Reminder: There are $1M+ businesses with ugly websites.

When you sell websites, it’s easy to feel that every site you come across should be a good one — that every brand should indulge in a beautiful, wonderful (and expensive, wink) experience that wows customers.

Of course, I’m as much of a sucker as any for beautiful design. But, the massively overlooked aspect that so many designers seem to neglect: The ENTIRE POINT of a website is the content that’s on it. How it looks and makes people feel is a separate endeavor that comes secondary to function.

If the content, product, or message sucks… the whole website sucks.

There’s no amount of design savvy that can recover a rotten core value proposition. Of course, keep making beautiful websites if that's your job — I love to see them! Just make sure the foundational purpose is clear, healthy, and effective before slapping on a fancy coat of paint and calling it a win. Run far way when a zombie client comes looking for a design-based resurrection of their badly positioned business.

Ugly, but effective > Pretty, but broken