I used to always say content is king. Now I’m starting to say design is king. Because design gets people in the door, to look further at your product. Design takes ownership of the interface between your features/functions/content and a human being. If your interface is broken people cannot get to your content or features. If people have an unpleasant experience with your interface they will not come back. So without design your product becomes useless despite what virtues it may possess.

This thought rang clear after watching the TED Talk on the Polish designer Jacek Utko but also after spending much time with Apple products over the past 3 years or so. I noticed how the designer has a very important role and how well it works. The experience for people is great. This design focus or fundamental skill shines through from the Apple Stores, to the commercials and products. Steadfast design decision is present first and foremost. Brand is interface. And the interface is ruled by design.

This idea of interface is very abstract for me. As a web developer I interact with dozens of interfaces, not to mention just as a human. The Design of Everyday Things is on my shelf and really opened my eyes to good design. You don’t even notice it is there, until it breaks or changes, like a door knob, telephone or teapot. But even now in my current position developing web publishing systems, I see how design is everywhere. From web APIs to functions to file systems. Everything breaks down into how things interact with each another, interface. Design is hard to get right and takes alot of iteration, observation and testing … evolution. You can design to your heart’s content but the proof is in the pudding. When you see the interface go to work because someone uses it without thinking, then it works.

Also I think this distinction between designed intelligently and not design intelligently is apparent between Apple and Microsoft. Microsoft has provided us with hundreds of features buried in Microsoft Office that 90% of people will never care about. It’s bloat-ware. They have put tons of work into function and little in design. The form vs function basic rule of design seems to be ignored. Similarly for newspapers, journalists or content is #1 … design is barely present.

People like great content, but they love great products. Any great product requires a great designer. The designer takes ownership of the interface (visual/tactile/etc) between human and product. That fundamental skill or design innovation lacks with most products, and as Apple and Jacek Utko has shown us, this type of innovation makes all the difference.