“Templates have no business in a world where personalization trumps
everything else. Prospective clients are going to a website not just for
content, but for the experience that the brand is willing to offer. Not to
mention that if you’re in the business of selling yourself, a high profile
custom website speaks volumes about your dedication to your chosen
niche market.”Andrei Gonzales eloquently sums up the difference between Web design
and decoration:
“Design isn’t about eye-candy. It’s about problem-solving. If your Web
‘design’ isn’t solving quantifiable issues, then it isn’t design: it’s
‘decoration’.”And moreover, we’re already in Cameron’s bleak future scenario where Web
designers should be a thing of the past. Companies today can buy a
template and feed their content to whoever they so please. And yet, they
aren’t doing yet. When the designer created that template eight months
ago, he didn’t know that their business was having trouble marketing to
middle-aged women. That designer didn’t know they are a family-owned
business in a market where that kind of thing leads to improved revenue
and sales. How could he? He’s Andrei’s decorator, solving the issues
between lorem upsum and dolor sit.
In Conclusion
Web design has changed drastically during its brief existence. The changes
in the medium year after year are actually quite amazing. The industry looks
vastly different than it did in 2005, and we’ve changed with it. Change is
inevitable, and it is the reason you visit websites like this one: to stay
current. That hunger is the key to ensuring the survival of our industry.