About a week ago, Twitter member @markfbonner sent me a link to this TED talk about design and the way it impacts how readers interact with print newspapers. Designer Jacek Utko, a Polish newspaper designer who created award-winning redesigns for newspapers in Eastern Europe, says, “In the long run, there is no practical reason for newspapers to survive. So what can you do?” He thinks design is the saving grace.
According to Utko, newspapers are essentially boring. Okay, newspapers aren’t really supposed to be exciting, but in an age when consumers have short attention spans, maybe we have to do more to entertain and entice them.
(Pictured at left: Newspapers re-imagined, by danie;)
Do we even know how to capture the attention of the average reader? Sure, Utko’s newspapers have won awards, but is sharp design really the way to motivate people to buy newspapers?
When thinking about the Too Shy to Stop redesign last fall, I decided that design was a top priority. I knew that layout wouldn’t be the only reason that people would visit our website, but I wanted a clean look to complement our clear and compelling writing. Each element of a publication has to work together to create an appealing final product.
Roby Fitzhenry of Always Creative, the design company that created the layout for Too Shy to Stop, said, “Designing for an online magazine was fun but a bit challenging. Unlike print-based magazines and newspapers, designing for the web means that the content needs to easily flow into a flexible grid while maintaining readability and visual interest. Consistency, usability, and the brand’s overall identity and voice were my top focuses while redesigning Too Shy to Stop.”
In redesigning his newspapers, Utko could experiment with bold graphics and intricate two-page spreads. However, designing for online doesn’t allow for as much experimentation because consumers just want something that’s easy to read on a glowing screen.
(Pictured at right: Design for an art museum?, by √oхέƒx™)
Martin Langevald, of the Neiman Journalism Lab, thinks that design is not the only thing attracting an audience to an online publication. For him, connecting with the audience is more important than impressing readers with design. He writes, “…the world revolves around us, the editors and publishers. As it ever did, in print newsrooms. Let’s lose that model.” Writers and creative professionals (Utko and myself included) spend so much time trying to impress one another that they forget who they are creating for!
This does not mean that we should forget about design. Publications, whether online or in print, just have to be real, accessible, unique, straightforward, and memorable. These characteristics may not qualify a newspaper page for wall space at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, but they will keep consumers interested and engaged.
