We have just started the new year and everyone’s probably in the process of revamping a web design, brainstorming and reworking their marketing strategies for 2018 (if you’re not, your very behind). It’s that time of the year when web developers, brand managers, and designers are trying to keep up with their clients’ shouting for something fresh, something innovative and something unique to breathe new life into their company’s voice and product image.

What we’ve decided to do since the month is coming to an end and what is February known for… Love. So to honor this and help you get started, we thought we would list the new web design trends that we are crazy about at the moment!

High Contrast, Vibrant Images

This year is all about vibrant images dominating websites. We’re putting the whitewashed, subdued colors and stock images to rest. For 2018, we are looking at custom photos that are in tune with the brand’s general look and image rather than boring stock images that can be found almost everywhere.

It’s go big or go home for 2018. It’s time to master those vibrant color schemes, double exposure, and photo saturation.

Bold Typography

Speaking of going bold and vibrant, we’re also seeing a lot of this trend in web typography, particularly the header text. Content typography still prioritizes readability over flash but you’re welcome to be more creative and eye-catching in the homepage header.

Text styles this year will continue to be bolder, oddly spaced, haphazardly placed and sometimes even misshapen. Web designers are going to break limits this year and it would be interesting how many new and unconventional styles we will be seeing over the next few months.

Interactive Content

Now that users are more active online than in their daily lives (one reason why social media works, but that’s for another post), new web design is going to continue creating content that encourages interaction and collaboration. This year, we are going to see sites incorporating interactive content to keep their users engaged long after they have left the website. Online quizzes, trivia, user-driven content-sharing activities, etc. also make for good sources of market intelligence on what makes your audience tick.

Web Design Animation

We’re not talking of flash animations of the olden times (like 5 years ago). Websites in 2018 will incorporate more engaging animation and videos such as virtual or augmented realities, particle backgrounds, cinemagraphs and animated thumbnails. This year, websites will be more alive and more animated. The animation need not be loud and bold, however. You can play around with kinetic typography like graphic designer Paul Cooper has in the video below, paying respect to smash cult series Breaking Bad.

Hand-drawings and custom illustrations

Websites of the future incorporate more of the human touch with hand drawings and custom illustrations. It’s the most effective way of incorporating a unique personality into your website. Like we mentioned before, gone are the days when we rely on boring and generic stock photos on our sites. This year, it’s all about customization and having unique imagery to go with your site content, a good web design blog list will definitely keep your creative juices flowing and up to date on all the latest trends!

Users are more drawn towards engaging images and illustrations offer a more practical and effective way of presenting messages.

Unconventional Layouts

By now, everyone who is online knows how websites work. You scroll down to view the rest of the content, click the buttons to view more and navigate through the different web pages through the menu links. In 2018, designers have more space to play around with grid layouts and challenge the limits of conventional design. We’ll see more open spaces and asymmetry in new websites. These are just some of the cool things you’ll expect from us and other creatives in the industry. Which trend are you feeling the most? Even if we didn’t list a big trend we’d like to know your favorite!