If you’re reading this book web site, there’s a darn good chance you’re an art student or a so-called “e-designer” just breaking into the business. If you’re not an art student or a young “e-designer” looking to break into the business, then please skip this chapter and advance to the essay immediately after this one written by a colleague who's far more articulate (and talented) than me. I’ve read it and I can tell you it’s a lot more entertaining.

If you’re anything like my students, you’re probably an insufferable punk with a pierced tongue, painted pinky nails and an unjustified contempt for “traditional” mediums like print, packaging or broadcast.

At the risk of sounding preachy, I’ll let you in on a little secret. It doesn’t matter what medium you choose to work in. Good design transcends all mediums. Regardless of whether you’re an “e-designer” or a “traditional” designer your core mission is smart communication. Whether you work in print or pixel, successful design solutions begin with knowing your audience. Below are three anecdotes that come to mind.

Get in their head

Many years ago when I was an insufferable punk like you, I was fortunate enough to work for The Grand Master of Parody. His name was David Kaestle and he initially made his mark art directing The National Lampoon magazine. Kaestle and his team created some of the industry’s most brilliant satire.

Specifically, Kaestle was the man behind The National Lampoon’s High School Yearbook parody which is considered to be the gold standard for print humor. (Kaestle’s project actually led writer Doug Kenny to create a little movie called Animal House. That film launched the career of John Belushi and essentially changed the course of mass humor and pop culture. I submit that if it weren’t for the likes of Kaestle and the Lampoon in the late 1970s, we wouldn’t have humor web sites like TheOnion.com in the late 1990s). Kaestle’s design direction was spot-on target and amazingly accurate right down to the smallest detail. You’d swear it was an actual high school yearbook made by actual high schoolers.

I once asked Kaestle what the secret was to creating such accurate parodies. He told me to think of the target being spoofed and simply “get in their head.” In other words, to art direct a parody of a high school yearbook, you had to think like a high school yearbook art director. (And like the high school audience it was aimed at). As painful as it might be, you had to fully assume that person’s point of view, art style—and in the case of an amateur yearbook designer—lack of talent. By being true to the host and the audience, you could easily emulate their approach and converse in their language. Essentially, you would be “in their head” and the results were nothing short of pure genius.

Be an actor, not a star

A few years later, an actor friend of mine attended a theatre workshop held by veteran Shakespearean actor and starship captain, Mr. Patrick Stewart. (Since this friend—who shall remain nameless—was a crummy actor who never really hit the bigtime, I always questioned the validity of his tales. Nevertheless, there’s a moral to this story that supports my point so please bear with me).

On the first day of class, Stewart confronted the group with a chilling question: “Do you want to be an actor or a star?” Stewart’s question was loaded. He then angrily demanded that any of those in attendance who wanted to be “stars” were unworthy of his time and would be banished from the workshop. Stewart then went on to explain the difference between an “actor” and a “star.” A Hollywood star was not a true actor, but rather a vain publicity-monger whose purpose was to maintain a persona. The “star” is a person who essentially plays one role—themselves—regardless of where they are cast. An example of this would be someone like Jean-Claude Van Damme. No matter where he goes, he can only play one thing: the doofus kickboxer heavy. The “star” is creatively insubstantial and just concerned about the surface.

An “actor” however, is very different. A true actor is concerned about his craft, not his surface appeal. An actor is a chameleon capable of morphing into a variety of diverse characters with each one being wildly different than the next. Think of Alec Guinness or Gary Oldman or Tom Hanks. These are true actors who “get in the heads” of their given characters.

That being said, I’ve always found that the best designers are the ones who approach their craft like “true actors.” The good ones can adjust themselves to serve a variety of clients without defaulting to one single surface style or trend. This ability to emulate the mindset of the target audience can be the key to effective communication. And that holds true for both old or new media and everything in between.

Listen to the audience

For the past decade I have worked at Nickelodeon. Most recently as a Vice President, Creative Director helping them to launch their online division. It was here that I met Scott Webb who taught me the “art of knowing your audience.” Scott was one of the founding fathers of Nickelodeon and was a mentor to me. Scott Webb was “Yoda” to my “Luke Skywalker.” (When it comes to branding, creative direction and relating to the audience, Scott taught me everything I know. In the business of branding, he’s a true Jedi Master.)

Nickelodeon is the number one brand for kids in every medium they get into. Nick dominates in television, magazines, consumer products and now more recently in online. How do they do it? They talk to kids. They listen to their audience and respect them. This sounds rather obvious, but no other entertainment company listens to kids with the passion, devotion and sincerity that Nick does. Every script, product or design is tested and approved by kids. Nickelodeon has a massive research department devoted solely to communicating with its audience through carefully engineered focus groups. No idea gets made unless a kid says they like it.

Scott Webb taught me to listen to the kid audience, as well as the kid inside me. This was especially helpful when I re-launched nick.com in the summer of 2000. This was a serious refreshment of the look & feel, navigation and content direction of the entire site. We also upgraded our publishing systems and server solutions. It was the single most ambitious re-launch in Nick Online’s history. But before I touched a single pixel, I talked to the audience.

From what kids told me, they found most kid web sites to be “babyish” and insulting. After I studied the competition, I couldn’t help but agree. (See sample screen grabs). Naturally, web design conventions for adults are different than for children. Kids have different motor skills, reading levels and a profoundly different relationship with a computer than grown-ups. The new nick.com needed to be more than pretty eye-candy, it had to be fun, navigationally clear, intelligent and kid-friendly. As a result, I directed my team with these five informing design principles:

1. Respect
Unlike most kid web sites, the Nickelodeon interface respects the audience. There are no cornball environments as seen on the Fox, Disney and JuniorNet sites. Nick offers intelligent menu systems that work for all ages and all skills without the creative crutch of real-world metaphors such as houses, maps, dashboards and spaceship windows.

2. Templated
All the nick.com pages follow a strict program of design guidelines and layout templates. This insures consistent site packaging and enhances user clarity. This clear design program also insures cost effective page maintenance. I’m a strong believer that an interface should take a back seat to the content. The UI should be “invisible” and unobtrusive. The interface is there to help you access content, not overshadow it.

3. Surprise, movement and play
The nick.com site packaging is lean and functional, yet maintains a uniquely Nickelodeon sense of play, fun, serendipity and discovery. It’s loaded with “easter eggs” and undocumented surprises. All the pages combine smart utility with animation and sound. In a sense, each web page is a cool “digital toy” unto itself.

4. Consistent navigation
The tabbed navigational bar is devilishly simple and appears consistently on every page. This navigational solution is intentionally “unclever” and does not pretend to entertain. The content is where the cleverness and entertainment is found, not the signage. Basic color coding provides clear, consistent visual themes that unify each area. Even non-readers can navigate based on appearance alone.

5. Graphics with attitude
The nick.com web site uses modern design elements based on visuals relevant to today’s kids without being trite. It’s reminiscent of skateboard and snowboard graphics, rave flyers and youth fashion. Fonts, colors and layouts promote a hip, “bubblegum techno” style. It’s a site design that suggests a “junior varsity MTV” rather than “Barney.”

By talking to the audience we were able to launch a new site that better served their needs and increased our traffic. In a sense, the kid audience helped design the new nick.com as much as I did. And judging from the hundreds of letters that we get each week, the kids say they love it.

Whether it’s through creative arrogance or innocent over-enthusiasm, designers sometimes assume the audience they serve is just like themselves. Only on rare occasions will you embark on a project where the end user shares your own tastes, insights and opinions. For all other times, I suggest you check your ego at the door and ask the audience for input. They’ll thank you for it.

*  *  *

David Vogler is a consultant to MTV Networks and is a frequent guest lecturer at The School of Visual Arts and Carnegie Mellon University’s Human Computer Interaction Institute.

From The Education of an E-Designer
Originally published by Allworth Press; Fall 2002

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