There are plenty of opinions floating around out there as to which web design trends we can expect to see in 2014. Not to be left out, we decided to throw in our 2 cents and highlight a few trends we think will dominate in design this year.
Windows 8 and Apple iOS7 really illustrated this concept with their shockingly basic design overhauls. While some argue these particular designs were a little too basic, they did spark a movement toward fresh and simple design ideas.
Overall, flat design favors function over “fancy”. This means everything from minimalist navigation, to simple color schemes and less text. Dropping popular elements from the past like dropshadows and gradients give sites a clean, crisp and modern feel.
Having put the emphasis on clean design, this doesn’t mean you can’t have fun with fonts. Designers have been exploring new styles and favoring larger font sizes to keep sites visually interesting and relay some personality.
While you want to keep the site content clean and easy to read, creative fonts can be worked in to headers and banners to spice things up. A skilled designer will be able to make this work without having it feel too busy.
If you keep up at all on website design trends, you might think we’re beating a dead horse here, but we can’t emphasize enough the need for mobile-friendly sites! With at least half of the smart phone users out there relying on their mobile as their primary Internet source, you don’t want to drive away visitors with a site they can’t use.
are the way to go as they cater to all devices from tablets to smart phones. It’s a small investment and the right move to make your site accessible to everyone.
Our short attention spans and need for stimulus have made rich media more popular and more effective than ever. With a move toward simplified content, well-executed videos are a solid method of conveying your message while showing your creative side. More and more websites are featuring videos front and center to immediately engage visitors and stand out from the competition.
In addition to the benefits of having them on your site, videos are extremely “sharable” and “likeable” on social media platforms, which can boost your buzz and increase traffic to your site.
Ready…set…scroll! Yep, it’s back (but better). Recent years focused on cleaning up long sites to keep visitors from glazing over as they scrolled through a sea of text. As long as your content is well organized, the text is minimal and the layout is clean, people don’t mind scrolling. Not to mention, these designs lend easily to responsive layouts.
Ultimately, your site needs to be unique to you and most importantly provide your visitors with what they are looking for. Strategic website design and online marketing practices are geared more than ever toward user experience. Search engines evaluate not only how many people visit your site, but how many pages they visit, how long they stay and if they come back. A poorly designed site can do more to hurt your business than help it. An experienced and successful
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