[thelist] Are Web designers a dying breed?

[martin burns]

Isaac wrote:
> 
> 
> There is always work for a designer. 
>A finite set of
> templates cannot possibly solve the needs of every Web site, brochure,
> or whatever.

Couldn't agree more - one of the prime differentiators of sites is the soft stuff around the real functionality like Brand, Buzz and so on.

Think of a real world example - I could sell some water, sugar, CO2 & flavouring molecules for maybe 2p a can (mostly for the can). But how much does the same stuff with Coca Cola on the side cost? About 25-50 times as much.

Microsoft's value is nearly *all* brand - why do you think they insist on calling it *Microsoft* Word, *Microsoft* Windows etc etc. Even the apps on their own *intranet* are branded. If you have to point to one thing which made them what they are, it was the decision to push the branding of their stuff.

Designing (in the broadest sense, not just visually) a commercial site to push your brand is absolutely key to convey the brand, and off the shelf stuff *will* *not* *do*. This also goes for syndicated content btw, unless you're going to do major rewrites (as newspapers do to Reuters feeds).

Cheers
Martin