Interview with Alexander Engzell, founder of EngzellDesign in Sweden

Today we have the pleasure of interviewing Alexander Engzell, founder of EngzellDesign in Sweden.

Tradonline: Hello Alexander and thank you for agreeing to talk to us today. To start, as usual, a few words to introduce yourself to our readers?

Engzell: Alexander Engzell, born and raised in Sweden. I’m the founder / Senior Graphic Designer of EngzellDesign which I started at the age of 18.

Tradonline: Let’s talk first about you, and your work. Please tell us about your business EngzellDesign and your industry.

Engzell: I started EngzellDesign from a garage; well the garage had been remodeled to an office (but it puts you in the same category as Bill Gates and Steve Jobs when they started especially when you are a dropout from college). My mother needed a website so I bought a few books and started to learn HTML and CSS. After a while one of my mother friends saw the website and wondered if I could do one for her as well – that’s when I realized I could start to make some money on this – one thing led to another and now we have worked with supermodels, hotels, construction companies, real estate companies and so forth. I find myself very fortunate to have found my dream job at such a young age.

Tradonline: What are the secrets to a well designed Website?

Engzell: An unlimited supply of coffee! No I’m just kidding; well that’s like asking “What’s the secret to a great painting?” it’s a form of art to design a website. Of course we must take a few key things in consideration when designing – focus on a user-friendly website where visitors can find what they seek, while using a clear design, try to work from the perspective of the user and last but not least think outside the box.

Tradonline: How do you promote your activities at the current time?

Engzell: I don’t anymore – I rely on former customers to promote us. That’s why it’s important to maintain a good relationship with your customers and be honest, because with a bad reputation you won’t survive in this industry. 

Tradonline: What is your involvement in the international arena? What is your strategy to target markets abroad?

Engzell: At the moment we work with a worldwide customer base which of course is very exiting – We got introduced to the international market when an old friend of mine who is a good friend to the supermodel Georgianna Robertson asked me to do her website and since she is quite the name that leads to a more international range of customers.

Tradonline: How do you see the future of your industry?

Engzell: Flourishing…Since more and more companies realize that a good website and a top spot in Google is essential nowadays and there are 10,000 new domains registered every day, we web designers/developers have a lot of work to do. But also since the technology is developing so fast you’ll need to keep up with the new programming languages, programs and trends or you’ll not last.

Tradonline: Do you find that your industry has been hit by the down turn at all?

Engzell: Not at all – as a matter of fact I think the web design industry has earned a lot of money these days. Companies are cutting back on their marketing expenses in television and in the newspapers and since it’s so cheap (relative to television and newspapers) to advertise they have put their cut down marketing budget on a new website, SEO and a marketing campaign online instead.

Tradonline: We work at Trad Online in the translation industry, tell us your vision from outside the industry: what is your perception of translators, translation agencies, etc?

Engzell: I think that’s a great and contributing industry. When I learned English I was watching movies in English with Swedish subtitles then with English subtitles and eventually no subtitles at all – I think it’s a much faster and a better way of learning a language than the way they teach it in School – you will learn how to pronounce the different words and you can see how to spell the word at the same time. So I think you are much needed especially in the movie and game industry because that’s where the most children learn languages today, also for the old people who didn’t learn English in school back in days can watch international movies. But I do feel like the translation industry should step up their game in the web related industry – there are thousands of poorly translated websites out there that just have used Google translate.

Tradonline: Any tips about doing business in your country? (our readers are from all over the world). Any dos and dont's?

Engzell: Being able to identify the type of client you are dealing with will prepare you for the job ahead. It will also help you decide whether to accept the job in the first place. Your contract will reflect the power dynamics of the project, so the more you know about the client, the better able you will be to adjust the contract as necessary.

Tradonline: Now a few questions about another point of interest: blogging. What would you recommend to someone wishing to start a blog? Any tips on “good blogging”?

Engzell: Be creative, think outside the box – write about something that nobody else does (I want to poke my eyes out when I see a fashion blog), update often preferably 2-3 times a day and remember content is king on the net – good content = loads of visitors. 

Tradonline: What made you initially want to start blogging?

Engzell: I wanted to introduce Swedish and Scandinavian designs to the rest of the world and a lot of spare time I guess…

Tradonline: Last but not least, you are involved in the global sustainable development effort, and I would like to thank you for that. Can you tell me more about your activities with Marine Postitive and explain a bit what you do to fight against the climate change issue?

Engzell: Go Blue Too and Marine Positive were established with the primary objective of combating pollution of the world's waters. 95% of the planet's life-sustaining volume. The world's rivers, lakes and oceans are victims of climate change of course. And in so far as almost 50% of carbons are absorbed by the aquatic environment, they have a key role to play. Currently the excess carbons are too much to be absorbed and as a result bodies of water are acidifying and this inhibits the growth of calcified shells and destroys reefs.

The acquatrail, which is the aquatic equivalent of the carbon footprint in the air, also includes carbon emissions at sea. In so far as we aim to reduce the acquatrails, we are also aiming to reduce emissions. Our ultra-offset projects restore bodies of water to equilibrium and life-sustaining health.

Tradonline: Thanks very much Alexander and all the best to you!