, a joke that speaks the message the ad intends. This post brings together 30 hilarious print ads that combine great imagery with cracking comedy.
