Had a look at your website lately? Did that sentence make you wince? We reviewed a few hundred sites lately as part of a project we’re working on and it was like staring into a centrifuge – elements separate quickly, with the juicy bits ascending and the rest settling into a sticky mess at the bottom of the test tube.
The exercise vividly reminded us that websites are the quintessential moving target. Yesterday’s site-of-the-day is today’s vaguely embarrassing pastiche. We think we’re in the logical realm of market research and application development only to discover we’ve become fashion victims yet again.
So what did our deep dive into the state of web design reveal? In the words of one of our all time favorite creative types: “Forget everything you know. But don’t forget what you know.” That is to say, while today’s best sites eschew showy flash pyrotechnics, turn away from the web’s propensity to go deep, and play fast and loose with interface and usability, they do happily demonstrate that old chestnut, Show, don’t tell.
The designs we loved best, though varied, skew toward clean and modern. Some go the extra step of adding high-end but not in-your-face programming touches and/or sound design. But more then that, they make frequent, natural, and relevant use of today’s most important and impactful online tools–blogging, social media, video. They are not just talking about the brand or the experience at hand, they’re living it. They are 100% digital native, 0% wannabe.
Here are a few examples of our favorite agency self-promotion sites for your viewing pleasure…
Barbarian Group http://www.barbariangroup.com
How does this show, rather than tell? (1) It demos an array of of-the-moment web tools, (2) It positions the Barbarians as thinkers, (3) It’s beautifully contrarian.
Crispin Porter & Bogusky http://www.cpbgroup.com
Low key site from the current kings of agency creativity demonstrates its kind of “big idea” thinkng with a very simply touted intern auction. Remember, one doesn’t always have to shout.
Mother http://www.mothernewyork.com
Minimalist design still manages to say “hip,” while great use of multiple videos shows off creative mindset.
Razorfish http://www.razorfish.com
Clever interface shows stylized vid-cam views of agency offices around the world while the tech wizardry required to make it all work remains invisible.
Venebles Bell & Partners http://www.venablesbell.com
Video/Blog interface, modern/minimal design, damn funny Intel ad.
|
