Understanding design trade-offs

When I say “design,” you might be thinking that's how a thing looks. But there's more to design than just how something looks.

"Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works."

– Steve Jobs

Web design is an umbrella term that covers multiple disciplines:

• Visual design. The look and feel: colours, typography, imagery, layout, spacing, branding.
• Interaction design. How people move through the site: navigation, menus, buttons, animations, feedback.
• User experience (UX) design. The process of learning what users need and designing experiences that help them achieve their goals.
• Information architecture (IA). How content is structured and organised: sitemaps, taxonomies, navigation systems.
• Content design. Making sure words, images, and media are clear and accessible.
• Accessibility design. Ensuring the site works for everyone, regardless of ability or device.
• Responsive design. Designing for flexibility across devices and screen sizes.

There’s no such thing as a “perfect” design. It’s always about trade-offs. Here are a few common ones:

Performance vs visuals
The faster a page loads, the better the user experience. But filling your site with big, beautiful images will slow things down. You’ll need to strike a balance.

Usability vs aesthetics
The simplest, most usable sites are often plain. The most striking designs can sometimes get in the way of usability.

Every site is different and the right balance will vary. What matters is recognising the trade-offs and making those choices consciously.

We are always going to advocate for accessibility and ease-of-use over pure aesthetics. But the important message here is to be clear about your organisation's priorities and let those priorities guide your design decisions.