Screw design and get data, says Ben Huh of I Can Has Cheezburger

So this article really emphasizes how little Ben actually understands what design is. "But good product isn’t pretty: Good product is product that works for users and works for the company." I don't know how many times in my comment history I've said it; but design is not "pretty". Design is functionality merged with simplicity.

He cites Craigslist, which we've talked about all too often here. Their lack of a better design was acceptable at a time when technology didn't allow for it and when people didn't expect or know what good design was. The entire Padmapper debacle was because they did Craigslist better than Craigslist. Then eBay. We had a discussion about this recently too - the UX is terrible and the search - which should be their #1 tool - is even worse.

Now with Amazon, they're one of those sites where the necessity to keep the design dry for the sake of usability is integral to the business. Even still, they've nailed their UX down so that you've only really got to use two or three functions of the site to get where you need to go and then some.

Then he really loses me when he says that this is painfully clear because people buy Ford Focuses instead of Ferrari's. I really don't even need to touch this one and I'm not even sure why he shot himself in the foot like that. The comments on VentureBeat do a good job of picking him apart there.

As an aside, I don't think I've been to that site in years, and I'm not exactly sure who does - is it below the ranks of 9GAG and FunnyJunk?

Actually now that I think about it, I once had a recruitment agency tell me that "that Cheez-.. what is it - 'I have a cheeseburger?' .. 'Can I have a cheeseburger?' site is constantly hiring our designers" and "maybe we should check with them." I laughed on my way out. When your talent agency can't even remember your name, maybe design (as branding) is something you should care about.

Good design/product by definition (for the web at least) is the melding of fantastic graphic design with the needs of your business and users. These are not mutually exclusive pieces, they all have an effect on your bottom line. His statement seems very short sighted to me.