5 Top Web Designs That Will Take 2019 By Storm

Posted on December 28, 2018

2019 is coming in fast, and if you want to get that sleek, new look before your competition does, enlisting the aid of a digital marketing consultant is the best way to do it. It’s time to renovate those stale web design trends of 2018.

Check out these top 5 web designs for 2019.

1. Clean, Minimalistic Design

The days of cluttered images and overly complex web design are fading away. Since 2017, developers have started to change their website to cleaner, more minimalistic designs. Developers did so in anticipation of the mobile-first indexing revolution, knowing that getting it done early would mean a huge boost in their revenue-earning potential.

This brilliant form of “flat design” not only provides a cleaner look but also improves function as it reduces the amount of time it takes to load a webpage for both PC and mobile devices. It also benefits a website’s Google ranking as sites which prioritize quick load times are better ranked, something image-heavy websites can’t dream of.

2. Micro-Animations

Sometimes as web designers, you’ve got to learn how to appreciate the little things. This is especially true for micro-animations — a subtle trend that is quickly gaining traction.

A micro-animation can be a number of things. It can be something as simple as changing the color of a call-to-action button when the user moves their cursor over it. It can also be something a little more visually appealing, like a list of links expanding downward when a “hamburger” menu button—the three parallel lines stacked horizontally that you find on the top left or right of a website—is activated.

While this may seem inconsequential, that couldn’t be any further from the truth. Little animations like these actually help site visitors better understand its layout better, increasing retention by providing an intuitive and satisfying experience as they explore what you have to offer.

3. More Detailed Footers

Footers, as far as web designing is concerned, have mostly been overlooked, but 2019 is looking to change that. In most cases, it was a space on the homepage where visitors could contact information and little else.

Now, designers are looking to utilize that space in a much more effective and efficient manner. While it should still have your company’s contact information, it should also feature clickable social media icons that can send a user to your social media pages (hopefully so they start following you).

However, it won’t be limited to just those elements. In fact, it can be heavily improved upon based on what your particular niche or business is. Take for instance 360gardalife.com. This sports magazine/blog shares local sporting information around the Malcesine area of Italy – and they are really hitting it out of the park in terms of a footer.

Now imagine having a customized footer that a potential customer can access to personalize the information that they receive from your company. You can bet top dollar that user experience and customer reviews with your company would skyrocket in a positive way.

4. Better Video Backgrounds

Remember when I said that minimal-looking websites may take the cake in 2019? Well, they are going to have some competition with websites that will feature a video background. I know, hard to believe since websites that can load quickly will be scored better, but video backgrounds have also been shown to increase conversions – and that’s always a good thing.

Before we continue, it won’t be like a YouTube video playing in the background while you are trying to read a blog. When a user lands on your site, they may see the video playing in the background—muted, of course. Short video content commands users’ attention more than texts or images can because it delivers your message quickly and effectively. Because of that, users are more likely to stick around to watch the video.

Of course, the more likely they are to stick around means that your time-on-site metric is going to increase.

5. Non-Traditional Scrolling

For as long as the Internet has been around, users have become accustomed to vertical scrolling—top to bottom. Twenty-nineteen is looking to change that up a bit, offering a unique twist to scrolling and piquing potential customers’ interests.

Some sites are looking to embrace horizontal scrolling, where instead of the page moving top to bottom, it is moving from left to right. This offers a refreshing and attention-grabbing experience to potential customers that are getting to know your brand.

To illustrate this in action, picture yourself as an owner of a business that sells artisanal cheeses. When a user lands on your home page, they see a brief loading screen—we’re talking 1 to 2 seconds of load time here—and then they are greeted by a quick history of your business.

As they scroll, the history portion shifts to the left and now the home page is featuring a special cheese on sale for the week. At some point, the carousel of information—if you will—will stop, and the page can scroll vertically as normal to other portions of your homepage that feature the daily product review, customer reviews, accolades, video content, or even that souped-up website footer that you created.