When styling your business’s website, you want to keep longevity in mind.
Enlisting an award-winning website design company is expensive but could be the ticket to ensure the design is classic and fresh for years to come. And, it could save you money because you won’t have to continually redevelop.
However, making your site appeal to your target audience is crucial. If your competitors’ websites look more modern and innovative than yours, you could lose your customers to them.
We’ve hand-picked some amazing emergent web design trends that we’re seeing everywhere in 2021, and that also have timeless qualities. Keep reading to learn more.
1. Muted, Earthy Color Palettes
Green, brown, beige, black… subdued tones are everywhere this year, making sites look comforting and familiar.
Not only that, but they’re literally easier on the eyes. A natural, toned-down palette can help to reduce eye strain commonly suffered by people looking at bright colors and blue light while working at a computer all day.
2. Abstract Graphics
Abstract art in graphic design is being popularly used instead of photography to illustrate websites in 2021.
Have a look around — many sites you visit probably feature much more cartoonish, abstract imagery than they used to, possibly coming from more companies having in-house graphics teams than photographers.
Primary colors and rudimentary shapes are being used to create collage-like scenes across web pages that might otherwise have relied on stock photography.
3. Gaussian Blur
Gaussian blur is an image processing function that reduces an image’s detail, so you can only just make out colors and shapes, almost like looking through frosted glass.
It gives a hazy, dreamy effect to backgrounds and images, evoking calmness and relaxation and helping site visitors to feel at home.
This effect can add a cloud of color to a plain background or a slight soft focus to images you don’t want to be too distracting.
4. Dark Mode
While this is nothing new, more and more sites and apps are offering users the option of dark mode in 2021.
Swapping out light backgrounds and dark text for the opposite color scheme, dark mode was created to emulate original computers, which showed lighter text on a darker background. The ‘dark text on a light background’ style we see on most computer screens today was developed to attract new technology users as it appeared more like paper.
Now, dark mode is making a comeback — some think it makes using computers less taxing on the eyes (though others disagree), and some just think it looks cool.
Nevertheless, offering consumers options for how they view your site promotes inclusivity and choice.
5. Creative Scrolling
Web designers are waking up to the interactive elements of scrolling. As users scroll down (or across) sites, giving them an engaging experience is one way to keep them on your page.
Animated transitions, layout shifts, and color scheme gradients are all slick features you can add to your design to keep visitors intrigued.
Horizontal scrolling is also a great way to engage. Be careful though: requiring horizontal scrolling is a no-go, but giving audiences the choice to see extra content with an arrow button is a nice bonus. Never hide important text behind a horizontal scroll that may be missed!
Bottom Line
Backgrounds, color palettes, graphics, scrolling techniques… we know there’s a lot to consider when crafting or revamping your website.
Try these popular 2021 trends that look set to stand the test of time when it’s time for a new look.