WEB DESIGN IS a lot more than copying and pasting information on a page on the internet. It is a balance between marketing, design, usability and technology, a balance many Hong Kong companies find hard to get right, according to veteran Web consultant Daniel Szuc.
'Many firms develop websites without a true understanding of customer needs,' he said. 'Often, designers are pushed to create a site based on what management and stakeholders want. But rarely do they create a positive user experience. I call it designing in a bubble.'
Mr Szuc is the principal usability consultant at Apogee Usability Asia, a company that has helped firms such as Cathay Pacific, eBay and HSBC to improve their websites.
However, the market had matured and there were signs that designers were thinking more about customer needs, he said. Web designs were looking more polished and sophisticated than they did five years ago, he added.
Most of Apogee's clients were multinationals or large Hong Kong firms.
Wilson Wong Ka-wo, managing director of internet solutions firm Apac Interactive, noted a lack of understanding of the value of the Web among small and medium-sized enterprises.