Web Design Trends in 2013

The new 2013 is here and everyone in the world of  web   design  is perhaps curious about what changes and innovations it will bring. How the high-technology is going to influence the tools and the approaches used by web designers worldwide? What is the impact of the new ways of web browsing on the  web   design ? The answers to those questions are yet to come in the next months. Although we are not fortune tellers we follow the logical steps of changes and innovations in the digital world and we do have some suggestions of what the trends in 2013 will be. Something “new”, something “old” and a lot of extraordinary “tricks” is what we expect to inspire us in 2013 in the  web   design . The trends for 2013 in general are for more mobile-friendly, user-friendly and abstract techniques applied by web designers for truly awe-inspiring and memorable websites.

• Responsive  web   design  – The responsive  web   design , also called responsive layout and fluid design is not news for web designers. It was one of the most successful trends in 2012 and it is beyond clear that it will keep its top positions for a successful trend in 2013. The responsive design is to blame for the responsive websites to adjust and look great on different screen resolutions and devices. Web browsing today is possible through all kinds of new devices, from smart phones to tablets, laptops and desktops with a lot of innovations constantly appearing in the digital world. Thanks to the responsive design, the optimized websites are accessible, readable and attractive on all resolutions and screen sizes. With the introducing of the HTML 5, the responsive layouts have never been more attractive and effective.

• Mobile browsing steps back to give a place for browsing through apps – This is one of the new trends for 2013 expected to grow popularity, especially for the Internet browsing through mobile devices. Even though the responsive design assures the excellent appearance and functionality of the websites on different screen sizes, it turns out that the most convenient (for now) web browsing is through mobile applications. This is truth especially for social media sites, like Facebook, Twitter, Gmail and Google+.

• Website optimization through interactive (parallax) scrolling – First, it is good to mention that 2013 will be the year of the vertical scrolling, which is a lot more user-friendly, before the horizontal is. The vertical scrolling is more convenient for Internet browsing through mobile devices, which is the main reason for its popularity. The parallax scrolling is a new trend in the world of  web   design  that makes the websites more attractive and “alive” than ever. It assures an easier navigation. It gives a sense of depth of the website by giving the objects 3D space, even though they are two-dimensional objects, placed on different layers. The key of the parallax scrolling is that graphics could be scrolled at the same directions but at different speeds which provides an interactive visual experience for users.

• Bye bye to the Flash – Adobe Flash was among the highlights in the past 5 years, however the release of the hyper-text markup language version 5 it is clear that the Flash is playing its “last game”. The new player on the field is one of the elements of hyper-text markup language version 5 that can make animations using two-dimensional graphics and creates dynamic layouts in easier and more effective way than the Flash.

• Social media becomes even more important in 2013 – If there is one element of the digital world that is growing popularity faster than we can imagine, it is the social media. Therefore, it is only logical that the sharing badges of different social media sites become an inseparable part of the successful sites that will increase customers’ engagement and interest. The trend is for a deeper integration of the social media networks as part of the brand building and the viral marketing of the successful websites.