Is Web Design Still a Thing?

In The Twenty-first Century Is Web Design Still A thing?

Is web design still a thing? It’s a question that some people might ask in today’s world of social media, website builders and easy to use content management systems. We have platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, on the social media side. Then you have GoDaddy, Wix, Squarespace, and Shopify on the web builder side.

On top of these we also have, on the content management systems side, Joomla and WordPress. To complicated things even further within the WordPress ecosystem there are several page builders as well as drag and drop editing solutions. WordPress also has page editing themes galore.

There is a never ending choice of website builders. Sometimes too many choices can be the same as not enough choices. Which one do you choose? How much time will it take to learn? What are the opportunity costs?

When it’s time to decide on a WordPress website and you’re in the North Orange County area or 562 give me a call I can help with web design and marketing.

(562) 423-1691

With so many seemingly free social business pages available a lot of businesses might think having a website is no longer necessary. They’re asking themselves “is web design still a thing.” With so many choices there is still the question of choosing which one? Do you go with a social media site page or choose a website platform.

When I first started building websites I used a browser to make my first websites. It wasn’t long before I moved to Dreamweaver. That was before Adobe bought them. I then moved to WordPress. All of these website building tools have changed a lot over the years and so too has web design.

Web design is still very much a thing, and here’s why.

We will start by looking at using a social media business page in place of a website.

First of all, on a social site you don’t fully control what happens on your social media page. The social platform can run ads on your page if they so choose. It’s also easier to lose a social media page entirely because of a glitch in the system, employee misconduct, the misconduct of a vendor, poor security protocols, or your opinions are not in political alignment with the social site. The point is, investing in a social platform as your primary website can be fraught with problems. There was one exception to this rule. However, I think after my favorite social site as a web site host was recently sold, there are now ads on some of the sites. For years it was one of my recommendations, now not so much. In fact I took the two domains I had on that social site off the site and I’m moving them to a self-hosted WordPress instance.

Most social media sites are designed for short-form content and quick engagement. You can have conversations on social media, but most businesses eventually need to move beyond the social platform. Your website can be designed for a deep dive into who you are and what you do. It’s a place to showcase your expertise, products and services in a way that social media simply can’t match.

Having a business website gives a business a certain kind of credibility. While anyone can build a website, it does take more cost and effort than putting up a free social media page. When evaluating a business, I am usually looking for both a website and some type of social media. If you are dealing with higher priced products or services a website is a must have. A website can be helpful in attracting and retaining customers, investors, and talent.

Owning your website allows your businesses to have greater control over your online presence and reputation. Social media platforms can be unpredictable and subject to changes. Social sites change algorithms like my last girlfriend changed clothes. She was cute and liked to wear a lot of fashionable clothes. My family said she dressed a little too fancy for me. I usually dress like a frontier scout or a boomtown sheriff. While that gal was real pretty and a lot fancy, she was a little fickle. She was a lot like social websites, they might look good, but at some point they’re going to become a problem.

Website builders

Website builders can be a good choice for some businesses. They usually don’t cost much to get started and they’re getting better at performance. I have not worked a lot with any of these. In the beginning they are a little confusing, but probably no more so than a hosted content management system. They do take some getting used to. It used to be that they were slow and had poor SEO capabilities.

Having a website on a page builder is better than using a social media business page. You are limited to the platform’s capabilities. If the platform doesn’t support a key feature you just can’t have it. One drawback is that the website builders are not as flexible as content management systems. I am predicting that the new generation of artificial intelligence is going to radically change the website design space in the near future. I know that AI is coming to WordPress and I’m sure it will be incorporated in website builders too.

The website builders I have some experience with are GoDaddy and Wix. I did not find either one particularly enjoyable to work with.

Self-hosted content management systems

For those on the content management system side of the equation we have the, I can get someone to do it for free, or very low cost. Who do they turn to first? A lot of small business owners think, hey, I’ll just get my high school nephew to build a website, they know a lot about TikTok. Another scenario is, get the receptionist to make the website. After all, they know how to make documents in word, why not a website?

While these web building ideas may sound good upon first thought, they don’t always turn out that great. There is more that goes into a website than a template and some words.

I am like your digital trailblazing scout of the cyber prairies, finding the best route for your adventures along the internet superhighway.

In the early 2000s I tried several content management systems and back then they were not as easy to use as today. After experimenting with Duple, Joomla, and some I can’t remember the names of, I settled on WordPress.

WordPress uses a theme based design system. It used to be that a lot of doing WordPress web design required a child theme to work with. For most people developing a child theme was quite intimidating, much more so than the dashboard. The child theme was built from a primary or parent theme. With modern themes this is not always necessary. So things have gotten a lot easier.

Things are about to change again. The WordPress theme I prefer is going to soon incorporate artificial intelligence so that web design will now also include the ability to prompt AI. Like ChatGTP for website design. It will be interesting to see if this makes design easier or if the additional prompting skill needed will make it more difficult. If it’s an additional skill most people haven’t yet mastered, then we can be certain that web design is still a thing.

We need to remember when asking “is web design still a thing?” That modern web design is more than just web design.

Web design has transformed into a new type of customer acquisition / relationship design. It’s no longer just web design, its narrative design, its behavioral design, it’s how your business will operate in a digital world, it’s how your business will integrate online with offline into a cohesive whole.