Web Development Trends For 2018
Looking for something to increase engagement and audience on page time? Every year some of the world’s biggest web designers predict the global trends that they think might captivate web design in 2018.
We’re well into February and many have had their say. So are they right? Will we look back in just under a years time and say one or all of those trends influenced web design and development in the past year?
Video always seems to top the list. Content strategists are always on about the need for fresh content. Search engines reward it and if it’s a mix of visual and written content then all the better.
High quality video is engaging, effortless for your audience and it complements the power and diversity of social media. For a few years now, video has changed the way we communicate. Expect to see more video across multiple pages of websites, not just home pages. Video hasn’t replaced copy, but a custom video shows rather than tells, and that’s great for audience engagement.
And you don’t lose SEO traction from video. Keywords in your titles, tags and descriptions will hit the desired note and if you have a YouTube channel you’ll get double the love from Google (Google owns YouTube).
Broken Grid Layouts: Changes have been occurring within the grid and it’s set to continue. Having a composition of text, animation, images and even video intersect and overlap while remaining distinguishable in the one grid is an attractive, highly effective way of aligning the key elements of your brand.
Having text separate from white space to overlay an image can increase the emphasis on both. Text running over margins to the edge of a page; strong lines and shapes within a grid; collages using vertical and horizontal shapes or an off balance combination of animation and graphics are a departure from structured grids which have always been useful in reflecting brand consistency and stability. But rather than being a departure from stable, structured content and messaging, Broken Grid Layouts complement stability and reflect a more evolved, interactive and engaged brand persona.
Web Fonts should be part of your corporate style guide in 2018 if they’re not already. Google fonts are a great place to start or have your designer come up with something unique.
Typography- Having your copy noticed is challenging enough . Bigger sized, bolder fonts in more vibrant colours and combinations draws attention to your content. For businesses wanting to make a greater impact, eye catching typography is trending: erasing parts of letters (cropped typography), and words and letters in unconventional order (chaotic typography) are examples.
How about typography interacting with objects or people? Or, in the interest of everything old being new again, retro typefaces like the one below are being preferred to geometric designs which began to decline in 2017.
Vertical Navigation and Full-screen Scrolling Sites: Full-screen sites provide for a compelling, immersive visual experience. To display larger and longer forms of content, Vertical Scrolling Sites have the added value of allowing content to flow, especially with the ubiquity of smartphones.
Hybrid, Vertical Navigation and Full-screen scrolling sites integrate visual and written content for a more detailed and compelling narrative. They provide for an immersive, full page visual experience integrated with informative, longer form written and visual content in an easily navigated vertical format.
After discussing Full-screen Scrolling Sites and Broken Grid Layouts, it might seem like heresy to advocate for a renaissance of Static and Single Page Websites . But both of these have come a long way since the early days of the web. They can be easily coded using HTML, load quickly and their simplicity makes them a breeze to navigate especially on mobile devices. Both options are great alternatives for the cost conscious project.
Honourable mentions include Subtle Scrolling (fixed backgrounds that don’t scroll with the page) and Fixed Navigation (where the navigation bar remains in position as you scroll your way down the page). We’d be happy to discuss these ideas and more if you get in touch with us by filling out the contact form or calling us on 02 8004 4527.