Book
Systems Before Screens
A short book on designing digital products as systems: content model, templates, workflow and maintenance, before any visual work begins.
Most digital projects fail after launch, not before it. This book argues that the cause is almost always decided before the first screen is designed: in the content model, the template structure and the workflow that will maintain the thing.
What it covers
- Why the content inventory should precede the mood board
- Designing a content model that survives the second year
- Templates as a maintenance decision, not a design decision
- Handover: designing for the person who inherits the project
Written for designers and consultants who produce websites for clients who will maintain them without help.