Your organization’s online presence is vital to achieving a meaningful relationship with your audience and growing your brand. However, website design is an art that constantly changes with new trends and technological advancements. It’s important to keep up with the latest trends so that your site has a modern aesthetic. Here are some of the trends designers are putting to use in 2023 that you can incorporate into your own site.
8 Website Design Trends for Modern Businesses in 2023
1. Focus on Accessibility
You shouldn’t leave anybody in your audience out when designing your web content, and brands everywhere are taking that message to heart in 2023. Accessibility has always been an important factor in web design, but new legislation that makes commercial websites subject to US disability laws has made it even more crucial. Site designers are rethinking their approaches to ensure everyone can engage with the content they create.
Successfully making a website more accessible requires a multifaceted approach. For example, copy on the site should be clean and clear to read, both in terms of the font used and the color of the letters contrasted against the background. Any video content appearing on a site should also feature captions so that those with hearing impairments can interact with the content.
2. Smart Use of Notifications
Notifications are nothing new, but designers in 2023 are rethinking how to use this tool to better engage with their audience. Many designers in the past have used notifications as a way to generate sales. However, if all the notifications you’re sending to users are sales pitches, they’ll likely tune out and simply dismiss any future notifications without getting the message you’re trying to send.
Personalizing notifications so that they send messages relevant to your user’s experience with the website is a great way to make notifications more impactful. Ensure that the notifications are relevant to the unique experience your audience is having with your brand. This will help the notifications you send stand out from all the other messages that your audience is seeing on a daily basis.
3. Loading Animations
With so much content to choose from online, internet users often have rather short attention spans. Even a few moments wasted waiting for a website to load can lead to users clicking away to something else. That simple fact has designers everywhere rethinking ways that can grab a user’s attention even when the primary content on a website is still loading up.
A simple animation can go a long way towards keeping your audience’s attention, but like everything else on your site, it’s important this animation is coherent with the rest of your brand. Create an attractive loading animation that complements the rest of your website design and also stands out enough to leave a memorable impression.
4. Interactive Extras
Sometimes, a small touch can make a big difference in the impression that a website leaves on a user. Interactive features that don’t serve any particular purpose except to engage the visitor are helping designers engage with their audience on a deeper level. While these features might seem superfluous, they’re actually an excellent way to make visiting your site an experience that resonates and sticks in the memory.
There are many directions to take this design trend in, from pixels in the background that react to the mouse passing over them to colors that randomize with every click on the page. However, it’s important that you don’t affect accessibility by incorporating these interactive features. Keep the interaction small and simple so that it leaves an impression on your audience without detracting from the overall experience of your site.
5. Nostalgia Trips
What’s old is new again, and web designers are tapping into people’s sense of nostalgia to catch the attention of their audience. The natural tendency to view the past through rose-colored glasses makes many people associate good feelings with things they see that remind them of the old days. Besides, who doesn’t love a blast from the past once in a while?
There are many different ways you can tap into this design trend. Pop culture references are always a good way to call back to the past in a way broad swaths of your audience will understand. You can also go for a retro aesthetic in your color scheme and design cues, creating a sense of nostalgia from the visual story that your design evokes.
6. Artificial Intelligence
One topic that is making headlines on a regular basis this year is artificial intelligence. While the implications this technology has on our future are still playing out as new developments are made, web designers are already harnessing the power AI offers to improve the user experience on their sites.
AI is a versatile technology, so the applications it has in web design are practically limitless. Good examples include smarter search features or chatbots that interact with audiences in a more intelligent and useful way. Expect more uses for this rapidly-developing technology to arise as more advances are made.
7. Premium Perks
Everyone likes the feeling of being a VIP, and that feeling is something that designers are tapping into more in modern websites. Offering exclusive benefits to premium members of your audience is a great way to deepen the connection that your clientele feels with your brand. They’ll get the experience of being part of a select group that not everybody has access to, deepening the connection they have to your brand.
There are various ways that you can implement premium benefits for your audience. For example, especially for products that require a significant investment to purchase, you might offer premium perks simply for registering ownership of a product. Other brands might find it more beneficial to offer a subscription service that comes with unique advantages for those who join the program.
8. AR Elements
While the technology has been around for a few years now, augmented reality (or AR) is becoming even more popular in 2023 as audiences everywhere grow more familiar with this medium. The ability to reach off the screen and interact with the world around the user gives AR technology an edge when it comes to creating an engaging experience that stands out in the memory of your audience.
Allowing users to project content into the world around them has a number of different applications that brands are taking advantage of. From fashion companies letting users “try on” clothes in a virtual way to IKEA letting furniture shoppers project pieces into their home to see how they would look before purchasing, the applications for AR technology are near limitless. Think of how your brand can use this technology in a useful, engaging way.
With so many different factors to keep in mind, designing a site and ensuring it keeps up with all the latest modern trends can seem like an impossible task. However, it becomes a whole lot easier when you have the help of our experts on your side. We’ll take care of all your digital marketing concerns so you can focus on what you do best: running your business. Contact Next Level Media Crew to find out how we can help!
