Some might attribute this to a post-bubble downsizing, as regional web agencies shrank along with their budgets in the nineties, leaving an entire generation of freelancers fending for themselves. The broadcast television industry had suffered a similar blow a decade earlier, when the arrival of digital TV tipped the budget-to-airtime ratio and studios shut down over night.
The ability to single-handedly carry a web project through from concept to launch was essential to survival for the late nineties web professional, which gave designers like myself a significant advantage later in life. But no agencies meant no strategy, which triggered a torrent of ill-informed web monstrosities, conceptualised by zealous entrepreneurs and marketing directors with no understanding of the medium.
These days, our business is very different. The sector is healthy again, despite recent economical difficulties, and the agencies are enjoying something of a renaissance. Our understanding of the web, and more importantly, those who engage with it is growing all the time. The term 'design' is beginning to take on meanings that were previously overlooked, or misunderstood. These are exciting times.
So what is the modern definition of a web designer? There may be many more, but at Riff Raff, we see design as a combination of the following disciplines in mixed measures:
- Information Architecture
- User Experience Design
- Interaction Design
- Brand Design
- Graphic Design
- Presentation Layer Development (HTML/CSS)
- Javascript Development
I'm not going to go into great depth about what each of these roles involve; They should be fairly self-explanatory. The question I am forced to ask as I recruit new designers to join our band of Riff Raff is: Where can I find the super-human capable of all of the above? Does this person exist?
If so, let me know. I've got a corner office and reserved parking space with their name on it! careers@studioriffraff.com
