I’ve often heard software/start-up folks say they need a “designer.” Few realize how hopelessly vague this is. I think there are at least four different (unrelated) start-up “design” skills that are rarely all found in one person.
Four types of “designers” for software start-ups:
1) 
Artist Designers (a.k.a., Graphic Designers)
They usually know Adobe Illustrator, can draw by hand beautifully (and perhaps also animate), and often have gone to art school. If you want custom art, logos, or illustrations, they are the right choice.
2) 
Programmer Designers (a.k.a., Frontend Engineers)
They know CSS and HTML (and sometimes JavaScript, which is especially likely when they are called a “frontend engineer”). If you want a basic website created or you want the HTML/CSS of a web interface coded (that can then be passed to an engineering team to integrate into a product), they are the right choice.
3) 
Interface Designers (a.k.a., UI/UX Designers)
They usually know prototyping tools like Figma and are good at making mockups/designs for beautiful interfaces. They think about button placement, spacing, colors, fonts, etc. If you’re planning what your iOS app should look like, they’re the right choice.
4) 
Experience Designers (a.k.a., Product Designers)
They’re skilled at interviewing users and thinking about user stories/psychology/the problems a product is trying to solve. They produce suggestions for UI layout and features. If you need to find ways to improve a product, they’re the right choice.
As mentioned, it’s rare to find one person skilled in all four of these “design” domains (most good designers are good at just one or two of these, or in really rare cases, they’ll have three of the four skills). So if you think you need a designer, it’s really helpful to think more about what you REALLY mean by “designer” so that you hire the right person.
Thanks to Vaidehi for suggesting an alternative, fairly common name for each of these types of designers!
This piece was first written on May 17, 2023, and first appeared on this site on May 21, 2023.
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