KISS Approach to Web Design

Our company name, Kiss Digital, refers to the frequently used design acronym, keep it simple stupid, although our web design variation is to keep it smart and simple.

We believe that to have a well-rounded website, the design and functionality should be kept to simple yet smart standards, thus we employ this famous philosophy.

The KISS acronym was originally coined by Kelly Johnson, a lead engineer at Lockheed Skunk Works who designed aviation aircraft including that of spy planes. Johnson first used the term when he challenged his team of design engineers to build a jet aircraft. He gave his team a handful of tools and said the aircraft must be repairable by an average mechanic in war-like conditions, with the tools provided, hence telling them to keep the design stupidly simple, as opposed to referring to people as stupid as many believe.

However, the ideology has been used by various other famous names in history, these include:

Albert Einstein:
    “everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler.”

Leonardo da Vinci:
    “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”

And Antoine de Saint Exupéry:
    "It seems that perfection is reached not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."

The KISS principle is applicable to our business from the word go. The first stage of designing a website starts with project management, which involves planning, management and development.

The advantage of Kiss Digital is we have a small team, which means we have one project manager who is dedicated to the whole web design process from start to finish.
The project manager will design a simple scope with an effective project plan. Tasks are divided into smaller, manageable teams who will complete your work on time and on budget (assuming your business has no changes or additions to make to the website in development).

The KISS principle also applies to some of the most vital stages of web design and functionality. We believe these areas should be sleek and easy-to-understand from both the front and back end of any website we create. Thus we make it easier for clients to update their own websites, and for visitors to access the information they seek. Examples of project stages where we employ the KISS acronym include the design, navigation, search engine optimisation (SEO) and content management system (CMS).

Design – Keeping a website smart and simple plays a huge role in the design phase, especially with colour scheme, typeface and layout. While most people may think that an over-the-top graphics website will entice their visitors – they would be sadly disappointed.

Websites that use loud colours, graphics, music or “intro” and “enter” pages are seen to be off-putting. Studies have shown that a visitor entering a website will more-often-than-not immediately leave a website and fail to return if you surprise them with unexpected visuals, sounds and graphics.

The KISS ideology that we follow in this instance is to use the colour scheme currently used by your company or a colour scheme that suits your business or industry. We would then use these colours as a backdrop for your website, and if the colours clash, then we will integrate them subtly to ensure they look professional and aren’t off-putting. We also avoid using Flash as this is something that some will not have installed on their computer and that some cannot access, therefore, limiting the amount of visitors to your website.

Text placement and typeface also plays a big role in the design phase of a website, as this determines how information is interpreted and understood by visitors. The use of uncluttered bold headings, subheadings and bullet points are a great way to make information legible and easy-to-follow.

We believe a simple design is an elegant, sophisticated one, which is ultimately easier to maintain for the owner and easier to use for the users.

Navigation- Navigation and call-to-action buttons are also crucial for a website to be running at its peak. Although many clients want their website to differ from their competition and to have a point-of-difference, the navigation should always remain the same. Users find it difficult and frustrating to use a website that is unfamiliar. For example – company logos are commonly planted in the top left hand corner of a webpage – these logos also double as a home button. If this common navigation practice is ignored, then it can throw users off and make them become disinterested.

A call-to-action is generally the reason that any business has a website. Visitors may be looking for a quote, to view your services or to simply get in touch. This information should be clearly stated or linked from the homepage, or otherwise in a relevant position - possibly under an obvious menu heading.

Simplicity is the key to success - never try to overcomplicate navigation.

Search Engine Optimization - SEO (definition) is the latest buzz word in the world of web design and if you are having your website developed, then you will want to ensure that this is a high priority.

Content and SEO is also crucial to the KISS Philosophy – if you want your target audience to visit your website, then your content should be relevant and be applicable to the services they are trying to find. Therefore – if someone in your target market visits your website, then they should have found keywords and a call-to-action within a few clicks of their visit.

So when we arrive at the content side of a website, we look to include prominent and relevant content that simply sums up your business and services. We look to utilize keywords that users will type in to a search engine when searching for your products or services.
Relevance is key to SEO, so complex language or too much text will often work against your website in any search engine rankings.

Content Management System - A CMS is designed to allow non-technical users to log on to their website and update it whenever they need.

Simplicity is at an all-time high when implementing this feature and it’s very similar to the Kelly Johnson example. When creating a website, it is up to our team to design the website around a CMS that that will match the workflow of your business.

We strive to customise a CMS system that is easy-to-update with little to no technical lingo which will be easier for you to maintain the long run.
This ensures your website is never behind the eight-ball, and easily updated when updates are necessary.

Websites are at their best if they are clean, sleek and simple, once again referring to the ever-present message of our company mantra, keeping it smart and simple.