Writing

Design Practice

The Power of Info-graphics

There has been an "interesting story":http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6231137.stm circulating in the press today about food labelling. The government are trying to encourage food manufacturers to label food in such a way that shoppers can clearly tell which of a number of similar products are healthiest just by glancing at them. The food standards agency realised that the current labelling system—while very good by international standards—is still quite complicated. If you want choose between two products for health reasons, you need to spend a considerable amount to time looking at the two labels, and even then it is difficult to tell which is better unless you know exactly how much salt, fat or sugar you are supposed to eat each day

Running an agency

7 Habits of a Highly Successful Freelance Web Designer

I've had a few people contact me recently, asking how to make it as a freelance web designer. Rather than answer everybody individually, I thought I'd post my thoughts online. So in my best impression of a self help book, here are my 7 habits of a highly successful freelance web designer.

Design Practice

TheTrainLine Usability Problems

About 6 months ago I was running a workshop in the north of England and wanted to buy a return train ticket. I tried to book tickets using thetrainline.com but it was such a nightmare I swore never to use them again. Sadly I didn't learn from my mistakes and 6 months later I'm back at their site desperate to part with my money and being thwarted at every turn.

Speaking & Events

Public Speaking Tips

I got an email from a friend a couple of days ago asking for advice about public speaking. Now I'm no Jeremy Keith expert, but I have spoken at a few conferences recently, and have a "couple":http://www.webjamsession.com/ "more":http://www.refreshorlando.com/ lined up in the next few months. Rather than reply by email, I thought it may be useful to post my thought online, just incase any of you have to give a speak or presentation.

Running an agency

Creative pitches are toxic

In a recent survey of design agencies, the BDI calculated that unpaid creative pitches cost UK agencies an average of £38,000 per year. This may sound reasonable for a large agency with plenty of resources, especially if they are going after large projects. However over half of the design agencies in the UK employ less than five people, and £38,000 is a lot of money for a small agency. I’ve long held the belief that creative pitches are toxic, and unpaid creative pitches doubly so. This view is upheld by a number of professional design associations that actively ban their members from engaging in unpaid creative. Creative pitches are bad for the client, bad for the designer and bad for the industry as a whole, and I’m going to explain why.

Design Practice

Accessibility Interview

I was recently interviewed for an article on accessibility in this month’s ".Net magazine":http://www.netmag.co.uk/. Here is what I had to say: 1: Why are so many sites still inaccessible? There is still a large amount of ambivalence regarding web accessibility, from both developers and clients. Many clients are either unaware that the disability discrimination act covers them, or simply don’t care. However, it is not really the clients fault. It is the responsibility of the web development profession to educate clients about their legal responsibilities and build accessibility into their projects, whether specified or not. Unfortunately, due to the increased commoditization of web design, budgets continue to fall and accessibility is often one of the first areas to be affected.