"Failure" comes in many flavors, and web design firms' failures certainly follow suit. The days of putting up a flashy website with lots of cool bells and whistles, and then waiting for the sales to come rolling in, are long gone. In fact, that approach to digital marketing arguably ended a decade ago. Even less flashy, template-driven web development that has depended upon formulaic interface design is also proving to be a failed approach. But even greater still is the failure of web design firms to respond to the real needs of their clients, i.e. to provide measurable, content-rich inbound customer experiences that attract and convert visitors to paying customers and raving fans.
In his new book, Didn’t See It Coming, tree-hugging brand guru Marc Stoiber gives us another dose of what, since 1970, has been called “future shock”—it’s essentially change or die. “So is there a secret ingredient?” Stoiber ponders of companies that are doing quite well in the post-global financial crisis world. He submits that it is their "willingness to try, try again. Fail forward, learning every time you strike out.”
There are two big changes underfoot for companies who make their living building websites. First, the proliferation of user-friendly, do-it-yourself platforms like WordPress and Wix, and second, the rise of marketing automation and analytics that expose what's working and what's not.
Face it, websites are much easier to build than they were ten years ago. As creative firm consultant Blair Enns recently wrote: “A functionality that might have cost a client $50,000–$100,000 to build three years ago is now a $19-a-month plugin.” The good news is that there is plenty of opportunity in providing the kinds of expertise needed to build websites that deliver positive, measurable results.
No agency involved in developing websites can afford to remain static. More and more web designers are entering into the marketplace at a faster and faster pace. In fact, there are reported 125,000 “web design” related businesses in the United States, with around 222,000 employees... less than two employees per design firm. Thus, large web design firms are struggling, in part because these market forces are driving down the high prices the larger firms have commanded, and in part because of these organization's unwillingness or inability to change—change fast and change often. Many of these firms, who have done well cranking out hundreds of websites each year, are now finding that it takes more than a nice looking design with drop-down menus and a contact form to produce the kinds of results their clients need and expect to see.
The agencies that will survive and remain vital in this dynamic environment would do well to consider these top five tips:
- Remain inspired. Have a well-defined philosophy and culture that keeps design teams motivated.
- Remain innovative. Change is the driving force behind this evolving industry. As Enns wrote in a recent blog, ReCourses’ David C. Baker once told an audience of design firm owners to reinvent their businesses every 18 months.
- Remain unique. Greg Storey, writing for Medium.com, elaborating on the future of web design companies, believes specialization and differentiation will be a key factor to longevity.
- Remain collaborative. The necessity to specialize and differentiate underscores the need to collaborate. Be prepared to partner up with other agencies on projects.
- Remain focused on UX. User experience is a constantly evolving field, and anyone doing things the same way year after year is losing ground.
Web design firms that are committed to bringing real value to their clients by producing amazing, measurable inbound customer experiences will thrive. Those that don't, provide just one more example of why web design firms are failing.
