1. Big and Bold Typography
Your font needs to stand out! You want your users to notice your content, notice your head lines and most importantly notice your call to actions (CTA’s). Having a bold, large font will help your users focus on what you are saying. Did you know that some companies even develop their own font to use for their company logo? This really goes to say that typography is so essential to your branding. Hero images are a great way to catch user’s attention but I foresee bold font taking over for 2018.
2. Sticky Elements
This trend goes hand in hand with our previous big bold font movement. The word sticky is a common term that the web industry tosses around. It refers to any element such as the navigation bar, a call to action or contact information that sticks to the screen when you scroll. For example, if you would like to have your phone number emphasized on your website, we can make sure that it sticks at the top of the page where everyone can see it. It’s true, content is king when it comes to reaching your online audience – let us make sure that everyone can see what you are conveying right away.
3. Mobile Friendly Design
Well this trend is a given! Mobile design will always be so important to your website, but this year more than ever designers are realizing how important mobile design really is. If you think about it, a large percentage of our daily internet use is conducted on our phones. Ensuring that your mobile layout is the easiest and most efficient will be necessary to bring in more interested clients and creating a user-friendly design.
4. Movement
Particle backgrounds are a great way to add movement and engagement to a website without weighing it down with a video. These backgrounds are creating with Particle.js – a light weight JavaScript library. Users are drawn to movement within a website, it helps to grab their attention and keep them engaged. Not only this, but it also looks pretty neat! On scroll animations have also been very popular, this is a great way to insensitive someone to scroll further. Scroll to a important call to action or contact us section.
5. Asymmetrical and Broken Grid Layouts
Symmetry has been a staple for many websites but the time for a change is now! Having staggered, off centered elements is a surprisingly eye pleasing design. This imperfect perfection somehow creates a simple balance. 2018 will be the year of getting messy with your design elements while still holding everything together.
6. Bright Colors and Dynamic Gradients
This might be the most exciting trend for 2018, BRIGHT COLORS! 2017 was the year of minimalism and white space but now it’s time to fill that white space with bright orange, red, yellows and blues. As technology advances and our computer screens have become better equipped to view these colors we really can use anything. Saturated colors such as dark purples, pinks and teals are becoming popular for 2018 and should be a prominent sight to see.
7. Story Telling
You might see this trend pop up sometime in 2018. Companies that take advantage of story telling to convey a message on their website. With bold typography this is a great way to grab your user’s attention and create an emotional connection. Show them who you are, your history or your strengths.
8. Security
Malicious attacks and malware seem to be happening more and more lately. Every time you turn on the news some large company is being hacked again. Having proper security for your website is an essential trend! As the online world evolves and adapts, your website must adapt also. Hackers are becoming sneakier and your website might have the doors wide open for them to walk in. But how can you do this? Set yourself up with a complex password, the most popular password is still “12456” – please don’t do this. Ensuring that you work with a company that will continuously update your website and keep everything working smoothly will also secure your website. You don’t want to lose all of your precious time and money when you could have avoided the intrusion.
