Web design is a continually evolving discipline, with new trends coming and going over the months and years. However, some responsive web design trends become very popular and they end up sticking around. In this article, we’re going to take a look at what’s popular with web developers this November and see if these new web design trends have any staying power.
1. Social issue messaging
There’s no doubt that the world is highly politicized nowadays, with social and environmental issues being very important for a certain percent of users, depending on your target audience. Adding political and social messaging to your website is a part of emotional design, meant to connect with the audience on a deeper level. Of course, this can be used cynically, because it is such a powerful web design technique. In the past, appeals to social or political issues were avoided, in order to not turn of a segment of a target audience. However, nowadays, loyalty to these issues is very strong, making the trade-off worth it in certain cases.
Sometimes the web design is more non-descript, trying to trigger emotions rather than present a particular issue. For example, something as implicit as “Join the Revolution” can hint at a political message and a message regarding the novel and “revolutionary” aspects of your services or products. Certain brand strategies can definitely benefit from this type of messaging.
In other situations, you can go all out with this web design technique. There are certainly websites that use a much more direct and stronger appeal to social issues. If you take a look at the Skye High website, you can see that the web design uses “Powerful Branding for Powerful Women” as copy in the hero image. It both taps into the current social climate and appeals directly to a target audience. Finally, these brand strategies also work if you have a product that can be manufactured in an environmentally-friendly way. Making sustainability and eco-friendliness a staple of your branding is another example of how to use emotional design effectively.
2. Abstract art
Web developers have a plethora of well-established layouts that they can use when implementing responsive design. These layouts work well on both desktop and mobile devices, and they are easily accessible and implementable. They form a standard in professional web design, since they allows web developers to set up and start running a site quickly and inexpensively. Any trend that has to compete with these layouts has to be easy to implement and cost effective.
Meet the abstract art element. Abstract web design elements are already making a big splash for startup websites and apps. They are very easy to create, and have a strong impact on the UX. They can even replace photography completely on a website.
This style of web design usually consists of geometric shapes and motion graphics. They work very well with responsive websites and adaptive websites, and they have a high UX for both the desktop and mobile user.
3. Unusual images
Similar to layouts, in web design you generally have an image standard – high quality stock images that are related to the product and service of a company. However, some web developers are using a different approach, where they purposefully choose unusual images to draw attention and impress their target audience. There are many ways to implement this in your web design by using Adobe Photoshop or other image manipulation software. You can add effects, merge images, add animations, or create a pseudo-3D layout.
The main advantage of this web design technique is that it makes a site memorable. If you’re browsing several software developers for a project that you have in mind, the one with the most intriguing web design is likely to stay with you for longer. This, of course, is by no means a new web design technique. Throughout the years we’ve seen web developers come up with very creative and innovative designs. However, it is becoming more common as businesses look for an edge on the world wide web.
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It is good to be aware of new web design trends as they pop up, because they can often lead to new development techniques and increase the range of the types of websites that can be used to appeal to a userbase. If you are interested in working with a web design company for your website, contact us today.
