Like any creative endeavor designing your firm’s website can truly be a labor of love, even if it is mostly tagged as “commercial.” The successful web solutions created on a daily basis are nonetheless based on sound principles of art and design even for those who have yet to take a course on the subject of web design. If we accept that all website design is truly artistic—probably on several levels—we must also accept that just like artists we can get too close to our creation. When this closeness becomes “too much,” then we can form a mental block which prevents us from seeing what might be obvious flaws to others. Those who can apply artistic distance when looking at their website are more readily able to create a much more successful website which can lead to higher rates of conversion for your firm.
Many of those who have been in the business of website creation for any significant length of time are aware of the industry’s tendency to shy away from challenging the status quo, meaning a well-constructed analysis of another’s website can be met with ridicule or anger. If the goal of website creation is truly to continue to raise the bar for design and content, the objective discussions on the subject are essential. In any case, like anything we human beings create, when we have looked at our own creation for days, weeks or months on end, it can be extremely difficult for us to offer any kind of objective assessment of something we have put our heart and soul into. Being able to critique your own work requires a level of honesty and impersonality which is not always easy to achieve.
How to Achieve Artistic Distance
So, you want to know if your painstakingly created legal website is spot on, or if it could use some tweaking—or even a complete overhaul? If you have colleagues who you trust to offer an honest opinion, backed up with concrete comments, then give them the opportunity to look at the site and give you feedback. If you happen to be a one-man island, then you must learn the art of self-critique. When considering the overall design of your site, get up and back away from your computer screen to more fully get the overall impact your site offers the user. Does the layout appear to make good visual sense or is it too busy or even too minimalistic? Move closer and look again. Is there a clear visual path which allows your users to easily find mandatory items? Illustrators have been known to turn their work upside down to identify any potential problems with perspective. This technique forces the brain to temporarily reboot in order to understand the visual impact and can also point out flaws in your overall composition.
Take a Look at Your Color Scheme
Even if you are absolutely certain your color palette is flawless, convert it to grayscale temporarily to get the full impact of your color choices. We humans can become extremely emotionally attached to a certain color theme and may not realize that it is not working as it should for the overall website effect. Along with your attachment to your color scheme you can also find you’ve created a bond with your entire web design, at least in your head. Walk away from your design, for at least a few days then come back to it with a fresh eye. You may be surprised to see things which need tweaking that you simply didn’t see before. This technique works just as well with content. Walk away from your written words for a while then come back and read over. You will likely be shocked at the mistakes you absolutely did not see before your break and may even see an entirely different direction you should take your words. In short, your goal is to get to the place where you can contemplate your design elements and content on their own merits rather than on an emotional level. When you’ve achieved this goal, your website will absolutely improve.
