As the face of your online brand, creating a website presents the perfect opportunity to really make an impact. As web design becomes increasingly progressive, it has never been easier to align technical design with your creative vision, and there are virtually no limits when it comes to building a unique site. Whether you are using a uncomplicated yet professional pre-made template or taking each and every aspect of the design process into your own hands, web design is all about creating a highly expressive and individual user experience.
The most striking websites combine the latest design trends with the unique character of their brand for some truly original results. To help get you started, we located some of the most inspirational web designs that 2016 has to offer so far.
Interactive Design
Make Me Pulse is one of the most impressive examples of how interactive design continues to transform the World Wide Web. Whilst visiting a website was once a purely informational, one-dimensional experience, today’s designers are focused on fully engaging the user. The creative project of a digital design agency, Make Me Pulse instructs the user to hold, release and move the mouse, with each prompt giving way to bold statements and dynamic graphics. Clickable menus and chunky text have long been abandoned in favor of high-impact background visuals and responsive design which seamlessly guides the user throughout.
Seamless Navigation
The “above-the-fold” rule was once one of the biggest challenges to creativity in web design, confining all important information to the top of the page. However, the rise of the scroll function has taken the effort out of site navigation, giving web designers much more freedom to experiment with aesthetics. Molamil is a prime example of how above-the-fold minimalism makes for a high-impact website, with a homepage that is reminiscent of a book cover. In true contemporary style, there is no clicking required – the user glides effortlessly through the website simply by scrolling – with a traditional menu only visible towards the end.
Unconventional Artwork
Web users are fairly accustomed to seeing dominant images in the place of excessive text, but there is another visual trend making its way into web design. Instead of dramatic photography or digitalized graphics, websites like Around the World in 12 Dishes are incorporating images in the style of hand-drawn illustrations for a contemporary and refreshingly down-to-earth feel. In a further twist on traditional navigation, this site also integrates the increasingly popular portfolio layout, taking the user through a horizontal gallery of clickable recipes.
Where web design was once a balancing act between useful information and stock-like images, the influence of responsive design has cleared the way for creative freedom. The focus has shifted away from text towards high-impact visuals, and from standard click-navigation to interactive user journeys. As these three websites have shown, experimenting with both the artistic and technical aspects of web design can make for a highly original and truly memorable site.
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