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<title>A Warning for New Designers: Avoid Dribbble</title>
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<h1 id="a-warning-for-new-designers-avoid-dribbble">A Warning for New Designers: Avoid Dribbble</h1>
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<p>2022-09-08</p>
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<p>Everyday a new designer begins their journey into the world of [<em>insert design industry here</em>] and it is magical! Having a fresh pair of eyes untainted from the current trends of the time can help improve design as a whole. Newbies can even teach new things to older, grumpier luddites (like yours truly). But over the years I&#8217;ve noticed a concerning trend among junior designers; <strong>they rely too heavily on Dribbble</strong>.</p>
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<p>Relying on Dribbble for minor inspiration is one thing. Referencing &#8220;shots&#8221; as justification for real-world design work? Not so much. I believe Dribbble shouldn&#8217;t be used for either of these use cases, but I can at least give a pass at browsing for basic inspiration (colors, padding, layout).</p>
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<p>Now, using concept shots to push for your own design decisions? That is a terrible idea. We &#8220;senior&#8221; designers need to step up and help newbies avoid this trap.</p>
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<h3 id="designing-for-other-designers">Designing for Other Designers</h3>
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<p>Dribbble is rarely a place for design feedback and discussion anymore. Hell, most people use it as a digital portfolio to share with prospective clients. Others use it like some form of &#8220;design Linkedin&#8221;, which has its own host of problems.</p>
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<p>Dribble is now (mainly) a place where designers post &#8220;work&#8221; for other designers. There <em>is</em> a small minority of users still looking for real, human feedback on their work - but they are a rarity.</p>
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<p>Take a look at the <a href="https://dribbble.com/shots/popular">popular shots</a> category at any give time. Most shots are promo pieces used to attract potential clients. Nearly all design concepts are impractical or simply impossible to create in a real-life setting. This is incredibly damaging to newcomers trying to learn &#8220;good&#8221; design practices. Dribbble shots simply ride the wave of the current trends, which doesn&#8217;t provide junior designers with a solid foundation or core understanding of design as a whole. It just causes them to endlessly chase the &#8220;latest and greatest&#8221; trend.</p>
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<p>Shot posters rarely go into the reasoning behind their design decisions. No research or iterations are shared to show the process. Instead it simply states &#8220;here is a cool website layout for a company that doesn&#8217;t exist&#8221;. Zero constraints or goals needed to be met. No discussion about how one version of their design didn&#8217;t perform as well when tested on real users. So of course it ends up looking <em>so cool and original</em> - <strong>it wasn&#8217;t designed in reality</strong>.</p>
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<h3 id="i-dont-have-all-the-answers---but-ill-try">I Don&#8217;t Have All the Answers - But I&#8217;ll Try</h3>
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<p>I am not the holy savior of <em>all things design</em>. I&#8217;m just a designer who has been around the block a few times. If new designers want to keep using Dribbble as their main source of guidance and think I should go kick rocks - that&#8217;s fine. I will. But for those with a little more passion for the profession, might I suggest some humble alternatives to get you on a more consistent path?</p>
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<ul>
<li>Read some good design books (to get you started):
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<ul>
<li><a href="https://sensible.com/dont-make-me-think/">Don&#8217;t Make Me Think - Revisited</a></li>
<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Design_of_Everyday_Things">The Design of Everyday Things</a></li>
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<li><a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Dieter-Rams-Less-But-Better/dp/3899555252">Less But Better</a></li>
</ul></li>
<li>Talk to <em>real</em> people
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<ul>
<li>Chat with your team&#8217;s marketers, customer support specialists, senior design leads, and developers about new features (they often have better insights than you)</li>
<li>Perform customer interviews early and often (they use your product or service - let them tell you what they want!)</li>
</ul></li>
<li>R ad through some quality UX reports and research
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<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.nngroup.com/">Nielsen Norman Group</a></li>
<li><a href="https://baymard.com/">Baymard Institute</a></li>
</ul></li>
<li>P y attention to real world design (good and bad)
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<ul>
<li>Grocery item designs, labels packaging</li>
<li>Vehicle analog and digital dashboards &#47; safety features</li>
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</ul></li>
<li>Your own experience (over time)</li>
</ul>
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<p>These are just my own suggestions to help new designers get a better foundation of core design concepts <em>before</em> falling down the Dribbble hole. Take it or leave it. I&#8217;m not your dad.</p>
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<p>Most designers who are pro-Dribbble will most likely write me off as a grumpy old man yelling at a cloud. That&#8217;s only half true. But if just one person reading this even <em>considers</em> avoiding Dribbble as a source for learning proper design - then it was worth it.</p>
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<p>Now if you will excuse me, there are many more clouds to yell at&#8230;</p>
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