LAUNCH: Store Design, a new zine
Today, I’m thrilled to announce a new text on how to get started with design for your store. It’s called Store Design, and it’s out now.
You are never “done” designing your store. There’s always new customer insights to gather, new things to fix, new issues to uncover. This is the most exciting part of design! Once you’re done fixing all the low-hanging fruit, that’s when your job gets really interesting.
At the same time, we’ve found that most people don’t know how to peel back these layers. They think design is just the surface layer of the store. Maybe more sophisticated store owners think design is the layout of the buy box, or the placement & treatment of upsells.
We take a more expansive view of design – because after a decade of hands-on experience, we’ve come to realize that “design” is often the right answer to the question. Store Design gets you in the right mindset – by redefining what you think “design” is, making the case for a clear design process in any store, and providing some clear next steps for you to take.
We believe in this work so firmly that if you’re a store owner or brand operator, you can grab a copy of Store Design for free. For the rest of you, we’re selling it for the cost of the paper & toner. We want as many copies to get into hands as possible.
Get your copy of Store Design today.
This week, for paid members
- Our latest fortnightly teardown is for water-adjacent beverage brand Plink. Look at that page. It is like staring into the center of the sun. If you want 20 minutes of sheer poetry, become a member & tune in.
- Our design of the week discusses an unbranded brand opportunity, from a pretty big retailer. What can we learn from their approach to photography?
- And our latest weekly paid lesson talks about alternatives to the traditional home page masthead. People are pushing the boundaries of possibility here! Is it a good idea?
Want in? Join us now – now named one of the best ecommerce communities going on the web.
Links & analysis
- This article is making the rounds, and if you’ve been reading our letters for any period of time, you probably know our stance on it. Underneath it is the belief that design is somehow anticapitalist, that designers shouldn’t collaborate with developers to make anything implementable, or that design shouldn’t be concerned with business metrics. Design exists to serve business. It does not exist in a vacuum. Full stop. I don’t think that means design will become monocultural or monotonic, as the author implies. I do think that design is playing it too safe, which to me is the more interesting issue. What is the relationship between design & business risk? In what ways can we confidently make high-risk decisions within the design process? When are high-risk decisions necessary in the design process? The author fails to explore how design must be built in right relationship to the complex needs of other human beings. Design serves business for a reason. Designers work with developers for a reason. You’re more than welcome to disengage, but keep in mind that doing so is often a dangerous power play that risks undermining our credibility and damaging the potential power of our profession.
- How to create living architecture in the style of Christopher Alexander, one of our biggest influences here at Draft.
- Service design doesn’t often come up in these parts, but this piece on service typologies can be useful for understanding long-term customer relationships.
- Updated iOS interface patterns for Figma. Useful for those who prototype on mobile, which should be… all of you.
This week’s paid lesson: What are the most common alternatives to home page masthead banners?
This week’s lesson is for paid members. Sign into our community to read it, or join us today to get access.