Design Design Choice and Customer Engagement (1 Viewer)

[Matthew]

I grew up playing Nintendo 64 and Gameboy games. The graphics always left a lot to imagination but I had fun nonetheless. In fact, I didn’t consider the graphics until I became an adult. I’ve observed that my tolerance for graphics has continued to remain lower than some. For instance, I see a lot of people who refuse to play a game because the graphics aren’t top tier (ie, newer Pokemon games?).

In thinking about this, I began to consider the role of visual design from a webmaster lens. What balance must a webmaster strike when trying to engage site users with worthy content while also juggling design?

My question to you, the reader, is to consider and share what you’re “Must Haves,” “Cool to Haves,” and “Dealbreakers” are when deciding whether to join a forum. I’m not asking what you build into your own communities but what is needed to be a part of an outside community?

 

[Ravenfreak]

Honestly when it comes to video games, graphics don't make or break a game for me. Websites on the other hand is another thing. I look for gameplay, story, and music before I care about graphics with games. Websites to me should look appealing however, a good theme that fits the niche of the website is something I look for whenever visiting other people's websites and it's something I try to aim for when it comes to my own websites. When it comes to looking at new communities to join, I look mainly at layout, content, and the theme and this is how I determine if I'm going to join or not.

 

[CTS]

While content remains king, (partly for seo purposes), design is exceptionally important. I believe design should reflect the style of content and target market. It is an artistic adventure.

We have all visited forums where you look at it from esthetics, and it becomes hard to figure out what the forum is for. And sometimes its just a mess.

But personally (and I am no pro at it), I like to logoff and browse my site like a guest just looking at it. I can gain a better picture of how most all site visitors see, as just guests.

And I do like to go thru and perform slicing off clutter and unneeded redundant links that are everywhere. Guest traffic should have easy pointful navigation without having to wonder around the site by hitting links guests dont care about. I give members the full experience of course.

Thats why I also like to surf other forums. To see if I get their look and feel.