It genuinely only takes a few seconds for a person to form an opinion about a business’s website and determine whether they are going to stay on the site or leave.
So, your website’s design and its copy and content must be able to engage visitors enough to want to stay on your site for more than a minute.
This way they can learn how your product or service can provide them with the solutions they are searching for.
Did you know that 75% of a company’s credibility is based on its website design?
Creating an online presence is one of the most crucial tasks a startup has to execute well to see success, which is impossible without a great website.
But, what is it that makes a website great enough that people want to browse through it?
It looks awesome and has an excellent UX which creates maximum engagement and drives high conversions. The bottom line here is, that website design has a direct impact on your business.
In light of that, let's take a look at the 7 Hot Design Tips for Startups.
1. Focus on User Experience
The simplicity of your website does determine whether a customer will purchase what you are offering regardless of what that is.
Simplicity is about having a minimalist approach and that is what makes your startup more professional.
This means that your website has to not only create a great first impression by being easy to read, with seamless navigation, and to be visually appealing.
Did you know, 88% of online visitors/consumers are less likely to return to a site after a bad experience?
Being able to provide users with a smooth and engaging journey means you are providing them with a positive user experience or UX and this will likely lead to them making a purchase or submitting their contact information on a form with less pressure.
So, keep this hot tip in mind to keep potential clients happy to build up customer retention and ROI.
2. Follow your Brand ID
Did you know 28% of people will stop engaging with a website if its branding is unattractive?
What is it that makes your business special and stand out? What makes your products or services unique? As we all go through life soul searching trying to find out who we are by paving the way for self-expression, your customers are also asking the same questions about your business and its product or service.
The questions are all relative and the answer revolves around identity more specifically your brand identity. Brand identity is a set of characteristics defining who you are as a business, what values your business stands for, and what solutions your business provides.
This is why brand identity is so important to nail down, especially at a time when there are thousands of other companies globally promoting similar products or services on the internet.
Your brand identity is an expression of your business visually coming to life on your website. Your branding and your message should go together and should be able to represent each other.
This includes your company logo (your identity) and it should be unique and completely represent what your business is about.
You need to research some of the best logo designs before you or a web design agency starts to create yours, this way you can make sure that you have a well-designed logo and a design that reflects your brand.
Branding, in general, allows your website visitors to know your business by association, and that helps to build brand quality and brand trust. Your brand identity across all of your platforms and channels will help to increase your website conversions.
3. Ready, Set, Call-to-Action (CTA)
Did you know 70% of small business websites lack a Call to Action (CTA) on their homepage and across their website?
When designing a new website's look and feel, you need to aim the right “arrow” at users to take action. Your website has a specific product or service that you are trying to get users to focus on and to do that you need to have a proper call to action button.
It can be something like “free trial”, “submit” “click to save” “buy now” or “get access now”. Make sure that this CTA is easy to locate on the page, this way it's easily accessible by the website user. Give your website visitors the feeling of urgency to click your CTA and then convince them why they should be buying your product or service.
A shocking 73% of websites don’t have a CTA and that's a shame because they are missing out on data and sales. If your website has been designed with a CTA you stay ahead of your competitors who lack a CTA and clearly, they are not up to par with your business. To execute this well, CTAs need to be clear and strong.
Support your CTAs with other design elements, like white space, color, and contrast, along with the content of the page to direct users toward the desired action.
4. Make your website mobile-friendly
Nowadays, most people use a cell phone to surf the Internet. For this reason, your website must be suitable for mobile devices.
Adapting your website for optimal mobile use shows that you are thinking about your users and will certainly help you to be remembered.
This means that you need to solve the development and design part and create the best website solution that works on both a computer and a cell phone.
5. Content Control
Having high-quality content on your website is crucial because it plays a very valuable role. The quality of your web copy and content affects your ability to draw in visitors and what gets people interested in your offerings.
Did you know 41% of people will stop engaging with a website if the content is overbearing and dull?
How useful the content is for a visitor right down to design elements such as readability will define how easy it is for the user to understand your product or service.
If your website’s text readability is high, your visitors will be able to thoroughly scan through the content of your website and take in the information about your business’s products and services with less effort.
This all goes back to the customer experience and making things easy to navigate and easy on the eyes of your customer for the most positive experience in the end.
Working with the right web design agency will make your website not only run to its best efficiency to keep your website visitors relaxed and happy while viewing your website, but it will look on point too.
6. Optimize your site for the best results
To be found on the Internet, your website must undergo SEO optimization.
This means that you should read up on SEO best practices or hire an SEO expert to help you get your website ranked high and get noticed. Pay attention to SEO elements such as meta title and meta description, start a blog, and explore the possibility of backlinks.
All of this will help you increase the optimization level of your website.
7. Keep Up With Latest Web Design Trends
Did you know studies found that 46% of consumers base their decisions on the credibility of a website from its visual appeal & aesthetics?
Visual design plays a pivotal role in website design almost as much as the website’s functionality. Having a visually appealing user experience will help to convert those website visitors. Website designers these days are just so creative while keeping the sites functional and clean of clutter.
Click here for the latest web design trends.
- Using AI & Machine Learning For Web Design
You can now hold machines accountable for those website design trends you love or hate. Artificial intelligence and machine learning have made it possible for algorithms to make design decisions that humans once had to make.
While this may seem like a recipe for disaster, it could lead to some amazing results, since machines don't get distracted or tired and can process vast amounts of data faster than humans.
In the context of website design, AI and machine learning will be the secret ingredient that takes things to the next level by coming up with solutions that we wouldn't normally think of.
- Minimalistic Design With Clean Lines & Simple Typography
Increasing digitization is also influencing design trends. It is no secret that in recent years, busy, cluttered designs have given way to more minimalist ones. While this shift is partially a result of minimalism's growing popularity, it also reflects changing consumer needs.
People are increasingly seeking designs that are clean and easy to navigate, and technological (like AI) advances have also influenced this trend toward minimalism.
Screens are becoming more sophisticated, which means web designers have the flexibility and fluidity to experiment with more simple layouts and bolder typography, resulting in more eye-catching and intuitive designs.
- More Color, More Gradients & Duotones
By adding color, you can enhance the appearance of a bland product. In addition, you can convey a sense of vibrancy and energy that monochromatic designs lack.
And when executed well, both gradients and duotones can add a deeper layer of richness to an otherwise flat (blah) design.
In 2023 these visual design trends will be seen everywhere, even with companies investing in web redesign to stay on top of design trends to attract more users.
- The Rise of Interactive Elements: Animations & Video Backgrounds
No one and I mean no one likes or even wants to look at a boring website. To keep visitors engaged, your website must be visually appealing, that's where animation and video come in.
If you integrate these elements into your design, it will add further interest and excitement.
Video backgrounds can enhance the immersive experience of a site by adding motion and depth to it, and animations can highlight important information or just add a touch of fun.
When done tastefully, both videos and animations can bring a website to life and amp up UX. So if you're looking to spice up your site, consider adding some animated or video elements.
- VR Virtual Reality & AR Augmented Reality For Site Design
While VR or virtual reality is still mostly used for entertainment and gaming purposes, AR or augmented reality is beginning to be used for a variety of practical applications in website design. For example, AR can be used to create interactive 3D (three-dimensional) models that can be displayed on a website.
Using the models, you can demonstrate how a new car would look in a room or how a piece of furniture would look in a room. In addition to creating virtual tours of a website, AR can also be used to help potential customers decide if they would like to visit the site in person.
Users will have the ability to enjoy and savor an interactive and more immersive website design due to virtual and augmented reality.
- Advancements In Responsive Design Including Every Screen Size
Increasingly, people are spending more and more time online, and many businesses are switching to the web to conduct their operations. The importance of responsive design for websites is therefore greater than ever.
By doing so, the website will be easy to navigate and use no matter what device or screen size you are using.
Also, responsive design is critical for ensuring a fast and efficient website load time. Now that so many people access the internet on their phones, websites must be optimized for mobile devices.
In short, responsive design is no longer an option; it's a necessity.
In Conclusion
As we come to the end of 2022 and enter 2023 we are entering an exciting phase in the world of web design. From design aspects that have been around for a while but are getting refined every year such as UX, brand identity, and content to prompting users to take action on sites.
But, by now, it should be clear to you that a major shift in website design trends is just around the corner. We are seeing a purposeful application of artificial intelligence as well as machine learning for the creation of sophisticated designs.
Minimalist designs will make an impact to reflect what people desire in their day-to-day lives with simple typography and clean lines.
With regards to color and all its wonderful diversity, we will see gradients as well as duotones that are going to have a big impact on web design this year. We will also see interactive elements with animations taking center stage as well as video backgrounds that will also gain in popularity.
Last but definitely least, virtual reality and augmented reality are finally starting to make their own way into the exciting website design world. Use all these hot website design trends in your startup venture and enjoy the ride while you engage and entice your users.
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