These days, it’s almost impossible to see a business that
does not have a website. Even small businesses have taken to the
Internet to find more customers and create an online presence. The
problem is, with so many companies creating their own websites, yours
can get lost in the shuffle. Luckily, a great web design can make a big
difference. Here are five web design trends that could help increase
your web traffic.
Scrolling
Scrolling is a convenient method for traversing a website. Instead of
navigating through confusing menus and drop-down tabs, a scrolling
one-page site has a cleaner look and is usually more intuitive for the
user. This web design style is definitely more important today, now that
people have grown more accustomed to mobile web browsing.
You also have to decide how far visitors will have to scroll to get
to know your company. While a long scrolling page gives you more white
space and content to work with, a short scrolling page can quickly
convey your company’s message and encourages call to actions. The next
time you revamp your company website, consider the appropriate scrolling
element for your page.
Flat design
To achieve an optimal viewing experience for users, many companies
adopted a flat design for their websites. The flat design style replaces
the elements that gives an illusion of depth, like shadows and
textures, with minimalist typography and colors. For example, Google
employed this style to get content to viewers more efficiently. The
company added flat design colors and used a sans-serif font. This
allowed the logo to load faster and made it was easier to read as well.
Animations
One way businesses have been setting themselves apart from others is
by including customized animations to their pages. Now this doesn’t mean
you should overload your site with flashy effects that take forever to
load. If you want to use animations on your site, give it a subtle
twist. For instance, Slack’s loading animation features their logo.
Additionally, animations can be used to increase user interaction and
engagement. Hover animations will allow your users to mouse over your
content and get an immediate response without having to move between
pages. Slideshows on your homepage can also showcase what your company
is about without throwing too much information at the audience. When
deciding to add an animation to your page, figure out how a specific
effect can enhance the user experience while showcasing your business.
Full-screen forms
More websites and apps are using full-screen forms to increase user
interaction. Rather than being redirected to another page when your
visitors decide to register or login to a website, you are welcomed by a
full-screen form without leaving the home page. This is also especially
useful for mobile users since they are less likely to misclick sections
of the form.
Customized photos
The next time you want to use photographs to highlight your company,
forget about using stock photos. Businesses who exhibit their own
photography on their homepages look more personal and stand out from the
competition.
While these trends are popular at the moment, don’t blindly adopt
them all because it will end up looking very messy. The best way to
approach these web design trends is by making sure that the design fits
your target audience. You won’t exactly have mouse over animations for a
website that doesn’t have very many images. Use the trends that are
best for your company.
If you want to learn more about current web design trends, give us a call.
