If you are looking to develop a brand new website or refine your existing platform, it is all too easy to become inundated with advice and potential ideas in the digital age. Aside from the sheer wealth of articles published on the subject, there are a number of fleeting design trends that may have become redundant by the time your site has gone live.
With this in mind, the key is to distinguish influential and long-term trends from fads, as you look to create a responsive and accessible website that can deliver on core, business objectives.
So what exactly are the current web design trends that you should be following? Let’s take a look : –
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Artificial Intelligence (AI) Will Become and Increasingly Influential Trend
In case you hadn’t noticed, AI has become a seminal part of software and hardware development in recent times. PayPal has deployed automated, machine learning algorithms to combat fraud for years, for example, while outlets such as Forbes and H&M have also developed AI chatbots to interact with consumers in real-time through branded applications.
Now a seminal part of software design and the creation of mobile apps, AI will soon become and increasingly commonplace element of website development.
This will offer particular benefits in terms of the responsiveness and accessibility of your website, as AI can be used to understand individual customer behaviour, improve online security and underpin live conversations with consumers. By understanding this now, it is possible to create a future-proof website with genuine longevity.
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We Now Live in an Age of Unified Design, so Responsiveness is Key
The Internet of Things (IoT) is a very real and tangible concept, and one that will see more than 20 billion connected gadgets active worldwide by the end of 2020. This highlights the rapid evolution of hardware and connectivity, particularly as there were just 6.4 such devices active at the end of last year.
It is important that your current website is designed with this evolution in mind, as there will soon be a growing number of portable devices through which your site can be accessed. So not only must you continue to develop sites that are responsive and capable of adapting to various device specifications, but you must also push the boundaries of UX design to ensure that your site can be accessed by as many consumers as possible in the future.
This process should start now, and if you need any further persuasion you should look at the issues that have been caused by Android fragmentation. With so many variable, Android operating systems in the market, there has been reduced interoperability between specific devices and the websites that they are trying to access.
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Your Website Design Must Revolve Around Consumer Behaviour
We have already touched on this briefly, as the rise of AI in website design has been largely inspired by the increasingly influential role of consumer behaviour. Make no mistake; your website must boast a design that has been based on the behaviour of your consumers, as this ensures that you deliver the type of unique, simplified and enjoyable journey that underpins loyalty.
To fully implement and capitalise on this trend, however, it is crucial that you first strive to build in-depth customer profiles that drive informed decision making. Branded applications, customer loyalty schemes and the type of machine learning algorithms that we have already discussed can be leveraged to build vast data sets, which can then be used in a number of ways to shape your website design and the timely delivery of content to users.
By following these trends, you can design a responsive and relevant website that is capable of standing the considerable test of time. Without this, you may find that you are constantly tweaking your existing site rather than deploying your time and resources elsewhere within the business.