#118 Where have all the designers gone? YOU REMEMBER THAT FAMOUS FOLK SONG from the '60s? Well the chorus kept going through my mind the whole time I was updating my Web Design workshop for the 2000 season. Except I substituted 'designers' for the word 'flowers.' __ I guess there are still designers at work in the web biz, but from the hundred or so web sites that I revisited, it's not very apparent. I wanted to update the presentation so I decided to pull out a collection of web sites that were shown in past years and see how they're doing today. What a shock. __ First, nearly a third were dead. Period, domain not found. Some of the sites had completely changed -- so much so, it was a shock. Asap.com completely lost all hints of its former self in favor of straight table and text. Yuch. WebShaker.com went from "cool" to "cold" introducing ecommerce and eliminating all their outstanding graphics. The biggest shock however were some of the sites you'd never expect to fall. __ Riddler.com is just such a site. In the early web design workshops I always pointed out how the color scheme worked so well to reinforce some outstanding graphics... how the image of the key leads the reader into the content well. Today Riddler.com has fallen into the rut of ecommerce, smacking the reader square in the face with a rude blinking ad, right at the visual arrival point. The background went green and a "puzzle" motif installed. No longer does the key point in the right direction, nor does it please the reader with finely crafted artwork. (SEE Riddler today in a new browser window)

Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream was another disappointment. In the past the B&J site loaded quickly and offered instant enticement to enter and enjoy. No more. First we're met with a broken ShockWave movie. Then we arrive on a page loaded with click-me buttons and a poorly defined reader path. __ I pointed out to my workshop attendees in Orlando last week that if the reader begins to scroll, rather than finding new and exciting visual devices, (like the old site) they fall into some long and tedious texts that defy the reason for an ice cream site. (I realize February is Black History Month, but what's that got to do with ice cream??? Forced content maybe?) Anyway, somehow the best and most important elements of the B&J web page are buried down in the 4th or 5th screen. I hope other people make it that far. I did because I needed to. Others may not be so compelled. (See Ben & Jerry's Today in a new browser window) __ Another shocker was 800Flowers.com. Once the leader of flowers online, and one of those storybook web success tails, they've scrapped the warm and inviting look for a green and purple button bar that's cold and so commercial we forgot what we came for. They are currently getting their butts kicked by Hallmark, which has launched fully into the flower business, and hasn't forgotten WHY people buy flowers! They're doing a superb job of telling their story on the web through some rather spectacular visual images and graphics. Bravo, Hallmark.com! Goodbye 800Flowers.com. __ The big stars of my little research project were Campbell Soups and Smuckers -- both of which we'll be showcasing in WebDesign & Review in the months to come. Smuckers.com is so nice, and inviting that even I was compelled to fill out the form for a catalog. (Unheard of behavior for Fred!) And the catalog came today, in less than a week! __ Campbell's has actually renovated their site into a storybook wonderland of visual treats -- with good solid content to help educate and romance the audience. Campbells was originally a corporate site, and seem now to be heading in the right direction. Unlike most of the other sites visited. Where have all the designers gone? Long time passes? I suspect they're still working, but now have accountants and ad sales people driving the sites instead of readers! Aren't you glad the Design Center is still a reader-driven web site? We may be a little short on design WOW, but we still adhere to the one hard and fast rule of design: "The reader is the most important element in the equation." Style gives way to message, and content is STILL king. Thank you for reading. Good day! Fred Showker