Trends In Web Design
The top 5 latest developments in web design to ensure your company does not outgrow your website.
The top 5 latest developments in web design to ensure your company does not outgrow your website.
#1: Ditching Scrolling Hero Images/Banners
The importance of the first fold of your landing page cannot be underestimated. This is the first thing visitors will see once they enter the landing page meaning that the use of an image/banner must be used effectively in order to communicate the message of your company/product.
Using this type of content to start the initial conversation with the visitor is slowly losing it’s impact, however. Many people do not have the time to view a selection of banner images that explain the core aspects of a company, meaning that a majority of the time just the first image is seen.
Along with this is the issue of ‘banner blindness’ where people become unreceptive to advertisements as they perceive the banner to be an advertisement. This has a significant impact on CTR meaning that the call to action within these hero images may go to waste.
Due to the rise in mobile with regards to internet browsing, this type of image is becoming further redundant. This is often due to the load time of high-resolution images which are often condensed to fit the screen size.
#2: Large Header Images Are Disappearing
Due to the advent of premium web typography, the use of large images in homepage banners is becoming less frequent. A greater emphasis is being placed on copy, with calls to action and welcome text being displayed in the banner in order to improve performance and speed of the site.
A more stripped back banner design is supported by simple typography with larger font being used to communicate the key message of the page to visitors. Through making your website content more digestible through a streamlined approach could gain your business more attention as you are opting against the whistles and bells approach.
#3: Less Is More
With a greater emphasis being placed on responsive web design (RWD) in 2015, ensuring a synergy in website content across desktop and mobile is becoming more prominent from an SEO perspective. Search engines are unlikely to view your website favourably from a ranking perspective if they have to allocate more of their time to navigate multiple versions of your site that repeat the same content.
Through having your website optimised for mobile, this is likely to improve the overall user experience resulting in a reduced bounce rate – a key factor that Google take in to account in deciding your sites’ ranking position. The purpose of your website ultimately affects the type of design and content detail that you incorporate but tools such as Google’s Mobile Friendly Test page allows you to test variations of your web pages.
Visitors to your website are likely to place trust in your website if you are able to establish calls to action throughout your page content in a simple fashion. Providing value for potential customers is likely to make them either enquire or convert due to a straightforward customer journey.
#4: Professional Photography
The use of professional photography instead of stock photography is another method that businesses can add to ensure that their website adds value. Through paying to have professional images taken which reflect your services as well as your staff, it shows that you have put real thought in to the aesthetic element of the user experience.
Despite the vast amount of stock photography available to portray emotions/a concept to fit small budgets, there is an element of risk involved with using them. There is a high possibility that a stock photo that you have chosen may have been seen by one of your customers elsewhere, which immediately reflects on your business. Professional photography allows you to benefit from the expertise of a photographer and have a niche set of photos to pick from that best reflect your brand.
#5: Off-Canvas Menus
This tool is basically your mobile’s “side menus” which are usually accessed via clicking the toggle button for the menu, due to them being hidden from the main frame of the page. It is now more common to see colourful icons being used to hide the side menu providing a more pleasing experience to the user.
Using this type of menu allows for a level of consistency across multiple devices, as your website will be more navigable for visitors. This promotes devices agnosticism in your digital activity, which is a result of your platforms being able to work together without any special adaptations.
Original Article
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