On the Floor

 A large part of our business at factor[e] is designing and developing websites. Obviously, when we talk about web design, we have to consider the visual impact of the site - 'how it looks' is a large part of how it's received - and mostly, both clients and the public think of design this way. We always try to bring something else to the table: the design of how it works.

Making sure the site performs as a cohesive whole is just, if not more, important than the appearance of the site. While working away in Photoshop, we always try to remain aware that we're not designing a page, we're designing one element of a larger entity. 

This aspect of design is often glossed over. Ultimately, what we, as designers, should be thinking about is not designing a site, but designing a system to ensure smooth and fulfilling interaction with the end user.

As we move forward in terms of internet technologies, especially with modern frameworks and extensions that drastically expand the functionality of the web, websites are moving from being simple pages to full-blown applications. Because of this, the focus on interaction has become more important. We have to consider the results of user actions (and reactions) to dialogs, asynchronous actions and more.

This aspect of what we do is largely invisible to our clients and the end users of the sites we build, other than as a sense of a site 'working right'. How can we talk about the value of designing interactions as well as the look and feel of a site?

An approach we use at factor[e] is one of the oldest forms of human interaction, storytelling. When we're talking to a client about their site, we describe complex functionality in terms what will happen, what the experience of the site will actually be for a user. This almost always excites a client much more than simply showing static comps - they're drawn in and made a participant. By understanding how the site will work, rather than simply how it will look, they understand operational decisions we've made and how the end result will shape user experience.

Looking to the future, thinking functionally will only become more important to us as a company and to the industry as a whole. It's important to maintain our focus on this hidden side of web design.