Calling All Designers: Learn to Write!
I recently had the good fortune to work with a client who asked me to, in addition to doing my usual experience design / visual design thing, also write much of the text that appeared on the site. And it made me realize that I’ve often done this for clients – it just wasn’t an official part of the process. It was more like, “well, somebody had to write it, and I knew what it needed to say, so I just kinda did it.”
Having a client actually encourage me to use my words in addition to my pixels renewed my appreciation for the role writing has in designing good experiences online. Words are how we think, communicate, and create experiences every day. A designer without words is like a car without an interior: nice to look at, but I’d hate to have to drive it.
So I wrote an article for venerable web magazine A List Apart on this topic. If you, or someone you know, designs experiences for a living, give it a read and let me know what you think.
