

How important is site design? - kimfuh

I am anal about how clean our site is to the point that sometimes, I piss even myself off. Given that you have a very usable product in a not-so-crowded playing field, is site design a major factor? Or do you just do google did? Release a usable, but messy, product and clean the design later.
======
erikpukinskis
I think MySpace is a great study. It's obviously terribly, horrifically
designed... but it was at one time one of the most popular sites on the web.
Not because it was pixel perfect, but because the social mechanics were
designed very well.

Now look at Facebook. It's better designed from a visual and usability
standpoint, and I think that gave them a little bit of an edge. But again,
what really seems to have driven Facebook's growth is incredibly well designed
social mechanics. Photo tagging is huge, for example. The News Feed is a huge
engine for growth.

So, I think the answer is that it depends what you mean by "site design". A
clean visual design, or even good usability may not be as important as a clean
social design, or a clean API design.

As a designer you need to understand what are the key bottlenecks in meeting
your goals, and design the heck out those.

Once you're Apple and you have a bajillion dollars, you can afford to polish
the insides of your battery cases. But as a startup, you only get a few
chances, and you have to spend your design effort where it really counts.

~~~
bryanh
I think this really hits the nail on the head. Make sure your product's core
function is well designed and the rest falls into place. Because that, my
friends, is where it really counts.

------
tehwayne
It really depends right? Some users are looking for an experience, some users
are looking for a service, and most users are somewhere in the middle. But
depending on your product, your users may expect different things.

For example, if you have a site for coders, having a technical but not
completely clean site would be okay as long as it functions (service works as
advertised). Of course these same users would probably appreciate good site
design more later down the road. On the other hand, if you're making a site
like amazon for the typical internet user, an organized site with clear call
to actions may be best (good user experience). But later if you change stuff
it might freak users out if you're not careful.

Not sure if my input really helps explain anything other than that each site
is probably different (I know, I know, I'm a genius...) but I guess what I'm
saying is think about how the users are using the site and why, or even
better, go out and meet them to ask them.

------
nader
When you're looking at sites like reddit, hacker news and others which don't
have a great/nicely looking user interface you would think it's not that
important. But I think it also depends on the target group. For consumer-
oriented, less internet savy people websites it is essential to have an
appealing professional looking design, great usability, ease-of-use and
optimised text.

So to answer your question I would release an early messier version to a
closed group of beta users, ie. early adopters but before pushing onto the
mass market I'd clean it up.

------
mcav
If you think your product has potential even with your misgivings about the
site design, go ahead and launch. Release early and often, as they say.

As long as your design isn't dead-awful, such that it makes users feel your
product is untrustworthy or poor, release now and iterate. You might want to
consider getting feedback, either from posting it here as an Ask HN post, or
by asking your friends/family/strangers. See what they think, then make an
informed decision.

The perfect is the enemy of good. So is the bad.

------
marknutter
It's hard to say. DrudgeReport and Craigslist seem to be getting on ok, but I
personally would use okcupid.com over plentyoffish.com because the design is
so kick-ass. I think if the functionality and usability of two sites is equal,
a good design can give one the clear edge. We're visual creatures, and even a
website can have increased perceived value with a shiny new coat of paint.

------
amk
Design can mean different things to different people.

While you don't need to have a very flashy and attractive website, you do need
a clean and usable user interface, and stuff like clean colors and typography.

~~~
lachyg
I think this is spot on, but it really depends on the target audience. Having
a nice design will help separate you from the crowd, it could even be one of
your distinguishing features.

But if you were creating a craigslist for web designers, I would strongly
recommend having a nice design - know your target market :)

