Web Design Principles for the Modern Age
Design principles are always changing, meaning web design principles are changing even faster. Here are the top five trends Cabedge is anticipating for website design in 2018:
Broken Grid Layouts
If you’re not a designer, you probably don’t know about the grid method of design. Basically, you use a grid to lay out all the elements on a page (web or print). Using the grid, you can determine the appropriate amount of space between elements, height of text, size of photos, etc. Going into 2018, designers are going to be breaking the grid to create more white space on the page and interest for the reader. With a broken grid layout, elements overlap and intersect at unexpected points leaving the user pleasantly surprised by the organic feel and appearance of the website.
The Rise of Brutalism
Minimalism has been living in the foreground of the design world for quite some time now. Designs that incorporate minimalist features are clean, utilize plenty of white space, and have key elements that are repeated throughout a website. Going into 2018, designers are seeing the emergence of a very different styles of design that has nothing to do with minimalism — brutalism. Brutalism is most easily described as throwing everything you know about design principles out the window. It’s a movement that says goodbye to design frills and focuses on bringing the user information in whatever manner necessary. Brutalism originates from design in architecture in a post-World War II world. The architecture was raw and free of frills in a world that needed to rebuild quickly, and that is what the web design movement is trying to achieve.
Large, Bold Design Elements
Minimalism is falling to the wayside as maximalist design is on the rise. Maximalist design utilizes bold colors and designs to draw the reader’s attention to the screen. Sometimes it can be overwhelming, but that’s kind of the idea. Along with maximalist design, bold design elements like large oblique and organic shapes are becoming common elements on web pages as design evolves from a minimalist to maximalist approach.
User Interaction
2018 is all about clicking, scrolling, and shifting — essentially, websites want to catch user’s attention by engaging and interacting with them in big and small ways. Web designers are focusing on getting the user to stay on the page with small things like a Parallax effect on background photos and page transitions to engage the user, even when engagement isn’t 100 percent necessary (like you don’t need them to click on the button). Designers are also trying to engage users in a more direct manner by including elements like videos for user to click on to play and watch. Social media is also capitalizing on this element of website design by increasing users options to interact with their friends’ posts. (think of Facebook’s addition of emotions like “love,” “haha” and “sad” to the “like” button).
Video as a Key Element
The auto-play element that Facebook has incorporated on its platform is beneficial for multiple reasons — it grabs a scroller’s attention and gets them to stop and watch something (at least for a few seconds), it increases the video’s view count, and it increases engagement on a website.
Ultimately, adding videos to a page’s design elevates the look and feel of the website while also improving SEO rankings.
Bold Fonts
Thin fonts have been covering our screens for years, but bold fonts are ready to take center stage. Fonts have the power to make or break a brand and a design. It’s important that it’s legible, eye-catching, and stands out among the crowd. There are millions of fonts to choose from these days, and designers are going for bold in 2018. Fonts can be used as the only element on the page for a clean, minimalist design look, or they can be mixed and matched to reach a brutalist design. The choice is yours, but we suggest you choose bold. Also, keep your eye out for serif fonts as they grow in popularity. You can never go wrong with a classic.
If you’re looking to update your website for the new year, contact Cabedge today! With years of experience in web design and a knowledge of all the latest trends, Cabedge is the perfect company to help you accomplish your web design goals.
