An Overview of Website Trends in 2011

An Overview of Website Trends in 2011

Just like everything else, websites also follow a certain trend. One proof of this is the change in the level of interaction and designs that websites continually showcase per year. Website trends last year focused more on big, bold logos and banners that took up an entire homepage. This year, something simpler yet more powerful takes center stage.

Be ready to welcome change in web design at the close of this article.

The key to the creation of sites that follow this year’s website trends is more HTML5 + CSS3. Yes, there will still be some Flash involved; but it will no longer be as elaborate as last year. This shift has been brought about by the blatant misuse of this technology by most website designers. For instance, a website that uses Flash requires the user to download a flash player in order to marvel at the beauty of the design. If I were an ordinary internet user, I will hit the “back” button the moment I get a message telling me to download Adobe.

HTML5 and CSS3 have been used by most designers in the past but were forgotten when Flash came into the picture. Now that the audience’s response has been gauged, it appears that a majority of users still prefer the basic and simple designs backed by HTML5 and CSS3.

Gone are the days of website trends using more vibrant and dynamic colors are widespread. To be honest, who can appreciate colors that seem to blur the vision the longer you stare at it? This year, simple color schemes are in. This could be because more and more people want to be able to access the web even if they’re on the move. Simpler designs are, say, lighter that they can be accessed remotely – using Smartphones, iPads, netbooks, and so on.

Adding depth is also one of the key elements of the rising website trends. This can be achieved by using parallax scrolling, which is traditionally used in arcade games. By doing so, images will appear multi-dimensional. The inclusion of parallax scrolling is best done with large pictures acting as the background design.

However, it can be utterly difficult and time-consuming to constantly change the web design to match the current website trends. This may mean the total change of design, a trademark that could get lost in the process; making potential customers even more confused. Take Google for example, they have managed to retain the simplicity of the page while at the same time following the trends. All they do is constantly change the logo to show how they go with the flow.

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