Over the years, virtual reality, machine learning along with voice user interfaces have been enhanced and they are now an important part of mainstream technology. People can expect to see simple designs making way for these new emerging immersive technologies. Let us see what trends we can expect in the field of website development and designing in 2018.
FLAT DESIGN
For better mobile performance, designers and developers have started creating clean and simple websites. Websites enhanced with many images are slow to load and can be very frustrating for mobile users. With the increasing number of mobile searches, mobile-first design for websites are now a necessity for all website developer. Clean, uncluttered designs which can be loaded quickly are both trendy and desirable for a number of reasons. They will be appreciated by both desktop browsers and mobile users who want fast but pleasing websites, and for their SEO value. Hence flat design websites are starting to become popular and will continue be trendy into 2018 too.
Flat design doesn’t require everything to be brought down to two dimensions – it’s actually about simplicity and usability. It means that we get rid of the clutter and focus on the important parts of our website. Using bright colors, clean and crisp edges, along with lots of open space, flat design is a revitalizing change in comparison to cluttered and slow-loading designs.
EXPRESSIVE TYPOGRAPHY
With website layouts becoming simpler, you can expect web designers to unleash their creativity on typography. Banking on typography to do the heavy lifting for design in place of high resolution images, helps websites in loading more quickly.
Each style of typography, in spite of what the words are actually saying, have the ability to subconsciously make your mind make specific associations. For example, Gothic fonts makes you think of Europe, history, churches, and old-fashioned language. Modern typography is used in most of the logos for the technology giants, and the mind associates these words with chic, dashy brands. Script reminds people of extravagant parties and ladylikeness whereas slab fonts can be associated with being bold and robust.
ANIMATED LOGOS AND SCROLL-TRIGGERED ANIMATION
2018 is expected to usher in a new era of subtle and useful animation. We can expect to see scroll-triggered animations and animated logos.
Lately, the use of scroll-triggered animation has been on the rise, they are fast to load, consume less data and they look attractive. This method allows smooth transitions and these creatively, scroll-triggered animations not only appear fascinating to the viewer but can also effectively demonstrate your product or service. This kind of animation, if appropriately planned, coded, and used for designing your website, can help your website look more professional and modern than your competitors.
Other than keeping your brand name memorable, animated logos help in effectively tell the story of your brand and your company – much more than what a normal logo can.
VIRTUAL REALITY VIDEO
Websites in 2018 will take virtual reality video to new, immersive places which were supposed to be science fiction a few years back. We can expect websites loaded with 360 videos, 360 modeling, video mapping, and interactive videos. These videos can be costly and time-intensive, however there are quite a few apps already available which can help you in creating virtual reality videos.
VOICE USER INTERFACE AND SEARCH
A voice user interface is at times referred to being natural language processing. In simple words it refers to human interaction with a computer in the form of speech. Some of the examples of voice user interfaces include Alexan, Siri, and Cortana. Voice user interfaces can understand and act on all the complex voice commands given. And along with machine learning, these interfaces can predict your needs even before you have completed your command.
In 2018, we can expect to see websites with their own voice user interfaces or integrating with the already existing ones. With the growing popularity of voice search, you need to ensure that your website content is conversational, as people tend to interact differently when using voice commands. For example, a person looking for the nearest pharmacy might type in “pharmacy near me” into Google, but they might ask Siri, “where is the nearest pharmacy located?”
SEAMLESS INTERACTIONS
Seamless interactions are going to be another theme for 2018. Implementing chatbots and voice user interfaces will allow customers to interact with your website without even having to click. Micro-interactions is also a design element that can be used throughout your website to improve communication. For example a user can leave a simple review for your products or services by scrolling over a number of stars instead of filling and submitting a form.
We at Velocity Consultancy are obsessed with the latest trends and web technologies. This passion drives our design process and assures the development of high-quality websites incorporating technologies that suit their business and requirements. Visit us at www.velocityconsultancy.com