[thesash]

Design is not just the way your product looks, it's how it works and how people interact with it. Unless you're building something without a user interface, design is a critical part of your product, and if you ignore it, you're setting yourself up for failure.

You don't need to have a degree from art school to be a designer, just like you dont need a CS degree to write code. You can learn the basic tenants of typography, grid systems, and usability on your own. Whether or not you hire a "designer," design thinking should be part of the process of product development from day one.