20 Web Design Trends for 2022: Upcoming Visual Trends With Examples
The primary mission of web design is to create a great user experience, increase website conversions, and strengthen a brand image. According to a GoodFirms survey, 38.5% of users judge a business by the first look at their website. If a web resource is of poor quality, a prospect can shape a corresponding attitude towards a company itself.
To not lose customers, reputation, and revenue, a business needs to make a good impression online. As stated in Google research, a user needs 0.05 seconds to form an aesthetic perception of web design and decide whether to stay on a website or not.
At the same time, it’s necessary to hook a user with an attractive image and seamlessly guide them from an entry point to a target action. If it’s challenging for visitors to understand navigation at first glance, it’s a fifty-fifty chance that they will switch to competitors.
Factors affecting bounce rate and site conversion, source
A cluttered website interface, small font size, stock photos, low-quality graphics, outdated web design — each of these points enhances the likelihood that a visitor’s mouse will hover to the Exit button.
But how to balance aesthetics and the user experience improvement, leave a positive first impression, and keep up with fast-paced trends?
Keep reading to:
- learn about the latest trends in web design for 2022;
- understand how they are formed;
- develop a solid UX strategy that will yield desired results.
3D graphics in web design
Three-dimensional images are increasingly appearing in all areas of design. The high demand for 3D animation is due to a myriad of new tools that interest web admins.
Realistic 3D
Professional 3D graphics are sometimes difficult to distinguish from real photos or videos. This effect can surprise and completely capture users’ attention, which is why it’s currently trending in modern web design.
Realistic 3D animation, Platoon Aviation
Interactive 3D
Web designers are constantly in search of new ways to keep users engaged and are widely resorting to interactive 3D illustrations that website visitors can interact with.
An interactive 3D element, @ andrew.eugene
Due to COVID-19 and isolation, the trend found its extensive use in the field of eCommerce. Interactive 3D enables a product experience without leaving home.
Gucci Interactive Online Shop
Online fitting rooms are another great example of an eCommerce interactive experience. The functionality allows customers of online stores to design a 3D dummy according to their figures, virtually try things on, create a stylish outfit and safely make a purchase.
A virtual fitting room, Style.me
By using interactive 3D on websites, businesses boost conversion rates, increase engagement, and significantly reduce returns.
3D motion design
Static graphics have long ceased to amaze. Motion design has replaced statics and is firmly holding its ground. The characters and elements of a website come to life, move, and involve users in further interaction with the content.
Motion design, Code de la Route
Even nonexistent 404 pages can be enhanced with animated 3D graphics, the first thought about which is to close them immediately.
Unusual design serves as a hook, attracts attention, and keeps a user on a website. Instead of leaving a page, a visitor can continue to explore the content and find answers to their inquiries.
3D design of a 404 page, @outcrowdstudio
Such an approach to web design will reflect positively on the perception of a website and a brand image in general.
Micro animation
If you decided to use complex elements, it’s important to remember that animation should work to benefit your business. Too many moving objects distract from the main message on a website.
Sometimes it is better to use micro animation to highlight the key elements of a web page and nudge a user to take the desired action — to fill out a form or subscribe.
Button micro animation, dribbble
Creator’s illustrations
Unique creator’s graphics on a website is a great way to make a web resource original, create a special atmosphere and attract users’ attention.
Creator’s illustrations on the Microbians website
Compared to photography, graphics can convey a brand’s concept at a much deeper level. Abstract drawings, watercolor imitations, characters — all of these belong to web design, where only a creator’s imagination is the limit.
Watercolor imitation images on the clothing retailer FCXV Fabienne Chapot website
Abstract graphics
Abstract and surreal web design with animation elements is one of the recent trends. It grabs users’ attention and provides an unusual emotional experience.
Vibrant graphics in web design, Lunchbox
2D animation
Animated graphics in web design resembles a cartoon with its storyline. It creates a unique and fascinating world, evokes positive emotions, and encourages a user to interact.
An animated website with gamification features, Wayfinder
2D + 3D animation
It is also trending to combine 2D animation with 3D objects. This technique looks attractive, emphasizes the main product, and shows a good conversion rate.
2D and 3D animation combined, Meadlight
Scrollytelling
Scrollytelling is a combination of scrolling and storytelling, which is similar to reading a print magazine, but with interactive additions. In other words, this is an online long-form story only with photos, videos, and animations. You scroll down a long article and come across animated images that complement the text and encourage you to read further.
In the example below, users immerse themselves into the website by scrolling, as if meeting the main character in person.
Scrollytelling and realistic 3D visualization, Sakharov.space
Together with hyper-realistic 3D visualization, which blurs the distinction between graphics and photography, webmasters create immersive multimedia stories.
Horizontal scrolling
Horizontal scroll is a UX design trend that positively undermines users’ attention, who expect a typical vertical scrolling.
This trend takes its roots from the rapidly growing popularity of Internet access via mobile devices. Scrolling horizontally saves space on a vertical screen, allows displaying more content, and enables a user to see if the information is relevant to their search query.
Horizontal scrolling, FCXV Fabienne Chapot
While web designers are increasingly using this solution, it’s important to remember that users still expect to see vertical scrolling as a standard web design element. Sometimes, it’s better to live up to already set expectations and not give up on standards from a business perspective.
Calm color palette
Mellow shades are a trend driven by the desire to get away from the pandemic hustle, take a break from a fast-paced rhythm, and enjoy the tints of nature.
Subdued colors in web design create a feeling of calmness, confidence, and security. These can be light grays, browns, greens, as well as darker, deeper earthy tones. The amount of screen time has increased significantly, and this trend provides visitors with an opportunity to spend time on a website without eyestrain comfortably.
Web design with a natural color scheme, Wolf & Son
To make a website design look harmonious, it’s essential to pay attention to the presentation of other elements, like buttons and pop-ups. The example below shows a pop-up matching an overall design concept.
A cookie notification pop-up, Nude
Minimalism and blank spaces
The essence of minimalism in web design is establishing priorities that matter to your visitors. You allow a user to get away from digital noise and concentrate on the essentials.
Blank spaces improve user experience, simplify navigation, and speed up website loading, which is especially important for online stores. After all, 53% of users leave a website if it takes more than three seconds to load. To keep your site minimalist, use a plain background, one or two accent colors, and a clear large-sized font to easily convey your message.
Large-sized font for visual accent, 62 Management
Use additional website elements, like pop-ups or tooltips, to declutter the design of unnecessary information. Also, don’t forget about pop-ups’ design. They should correspond to your corporate identity.
A pop-up as a web design element, Giulia Tonon
Gradients in web design
You won’t surprise anyone with a gradient in web design, but it continues to evolve and remains in trend.
Animated gradient
A traditional gradient usually blends three or more colors and is used as a background for a website. To make your website look modern, try to brighten the background by adding simple animation.
Animated gradient background, Datalands
The main secret of a spectacular gradient is the right combination of shades. You can use your company’s colors, or follow a trend and experiment with a muted color palette.
Grainy gradient
Gradient with generated colorful noise creates a completely different effect. It makes the design look more natural, adds some texture and depth to flat graphics, and creates an illusion of mass and volume, which is especially important for minimalist websites.
Grainy gradient background, Richard Sancho
Since the gradient already grabs attention, it’s critical not to clutter the design. That’s why this technique works so well with minimalism and big typography.
Big typography
A large, bold, readable font is a bold and practical trend in 2022, where words become a graphic element rather than just text.
Unusual-sized typography helps businesses communicate their message clearly to their target audience. A visitor immediately focuses on the essentials and effectively browses a website from any device.
A laptop and mobile versions of a website, WILD FI
It’s a universal technique that matches a variety of styles. Web designers often combine the concept of big typography and a minimalist approach to website design.
Big typography on a minimalist website, Huge Inc.
Make sure the font you choose suits your brand, audience, and goals. An easy-to-read sans-serif font is a great choice for enhancing the UX of your website.
Interactive text
Another way to improve your website navigation and make the design look more attractive is to enable a font change on hover. This trend echos big typography and encourages a user to interact with a website.
In the example below, web designers have harmoniously used a cookie consent pop-up. It fits into the concept of minimalism and doesn’t steal the spotlight from menu tabs.
Interactive text and a minimalistic pop-up, Pixies Agency
When implementing this method, remember about text legibility. Select readable fonts, and don’t overload your design with unnecessary elements.
Cursor as a web design element
The cursor pointer is always present on a site and can be a creative addition to web design, changing the default icon design when you hover a mouse over important elements.
You can enhance the UX by placing clear instructions as a text or an image inside the cursor, such as: scroll the page, start the video, click on the photo, and so on.
The cursor design change on different elements of the site, Open Design Critiques
It’s vital not to overdo it or confuse a user — implement the effect where justified and helps speed up navigation.
Either way, unique cursor pointers will help your visitors spend a great time on your website 🙂
Web development trends
Page loading speed and adaptation for mobile devices are not so much of a trend as a necessity for a modern website. If your site loads quickly on mobile devices and has a convenient mobile environment, Google will put it up in the search results.
Let’s take a look at a few more factors that can help improve the user experience on your website.
Voice control
Voice search is not a newly discovered technology in web design, but it’s gaining in popularity. Voice control is usually available for a mobile version of a website. It simplifies navigation and significantly improves conversions.
It’s not necessary to contact software engineers to add the option to a website. For example, Voxpow offers to register and install a ready-made code that connects voice control to your website.
The website opens a tab page in the example below depending on the Blog or Features voice command.
Voice control on the website
Voice control is simple to use when visitors search for information, as it quickly solves their inquiries. It also not only improves user experience but also positively influences SEO optimization.
It’s fair to say that websites that already use voice control are a few steps ahead of their competitors.
Custom lead forms
To offer prospects exactly what they are looking for, it’s important to learn as much as possible about them. A lead form on a website is a basic way to do it.
Create the possible shortest form so that a user could leave some personal information. Display a pop-up at the right moment and offer a useful bonus in exchange for data.
You can set up smart pop-ups based on user behavior on a website in 13Chats. For example, a form will appear when a person has visited your website for the second time, stayed more than a minute on the checkout page, went to the website from a specific source or a keyword. In total, the service offers 21 scenarios, which take just a few minutes to set up.
The form you create should fit into the web design concept. The service allows you to choose a color and tailor a pop-up according to your company’s style.
Customizing the appearance of a form in 13Chats
Select a form template. More than 30 different options are available to you.
Choosing a template for a pop-up in 13Chats
Then edit a template, if necessary, and add essential fields to collect information.
A modal with custom fields in 13Chats
The next step is to set targeting of a form according to users’ actions on a website. Once you complete the setup, you will have a great lead generation tool that visually matches your website’s concept.
Craft imagery that will work for your website!
You can tailor the 13Chats templates to your wants and needs, add your imagery and CTAs and enjoy the functionality! Sign in!
Chatbots
Chatbots offer users a convenient way to interact with a business. They initiate and personalize conversations, increasing conversion at the same time. In addition, a chatbot provides 24/7 customer support and saves your personnel time.
A chatbot on a website can:
- answer frequently asked questions;
- collect contact details of subscribers;
- connect a manager to the chat at any time;
- tell prospects more about your product;
- offer to place a purchase in Messenger in just a few clicks.
You don’t need to have coding skills to set up a chatbot. It is enough to connect the 13Chats to create your chatbot in a couple of steps using a simple interface.
Setting up a chatbot in 13Chats
You can easily link a ready-made chatbot to a widget or a modal by adding the “Messenger” button.
The Messenger button in the form
An online assistant on a website that works 24/7 is a modern trend that is rapidly gaining momentum. Sign up to 13Chats and close more sales on a website using a chatbot, live chat, and pop-ups with a large free plan.
Conclusions
Web design is paramount when it comes to creating a brand image. Moreover, it’s an essential component of customer experience that directly impacts how well your business converts. Here are some key points from the article that will hopefully help you leave a long-playing impression on your website visitors:
- It’s always worth starting with an overview of current trends before launching a new website or redesigning it. This will help you create an up-to-date and engaging product for users.
- Web design in 2022 will include interactive 3D elements, animated graphics, gradients, and font variations. These trends work well together: big typography and gradients complement minimalism, interactive cursor pointer, and horizontal scrolling engage users further, and realistic 3D, micro animations, and scrollytelling create compelling stories.
- Regardless of the latest trends, user-centered web design will never go out of style. Therefore, it’s important to ensure a great user experience and not overload a website with unnecessary elements. Think about your goals and the needs of your audience. This will help you determine which type of web design suits your web page the best.
- Pandemic and isolation will long influence trends in web design. In addition, the need for personalization, the popularity of mobile devices, and new Google algorithms are setting their own rules. But not only a creative interface is critical if you want to bring your website to the top, but also fast-loading as well as mobile device adaptations.
Modern tools such as voice control, smart lead forms, and chatbots help personalize communication and improve the user experience.
Book a free demo to learn more about setting up pop-ups and chatbots. We will show you how to customize forms according to your website’s design, make them appear only at the right time, and lead users to conversion without annoyance.
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