What a Good Website Is

A good website doesn't feel like a website.

The best digital experiences we've designed aren't remembered for their interfaces. They're remembered for how they made someone feel, or what they enabled someone to do. The design became invisible because it was right.

Here's what that actually means:

Speed is a feature. Every millisecond of load time is a decision about respect. If your site takes four seconds to load, you've already said everything about your brand values.

Friction is intentional. Good websites don't eliminate all friction. They eliminate meaningless friction. A health platform that makes booking an appointment too easy might miss critical intake questions. The art is knowing which obstacles serve the user.

Motion has purpose. Animation isn't decoration. It directs attention, provides feedback, and creates spatial understanding. If you can remove an animation without losing clarity, it shouldn't exist.

Accessibility is non-negotiable. If someone can't use your website, you don't have a design problem. You have a values problem. Full stop.

The websites that win awards aren't always good websites. But good websites always win users.

That's the only metric that matters.