authority online

We’ve all seen designers apologise for tacking selfies onto work announcements to boost engagement; algorithms prioritize faces, not fonts. The more you perform, the more visible you become, and the more performance the system demands (ad infinitum).

Many “designer” influencers barely do, or show, any actual design work at all. Instead, they build credibility by performing proximity to design, like posting brand guidelines from major rebrands or reacting to industry news like a hovering art director. Online, it’s easy to look like an authority on design without making very much of it.