Design vs. Readability: Understanding the Difference
Everyone is creating content right now.
With design tools more accessible than ever, there’s a bigger emphasis on making content visually engaging, but sometimes readability gets overlooked in the process.
In my role at Haj Media, I’m constantly reviewing materials—decks, social graphics, one-pagers, and websites. And honestly, most of the issues I come across aren’t what’s being said, but how it’s being presented.
Readability is the relationship between text and design—how size, hierarchy, layout, color, and contrast work together to help someone easily process information. When that relationship works, the design enhances the message and draws people into the content. When it doesn’t, the design competes with the words, creating a distraction and making the content harder to understand.
Common issues I come across include:
- Not enough contrast between text and background
- Pages that feel too crowded
- Design elements that are too bold
- No clear hierarchy in the text
- Just too much information trying to fit into one space
These issues are common because design is often approached as a way to stand out, rather than a way to communicate. There’s pressure to make things eye-catching, especially in a crowded market, but that often leads to overdoing it. Many people focus on how something looks at first glance rather than how it actually reads.
The audiences we’re trying to reach—journalists, customers, executives, or potential partners are not sitting down to study your design. They’re scanning and looking for key points. They’re deciding within seconds whether something is worth their time. If the design slows them down or distracts them from the message, you’ve probably already lost them.
A good design shouldn’t compete with the content; it should make it easier to follow. That usually means having a clear focal point, using hierarchy to guide the reader, and not being afraid of white space. It also means being intentional with color and layout, so your eye moves through the page in a way that makes sense.
A quick step back helps: can someone get the main message in five seconds, and where does your eye naturally land? If it’s not clear or focused on the text, the issue could be presentation, not content.
At the end of the day, the goal isn’t to impress people with design. It’s to make sure they understand the message. Good design supports the content. Great design makes it effortless to read.
Emily Hale is the Communications Manager at Haj Media.
