Why every startup needs a designer in the team from day one

Startups move fast, and teams need to build products quickly. One big difference between startups that succeed and those that struggle is having a full-time designer. Too many startups, even ones that have raised millions, don’t have a designer on their team. This creates big problems when building products.

The problem with not having a designer in the loop

Product ideas stay unclear

Without a designer, teams have a hard time turning ideas into something real. Engineers and product managers talk about features, but without visuals, it’s hard to get on the same page. This leads to confusing discussions, bad decisions, and wasted time. A designer can quickly turn ideas into clear visuals so the team knows what they are building before they start coding.

The alternative? Engineers, founders, or other team members design. While it might seem that drawing UI is as easy as putting together buttons and text on the page, the reality is much more complex. A good UI is the result of a combination of skills such as information architecture, user research, UX design, interaction design, and copywriting. It’s very unlinkely that an untrained individual can achieve the same results as an experienced designer.

A common misconception in startups is they can get away with not having a designer at first until they find product-market fit, build a client base, or raise enough money. The reality is all that hinges on having a great product, which can most likely only be achieved by working with a good designer.

Testing doesn’t give clear results

A/B tests are often used a panacea for lack of user research, product strategy, or poor execution. Startups run tests to improve their products, but if users don’t understand a new feature, the test results don’t mean much. Sometimes users don’t even notice a feature exists. Other times, they misunderstand how it works. This makes it hard to know if an idea is good or bad. A designer makes sure features are easy to find and simple to use so tests give useful, conclusive data.

No one is in charge of the user experience

Without a designer, products are likely to end up feeling messy and confusing. Why? because other team members don’t focus soley on design. The result? Features get added, but they don’t always fit together well. Over time, the product becomes harder and harder to use, building up both tech and design debt. The design ends up looking inconsistent, with different behaviours and wording that ends up creating a lot of confusion. A designer makes sure everything feels connected, coherent, and intuitive.

What designers actually do (spoiler–it’s more than making things look nice)

Some people think designers only focus on visuals. While that’s an important part of it, good designers do much more. In the words of the late Steve Jobs: ‘People think [design is] this veneer – that the designers are handed this box and told, ‘Make it look good!’ That’s not what we think design is. It’s not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.”.  Designers define the way users move through the product, how things work, write clear instructions, and help facilitate the workflows and results users are after. A designer’s job is to make the product simple, clear, and enjoyable to use. The “looking nice” part has to do with making the experience “enjoyable” but as you can see, that’s just a small slice.

When a CEO is the designer (and why that doesn’t last)

Some startup founders are good at design and handle it themselves. In fact, designers make great founders. Airbnb, Linear or Figma are great examples of that. However, while that can work in the early days, as the company grows, it’s too much for one person to handle, as founders have many other important responsibilities . Without a dedicated designer, startups build up “design debt” – a messy product that becomes harder and costlier to fix over time.

Products succeed or fail based on their design

Users don’t see the meetings, plans, or tool stacks behind a product. They only see what’s on the screen. If no one is focused on designing that experience, the product will suffer.

The takeaway? Design isn’t just about looks. It’s about making products clear, easy to use, and effective. The best startups are testament to this - they invest in design early, and it shows in their products. If you don’t have a full-time designer, your startup is at a disadvantage, and in today’s competitive landscape, in many cases, that means failure.