The Problem With Lorem Ipsum

Lorem Ipsum has come under scrutiny recently, with some claiming that Lorem Ipsum is Killing Your Designs while others are In Defense of Lorem Ipsum. But what’s all the hoo-ha about? Should we actually be reconsidering using Lorem Ipsum web design?

The Origins of Lorem Ipsum

Lorem Ipsum is the name given to latin dummy text, usually starting with the phrase ‘Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit…’ . Traditionally it is used by the printing and typesetting industry, and has its roots as far back as the 1500s. It was popularised in the 1960s and is most commonly used in the print industry. For example in the print industry, a magazine layout may need to be created by a designer to accommodate a 500 word article which is still in progress by the writer. In this situation the designer can use 500 words of Lorem Ipsum as placeholder text until the final copy is ready. Lorem Ipsum has also made its way into modern web design, it is often used by designers to fill otherwise empty space in a design concept when there is no actual content yet. Lorem Ipsum is chosen over other forms of dummy text because it is essentially unreadable. It allows a client or group of clients reviewing a design concept to focus solely on the layout rather than reading through the text.

So, What’s the Problem?

You’ve probably heard the phrase ‘Content is King’. On the web this phrase is more relevant than ever, flashy graphics and expensive marketing will only get your website so far. On the web users want content first and foremost. Just think about how popular the Google search engine is, the reason for its popularity is down to it’s ability to find the information you are looking for based on a text search. Yes it can also search for images, video, places etc. but it is all just a way of finding content, and content is exactly what we all want when browsing the web. This obviously doesn’t mean that design isn’t important, but design should always accommodate the content, not the other way around. The text on a web page should always be easily legible, and there should be obvious hierarchy. Design choices such as colours, typography, spacing and layout should all be relevant to the content. These are basic principles of design. But without content how can these decisions be made?

How To Avoid Using Lorem Ipsum

The Obvious way to avoid using dummy text is to get the real content. Even if it is only a rough draft, it will be much more relevant than Lorem Ipsum. Usually if the client has this information they will be very forthcoming in letting you know. As a designer, it is your responsibility to at least explain to the client why having real content to work with will assist your process and allow you make more relevant decisions and ultimately create a better product. In many cases, there simply won’t be any content prepared. In this sort of situation you can ask for existing material which may have relevant content. Think promotional materials such as leaflets, brochures, or existing websites. Unless you have arranged it with the client beforehand you are not being paid to write copy, but you can take some artistic license and dissect existing material to create something more relevant to the design that you are working on.

When to Say No to Lorem Ipsum

All projects are different, and all clients are unique. But there are some areas where using dummy text is an absolute no go. Major headlines, leading paragraphs and interface elements such as menus and buttons should always be designed with the real content. Static websites (yes they do still exist) are a big no no too. Static websites usually exist in the form of small scale business websites, product landing pages and the like. On this sort of project the copy is more important than ever because there is (usually) less of it, and it is (usually) left untouched for long periods of time.

When it’s Okay to use Lorem Ipsum

On the other hand there are times when using Lorem Ipsum makes sense. Large scale websites can have hundreds of pages with unique copy. To mock-up each of these pages in Photoshop with the actual content would be completely unnecessary. It would make much more sense to create a ‘template’ concept for pages with similar content and fill it with dummy text. The majority of websites created today use a content management system (CMS) of some sort. This puts the content solely in the hands of the client, the copy can be tweaked or completely re-written at any point. In this instance I believe Lorem Ipsum should still be avoided if possible. But it is forgivable to use dummy text for large blocks of what will be freely editable text.

Conclusion

Is Lorem Ipsum evil? No. Does it serve a purpose? Yes. Is it misused? Sometimes. How do you feel about using Lorem Ipsum in your design concepts? We’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback (especially if you have amusing stories about your client’s reactions when they first saw Lorem Ipsum)!