Website Design 2011 Trends

We create hundreds of great designs for our customers but we have always stressed that in the construction of what is beneath should always be at the forefront of thinking when embarking on a new design.

The future months and years will, inevitably, see competition for consumer spend heating up and functionality will be key to more, smoother and larger web transactions.

We have no doubt that the trend for new design will be about making it easier to access through both mobile and traditional browsers and to seamless connection to social media – and not just Facebook and Twitter, but also a range of other channels. Being permanently “on” but without having to give up valuable time will be the trick that 2011 design will answer.

Colour Schemes:
Simple colour schemes and bigger buttons will become more common as designs are moved towards touch-screens (just look at the boom in tablets and touch phones of all makes) consequently, you can expect navigation to be all about “thumbs and forefingers” as savvy retailers take advantage of the huge boom in mobile device spending, this is a trend that will continue to grow exponentially.

QR Codes

This would tend to signal that whilst QR (Quick response mobile site bar-coding) has been slow to start, 2011 may be the year where it finally comes of age as mobile devices take centre stage. It is our view that this is better to have than not.

CSS Backgrounds

A further consequence will be the increasing importance of the scene setting image on the web page. Our view is that background visuals will become increasingly important as a way of making sure that the visitor’s eye is caught and attention kept. Expect to see sites take on a more “magazine” feel with layouts mirroring the best of the high end print media’s spreads.

Of course the critical design change will be the move towards built in but flexible search engine marketing opportunities, it has never been any good to have a beautiful site that is never found so the ability to strategically market your content whilst maintaining a clearer, crisper look will be now much more important than ever. Look out for many more thumbnail links that will pop up with a detail section when pressed or hovered over and increasingly ingenious menu options.

Now is the time to consider whether your own site will be able to compete as the trends move on, what is set in 2011 is likely to be the scene for at least the next couple of years.