Comments on: Martian Designers — 5 Copywriter Peeves

By: SEO Copywriter

SEO Copywriter — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 22:39:24 +0000

I’m sure she’ll get there – I think sometimes designers (especially when starting out) are so keen to make visual masterpieces and be ‘creative’ and ‘artistic’ they forget that design is about function much more than it’s about art. And the function of most websites is to present content in the most effective way so it can do its job. Does make I chuckle/ weep a little when I see ‘bespoke’ designs that have been created in isolation of the content.

By: Rob Web Design Talk

Rob Web Design Talk — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 15:03:55 +0000

Peeve 1 made my laugh, as I’ve literally just been discussing that at work

We have a trainee graphic designer here who has made a few websites – I constantly comment on the fact she leaves no space at all for the all important content. To me, it’s a perfect example of why graphic designers don’t always make good web designers.

By: SEO Copywriter

SEO Copywriter — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 22:36:21 +0000

Hi Scotty… didn’t mean to do good designers a disservice. Good designers will develop a design that enhances content so none of these peees would apply! Absolutely good design should do the same job as copywriting does and both should work together… I keep saying that! That’s what this article is about.
But I think it’s fair and valid to say that far too many times copy is overlooked by far too many designers.
Good copy that reads well but doesn’t work? There is undoubtedly copy out there that is a fantastic read but doesn’t explicitly get a response… and yep, that would be the equivalent of ‘looks great but doesn’t work’.
This isn’t anti-designer heresy – designers, developers and copywriters all work on websites… the ‘peeves’ between designers/ developers are renowned, I’m just putting the copywriter’s view across.

By: Scotty

Scotty — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 17:38:31 +0000

OK I’m a designer and I’m in the huff. You’re deservedly kicking the bad designers and by default the clients who are also suckered by the ‘beautiful graphics that pop and the user interface so slick you could play air hockey on it’ that hides how useless it is. You do good designers a disservice.

Good design should do its job exactly the same as you claim good copywriting does, the slick look if required is almost a byproduct. What about finding the fantastic read but no function copywriting equivalent of the looks great but doesn’t do anything design? Surely that exists out there too.