Huge Web Design Trends for 2014(1)

Wednesday, 12 March 2014

Huge Web Design Trends for 2014(1)

The Internet is one of the most fluid mediums in the world. This fluidity translates into the fact that it’s constantly changing, constantly evolving and constantly growing. This means that web development & web design are constantly changing, constantly evolving and constantly growing right along side the Internet.

So how do you, as a web designer, keep your footing in this uncertain and constantly shifting terrain? Well, for one thing, by predicting the trends and the way it’s going to change in the near future. The trends for web design can be anticipated pretty accurately over the course of one year. In fact, half of all the work any designer worth his salt does is the anticipation and prediction of such changes in trend and direction.

We’ve been known to anticipate and discuss trends in the past and, in fact, it’s one of the larger focuses of this blog. That’s because we think it’s important for you to know what’s coming next in order for you to be prepared for it and to stay on top of the game. Knowledge is power, goes the old adage. This is especially true in the ever-shifting sands of the web.

That’s why we’ve built this list of trends that you can expect to see growing in influence in web design over the following year. We’ll take a look at them shortly, but first we’d like to discuss what the most important trends of 2013 were. So, without further ado, we give you…

The Biggest Web Design Trends of 2013

1. Responsive Layouts

What 2013 has seen is an explosion of Responsive Web Design (RWD) and that’s quite understandable. With more and more Internet using being done on mobile devices, be they smartphones or tablet PCs, Android or iOS, it’s obvious that the traditional solution of the mobile landing page just doesn’t cut it anymore. Users want the full functionality of the site regardless of the device they’re accessing it on.

That’s why RWD was one of the biggest trends of 2013. You should definitely expect to see more of it too over the following year, as mobile internet browsing isn’t going anywhere but up!

2. Large Photo Backgrounds

This trend has built up over the past year and is one of the more aesthetically pleasing trends of the year. Working well with the overall minimalist trend we’ve seen over the past few years in web design, it can look splendid if done right. If not, well, that’s another story altogether.

3. Minimalism

This is another trend that has been highly influential over more than the past year. Minimalism gives websites a crisp, aired out feel. It makes them look elegant and luxurious. Combined with the large photo backgrounds we discussed at the previous point, it’s extremely effective in creating beautiful websites that impress the user.

4. Social Media Badges

This is yet another trend that has flourished what with the huge growth of social media marketing in the online world. Badges are essential for the dissemination of your website and their absence can now ruin your websites success, what with social media being such a big part of the online world these days.

5. Infinite Scrolling

While this has been around for a few years at least, infinite scrolling has really come to the forefront of web design options this year. With websites such as Tumblr and Pinterest promoting it, it was pretty hard for infinite scrolling not to become one of the biggest and most influential trends of the year.

While there’s so much more to talk about in the web design trends of 2013, we’ll call it a day here and get on with what you’re actually interested in, the biggest trends we can expect to see in the following year.