It’s the start of a new year and that can only mean one thing. It’s time to review your website and determine whether it’s up-to-date and ready to meet visitors’ needs in 2020. Like most processes, what’s current in web design changes over the time and staying up-to-date with web design trends can help your website look modern and professional.
When it comes to web design, experience greatly helps you discern the newest trends early on. Luckily, we at MoreVisibility keep up with the latest design and development changes so that we can create the best websites possible for our clients.
There are some popular styles that just won’t go away, such as the ever-present minimalism and colorful flat illustrations we’ve been seeing for some time now, as well as newer techniques to watch out for. Here are some of the more notable techniques we can expect to see in web design in 2020.
1. Dark Mode
Dark mode web designs not only look modern and make colors and design elements pop, but it can improve visibility to some users with low vision and those who are sensitive to bright light. They fit in perfectly with another current trend of dark and moody color schemes combined with neon colors, as well as futuristic yet dark cyberpunk styles. Dark backgrounds can also benefit OLED screens because they help save power and extend screen lifespans. Dark colors on OLED screens use less power because the LEDs that display each pixel are off, whereas LEDs need to shine and consume power in order to display white and other colors.
Nevertheless, the decision to go with a dark-themed website should be approached with care. Designs that use dark backgrounds can be a bad choice for text-heavy sites or when there is a lot of mixed content on the screen (text, images, video, data tables, dropdowns, etc.). Ultimately, the choice to use a dark color background should be warranted by your branding color scheme or appropriate to the product’s purpose (e.g., nighttime entertainment apps).
2. 3D Visuals
The importance of 3D graphics has been recognized in the gaming and movie industry for years. What held this trend back for web design was technology and the expensive price to create such renderings. With the availability of stock illustration, crowdsourcing, and technology in a place where 3D can be designed with more ease, this opens the gates for 3D graphics to be more easily obtainable.
Until Virtual Reality becomes more mainstream and cost-effective, realistic 3D renders that often take up the entire screen can be the best way to create an immersive experience for your site. That’s not just an advantage for visuals, but for UX as well—interactive 3D design encourages users to stay longer. As 2020 unfolds, you can expect to see more immersive 3D web designs drawing users in and visually breaking down the boundaries between digital space and reality.
3. Mixing Photography and Graphics
The combination of original graphics with real photographs can create a memorable visual and add more personality to your website. This collage-like trend is a versatile one; you can use it to add a special charm to liven up a dull product photo, or you can use its more serious attributes to better communicate complicated or abstract concepts such as tech or finance.
To make the most of this trend, be sure to match the style of the illustrations and graphics with your company’s branding. Stylistic choices can sway how people interpret your brand. For example, cartoon squiggles convey playfulness, whereas geometric and detailed illustrations would be used for something more sophisticated.
4. Negative Space
Full-width images have been trending in web design for a number of years. However, designers are beginning to pull away from using full-width images in every case and are increasingly using white space (or any space of color for that matter) to frame images. By allowing text and visuals on a page to have a generous amount of space, it allows for your content to “pop” and stand out more.
In 2020, expect to see more websites feature legible text and minimal design elements to create something that is both attention-grabbing and easy on the eyes. Negative space creates a satisfying sense of order and helps prioritize and separate all the different parts of a site.
5. Asymmetrical Layouts
Most websites are designed using grid-based layouts. In design terms, a grid is made of imaginary horizontal and vertical lines that help line up elements on a page. For example, you can look at most websites and see how the logo at the top-left of a page aligns horizontally with the navigation and aligns vertically with a heading, image, or other element on the page. With asymmetrical layouts, or a broken grid, you have items that are pushed around in such a way that the look of the website is less rigid.
Asymmetry is used in design as a technique to help stand out from competitors or to draw attention. This technique makes websites look more creative and will be a top web design trend for 2020.
Is Your Website Ready for 2020?
Milton Glaser, an acclaimed Graphic Designer, once said, “There are three responses to a piece of design: Yes, No, and WOW! Wow is the one to aim for.” Consumers will not respond to mundane or bland design. Consumers are looking for personal connections with brands and one of the ways to make such connections is visually.
An outdated website can dramatically decrease conversions and may hurt a company’s credibility. Dated, cluttered designs can distract visitors from your call to action. In addition, a lack of modern updates may cause visitors to lose trust in your business. Therefore, it’s important to stay current and remain relevant. If you need to create a beautiful, optimized website for 2020, or tweak an existing design, let the experts at MoreVisibility help. Contact us for a Complimentary Consultation today.
