5 Things Web Designers are Tired of Hearing - And Our Hilarious Reactions to Them
As web designers, we love the internet. I mean, we literally would have no job without it. However, there are some things about the internet which have made our jobs a little more challenging. The internet makes everyone an expert. It gives anyone with an internet connection access to the entire scope of human knowledge. As much as one would assume unbridled access would only benefit people, recently the internet has created some new challenges designers. Ask any web designer out there if they have heard these statements from clients before. They have. And they wish they would never hear them again.
The Statement:
"Its $$$ for a website?! I can just use wix, they're like a dollar I think."
Our Reaction:
Yes, you can use those drag and drop website editors, as long as you don't mind having a bland, generic website that looks just like everyone else's. A quality website takes hours and hours of tedious work. We love the work. Any web designer would love build you a website! Just not for free.
The Statement:
"I want to change the site. I don't know what I don't like about it exactly, but I trust you."
Our Reaction:
Web Designers aren't mind readers. No one has a better understanding of what you want, than you. As much as having complete creative freedom for a site seems great in theory, the reality is, inevitably you do know what you want. The result is us spending time trying to make changes we hope you will like, and having to go back and redo that work again. Web designers don't mind making changes. In fact, making changes and edits to websites is basically our break and butter. Web designers just need clear direction. Good communication is key to any website being built. Take time to figure out what changes you want. Once you know for sure, talk to us. We are more than happy to help.
The Statement:
"I need these changes immediately. These are easy, right? It should only take you a little bit."
Our Reaction:
The one thing you should know about web design, is that there is no such thing as "right now" changes to the structure of a website. These things take time - more time than you might anticipate. It may seem like little changes from the front, but often times, those "little changes" take hours. I think the over all consensus between web designers is please don't tell us how big or small a change is, or how long one should take. We will get everything done as quickly as we possibly can! We Promise!
The Statement:
"I know I said I only needed a landing page. I actually need a landing page, a blog page, a place for clients to log in, oh and a mailing list. That's okay, right?"
Our Reaction:
Increased project scope: every web designers worst nightmare. We get it though, most people don't understand just how much it takes to do things like turning a website into a blog or that programming isn't usually included in a web designer's job description. Web designers will work with you, all we ask is for a little patience and understanding. And if we don't get mad that the project is changing, please don't get mad that the price might change as well.
The Statement:
"I need a website identical to www.competitor.com. It should function the same way as well."
Our Reaction:
Clients who want to copy another website design happens more frequently than it should. There is a huge difference between creating a design that can compete with your competition, and ripping off a website completely. When doing a website for a start-up business, it’s good to look at the competitor’s websites and find things that you can improve on, but you should never copy them directly. So please don't ask us to commit copyright infringement. Pretty Please? As web designers, we have to take all of these kinds of statements with a grain of salt and have a good laugh once in a while. We work in an industry in which many people don't exactly understand what it is we do, and how it is we do it, so it is difficult for them to assess a "value" for our work. It is simply an aspect of the job we all have to accept in exchange for doing what we love.