Designers, developers, project managers. Writers and editors. Information architects and usability specialists. People who make websites have been at it for more than a dozen years, yet almost nothing is known, statistically, about our profession. Who are we? Where do we live? What are our titles, our skills, our educational backgrounds? Where and with whom do we work? What do we earn? What do we value?
It’s time we learned the answers to these and other questions about web design. And nobody is better qualified than the readers of A List Apart to provide the answers. Participate in our first annual survey to increase knowledge of web design and boost respect for the profession. Selected participants, chosen by random drawing, will win one free ticket to An Event Apart event held in the continental U.S.; an Apple 30GB video iPod, an Event Apart jump drive, or a funky A List Apart T-shirt.1
Depending on how you answer it, the survey has up to 37 questions, nearly all of them multiple choice. A fluent English speaker should be able to complete the survey in ten minutes or less. Hosted by An Event Apart, the survey will remain open until 22 May, 2007. After we close it, we’ll slice and dice the data and present our findings here.
Think our survey sucks? Do we ask the wrong questions or omit important issues? Discuss the survey to help us make next year’s questions even better. (Note: the software that powers our survey generates id attributes that begin with numbers instead of letters, an XHTML no-no. Because of this behavior of the software, our survey currently does not validate. We’re working to resolve this problem.)
Hat tips: AIGA and The Information Architecture Institute
1 Winners will be selected by random drawing. Free attendance at An Event Apart, valued at U.S. $895, includes the two-day live event, plus breakfasts and luncheons, parties, and swag. Hotel accommodations and travel to and from the event, are not included. The 30GB video iPod (2.5-inch color video display, 4.8 ounces, 2.4 x 4.1 x .43 inches), presently a US $249.00 retail value, will be paid for by Happy Cog, publisher of A List Apart. Happy Cog will ship the iPod directly to the winner if he or she lives in the continental U.S.; otherwise, we will reimburse you for the purchase of a 30GB iPod from an Apple store in your country. International iPod winners will be reimbursed via PayPal; you must have a PayPal account to be reimbursed.
The suspense is killing me. Are you guys EVER going to post the results?
Come on guys, it’s been a month since the last promise, we’re dying of curiosity here!
Seriously, its been quite some time. Is there any progress?
Did something go wrong?
I too cannot wait!
Is everything ok? Need help? I’m really curious about the results and hoping that they aren’t too out of date when we see them.
The data will be becoming redundant soon it seems. I sure hope this wasn’t a data mining exercise.
Just seen Zeldman has announced they will be publishing the results today! Hooray for my sense of timing… :/
This message has been appeared.
The web design survey is now closed.
What’s next???
I like it
Noticed a typo on question 24. $10,000-$19,9999 has an extra 9. Thanks Don.
Matt Cutts from Google has included in his blogs that he intends to penalise websites that are “˜over optimised’ on back links, directory listings and inappropriate article submissions. I have kept my ears close to the ground on this issue and lately I have been reading a few horrific stories of the outcome. I don’t want to alarm or scaremonger but you will need to go out and find the facts for yourself and consider how it could impact on you if you are a website owner.
The uncertainty at the moment is felt by all — whether web owners have participated in Good organic link building or even SEO Companies who have built up good portfolio’s and used proper “˜White Hat’ methods, nobody knows the outcome of the Google Algorithms. If you have access to Google analytics for your website all you can do is monitor the trends, the sad thing here is that there is no “˜system restore’ and if you have built up a number of poorly placed back links you will find it near impossible to have these removed. You Could ask your SEO specialist why your hits have dropped and ask what are they going to do about it.
I know a few who are just sitting back and praying!