In the world of marketing, trends come and go so quickly that it is often hard to keep up. Of course, if you fall behind, you’ll send your potential customers directly to your competitors' doors. Perhaps no trend is more important than those related to web design. Why? Because internet users’ expectations and demands change rapidly, meaning your site’s user experience (UX) could quickly go from cool and trendy to outdated overnight.
So, how do you stay on top of web design trends to ensure you’re giving users what they want? To help you stay ahead of the game, we’ve compiled a guide to what’s trending in web design. But first, let’s cover the basics.
Why It’s Important to Keep Up With Web Design Trends
Web design is all about looking to the future. Today’s digital realm can utilize technology in brand-new ways, showcasing innovative animation, interaction, and overall immersion. If your site sports outdated layouts, styles, and features, you’ll diminish your brand’s credibility, which can be difficult to regain.
Keeping up with design trends means making small changes when necessary rather than diving into an extensive and expensive site makeover. The key: Don’t wait for your site to become wholly outdated. A little maintenance here and there goes a long way.
Pro tip: Users want to see innovative ideas from the brands they follow. What they don’t want are cookie-cutter basics that don’t have any creativity behind them.
Remember, your customers rely on your site to find useful and engaging information. When you present them with an updated website, you’ll build trust between your brand and site visitors. This, in turn, can help diminish bounce rates and boost your rankings in search engines. In the end, a well-designed site can help you build a good impression, nurture leads, and gain more conversions.
How Web Design Contributes to User Experience
A great website design displays trustworthiness, professionalism, and integrity. It also helps users navigate your site with ease. When you give users easy access to the information they’re looking for, your overall brand will be more appealing to audiences.
A well-designed website will significantly affect your conversion rates. How websites look and function immediately impacts how interesting a product or your brand is to site visitors.
Here are a few key elements to focus on when you’re considering user experience in your web design:
- Attention-grabbing focus points. On average, more than half of site visitors will stay on a page for less than one minute. A best practice is to create eye-catching focus points that grab users’ attention as soon as they arrive on your pages to engage and hold their attention, keeping them on your site. This will increase your chances of conversions.
- Quick load times. The majority of people will leave websites that load slowly. To keep users on your site, a zero-to-four-second load time is best for conversion rates. After that, you’re likely to start losing potential customers rapidly.
- Building trust. Interestingly, most people who distrust a site do so because of its design. In other words, it doesn’t matter how amazing your company, products, or services are; If your website is poorly designed, your brand loses credibility.
- Navigation and content. Simple navigation and unique, engaging content are two of the most critical factors that impact how long people spend on websites.
Web Design Trends to Watch
Now that you know how important web design is, let’s talk a little about the trends you should be on the lookout for.
Memphis Design
Memphis Design had its heyday back in the 1980s, and it’s making a big resurgence. It’s sometimes considered a gaudy style, which pairs various chaotic patterns and shapes together. Back when it first appeared, it was a rejection of minimalism and was intended to reflect the specific tastes of high-end art critics. The end result is a display that’s colorful, approachable, and adventurous.
Retro Fonts
Like most trends and fads, things that were once “cool” quickly become “out of style.” But as we’ve seen with mom jeans and Crocs, these trends usually come back in style. The same goes for retro fonts. Throwback typography has made a huge comeback. However, we’re not seeing the same old tired fonts that existed with vintage typography. Instead, the retro fonts of today incorporate stylization and a bit of artistry.
Parallax Scrolling
Parallax scrolling is a popular website effect that makes your pages more dynamic. It’s generally used with full-width applications along with images, videos, or textured imagery, each of which can add depth to a page. As the visitor scrolls past an image or video, the scrolling behavior makes it appear like the image has been relocated behind the neighboring sections. Although subtle, this design can make the content more engaging.
Micro Animations
Speaking of subtly, movement can bring life to a website, which in turn offers visitors a more interesting and engaging UX. Micro animations can be a great way to emphasize vital areas of a page and draw users’ eyes there immediately. Make your site more dynamic with animations that are sure to grab users’ attention.
Typographic Hero Images
The hero image is the first part of a website that visitors see. As such, it needs to make a statement. Typographic hero images reduce or eliminate imagery in favor of letting the words speak for themselves. They command attention in the same way a captivating news headline does.
We’re Keeping Up With Trends, So You Don’t Have To!
Need a little site design support? That’s what we’re here for. As site design trend experts, our team can help you take your website from average to extraordinary. To learn more about our services, contact the digital marketing experts at Zero Gravity Marketing.
