I frequently read Seth Godin's blog. I have read and own most of his books. I resepect his passion and industry knowledge. However, there have been times when his statements and advice - in my opinion - are erroneous. My intention in this post is to delve deeper into a particular topic, not discredit Seth in any way.
Today, Seth posted a "top-ten list" of advice for creating a great website. Most points are general statements and for the most part I would agree with them. However, one emphatic point he makes is misleading and should be removed from the list:
1. Fire the committee. No great website in history has been conceived of by more than three people. Not one. This is a dealbreaker.
Any website supporting the open source philosophy goes against this thought. If two heads are better than one, what about 200?
This was the philosophy behind the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's latest web redesign. A network of qualified designers and developers created the new site, and they continue to enhance on a daily basis. There are over 200 members of this "committee" and and the website has garnered national attention.
In fact, next week I will be joined by four members of this committee in presenting our accomplishments at the HighEdWebDev conference in Rochester, NY.
Embrace the committee; the more qualified designers and developers working toward a common goal, the better. Find your developers on campus, get them in a room together and outline your vision. Those who want to be part of your goal should be tapped to help with a redesign. Empower them; you will find this non-paid committee will produce a far better outcome than a hired designer (especially at the price).
