As technology continues to advance at a rapid pace, so too does the world of web design. What was trendy and cutting-edge a few years ago, may now be outdated and stale. That’s why staying ahead of the newest web design trends is crucial to creating a visually appealing and user-friendly website.
As we approach 2024, it’s time to start thinking about what web design trends will dominate and in this blog, we explore six key trends that are guaranteed to make a big impact. From bold colours, immersive animations and dynamic typography, these website design trends will help your site stand out from the competition and leave a lasting impression on your visitors. Let’s dive right in!
1. Retro designs
Retro designs are popular because they’re nostalgic. They evoke a sense of history and can be used to create a sense of the future or past.
The reason why people love retro design so much is that it makes them feel like they’re connected with something bigger than themselves, like another period when everything was simpler and easier to understand.
Some of these trends include using patterns and bright colours in excess on purpose. The move is often seen as a rejection of anything minimalist, which was one of the biggest trends in the last decade. Web designers often take inspiration from the ’80s or ’90s to achieve this style.
2. Headline typography
Headlines are the most important part of your website, not only for SEO purposes but also a design aspect, so it’s therefore essential that you choose a font that catches the eye and conveys the message you intend. You can achieve this by using large fonts, with simple shapes, serifs or sans-serifs, monospaced (“fixed”) characters and typefaces with either a large x-height or cap height.
Using oversized fonts can fit any style the web designer is trying to achieve whether minimalist or maximalist. Large fonts can also be used instead of filling a page with irrelevant images.
3. Interactive fonts
Interactive fonts are a recent trend that has been rising in popularity over the last few years and continues to be a popular tactic graphic designers adopt in their website designs. They can be used to create many different types of interactive experiences, including games, music, art and even content. One the most common types of interactive font includes actions, like movement when you hover over certain words for example.
Using interactive fonts in your web design is pretty easy if you know how to code, but if not you can always use some type of design tool such as Adobe Illustrator or Sketch so it doesn’t take too much time out of your day.
4. Optimisation for page speed
To help your website rank higher in search results and get more visitors, it’s important that you optimise for page speed. This means using caching, compression, lazy loading, minification and browser caching.
A cache is temporary storage space on a server that stores frequently accessed web pages so they can be retrieved quickly. Serving them from the cache instead of from the server that hosts your website, will save time because fewer resources need to be used by both the server and the visitor’s computer.
Compression reduces the size of an image file or video file before sending it over the internet by eliminating redundant data. It also improves how fast images load on websites by reducing their file size without affecting quality. Loading only those elements on a page that are visible within its viewport when viewed through mobile devices rather than loading all content at once also speeds things up.
5. Interactive scrolling
Interactive scrolling is a design trend that’s been around for years, but it has recently seen a resurgence in popularity. Interactive scrolling sites are defined as those with content that changes when you scroll down a page. This can be done using text and/or images that move or change in some way (e.g., zoom in or out), which gives the user more information about what they’re looking at without having to click on anything else.
The main benefits of interactive scrolling include improved user engagement because adding interactive elements encourages visitors to explore your website further. It also highlights key pieces of your content and gives users quick access to information. As well as this, interactive scrolling gives your brand a boost and shows you as innovative and forward-thinking.
6. Abstract graphic design
Abstract graphic design is a design that is not based on a real-world object. The word abstract means “not clear or exact” and it describes how these designs are usually not clear in their meaning. Abstract graphic design could be geometric shapes, lines and patterns, or they could be something more organic like leaves or flowers.
To create an effective abstract graphic design, you will ideally need to have good knowledge of colour theory and colour psychology, so that you can create attractive visuals for your visitors.
Let us help with your web design project
These are just some of the latest web design trends that we think will continue to grow in popularity in 2024. It’s an ever changing industry so it’s essential to keep on top of these trends to keep your website fresh and up-to-date, and more importantly, to make a positive impact on your brand.
If you’re about to embark on a web design project and you’re looking for some expert advice, we can help. Our extremely talented web design team will work closely with you to get to know your brand and advise you on what will work for you and your objectives. Get in touch with us today to see how else we can help and get the ball rolling!