Earlier this month, the digital news source Mashable released an article detailing the inevitable death of web design. The supposed “symptoms” of its downfall ranged from template commoditization and design pattern maturity to mobile device complications and the preference for artificial intelligence over human decision-making when it comes to web design. Facebook home pages were also an indicator of web design’s imminent demise.
“Facebook pages are so efficient in making a business visible that they are rendering basic web pages useless,” the author explained.
So what does this mean for businesses? Should unique dot-coms be given up in favor of generic WordPress templates and Facebook home pages flooded with photos and — ideally — positive reviews?
At Mustang, we are hesitant to believe that companies should forego quality web design in favor of an “Add Us on Facebook” link.
“I think using Facebook as a company home page is dangerous because it puts the control in someone else’s hands,” says Chris Barrett, Mustang’s creative director. “You are at the mercy of Facebook.”
Creative Manager Michael Arroyo also sees issues with Facebook’s user-friendly algorithms. “On Facebook, you can’t control what ads show up. I don’t think it would be good business to have competitors’ ads on your web presence,” he explains.
Another problem with Mashable’s diagnosis? Our ever-changing world.
“Websites in 10 years will definitely be different from what they are today,” Arroyo explains. “But so will the world. It will be cool to see how things shape up. I highly doubt that the most widely used source of information is going to die anytime soon.”
While the article highlights useful things to consider when it comes to web design, the Mustang Marketing team is hesitant to release the reigns of creativity to automated services and premade frameworks.
“I think we can all agree, though, that not a single out-of-the-box, social, template piece of any kind of technology just works without the need for design and human support,” Arroyo explains. “That includes Google, Facebook, WordPress, Apple or whatever else is waiting around the corner.”