2015 Webdesign and Development Trends

The first trend that Monks foresee is EXTENDED FORM ELEMENTS. With an increase in the number of front end developers and plugins, we will get to see more effects: input validations, tooltips with guidance, floating labels and so much more.

Following the extended form elements, Monks also feel that more websites will use VIDEO BACKGROUND instead of text. All those sites requiring to showcase a lot of informational content, would rather prefer providing a video tutorial than verbose pages full of information. Host the video on a CDN, for quicker downloading. With the development of HTML5 video it’s all the more easier. Use Vimeo or Youtube if bandwidth is a constraint.

3D TRANSITIONS will be the new vogue, especially when it comes to e-commerce sites. A lot of products will also provide 3D walkthrough enabling better view and ease of purchase. Apart, other sites might also resort to 3D transitions while developing navigation menus, animated image galleries, and elements. However, due to the lack of support across the browsers, it should be used consciously

Mobile websites will be everything SWIPE, TOUCH AND TAP. With responsive sites being a major focus for most companies, it is imperative to provide the best possible user experience to the customers. Rather than providing upfront content blocks, most developers will utilize the power of touchscreens and design pages keeping in mind finger targets for smaller devices. They will provide users the power of touch, swipe and tap. With this there will also be an increased curiosity about the kind of effect the element would provide on swipe, touch or tap.

With new WEARABLE DEVICES coming in, developers will also need to focus on providing good experience on these devices. (There is still some time for this to happen, but developers are marking it as a TODO). Google Glass’ browser for an example (named XE7) has a resolution of 640×360 pixels and it can be controlled with voice, by a touch-sensor on the side of the glasses or with head movements.

DRAG AND DROP is still alive and we expect it to pick up again in 2015. More developers will use small interactive elements and animations which will indicate DRAG and DROP functionalities. Most companies will develop sites and apps that will allow users to customize the layout with the use of drag and drop functions. HTML5 native drag-and-drop will revolutionize user interfaces.

With most companies now planning to create state of the art UX and CX, SIMPLICITY in the color schemes and website themes will be the center of attention. Overall, developers will restrict using more than two to three colors for preventing user distraction. Monks also expect the navigation to be little more straightforward eliminating lot of submenus and inner pages. Neat, clean and sleek is the way forward!

WEBGRAPHICS are interactive infographics with elements that users like to interact with. It’s a blend of infographic and interactive web page. Rather than static graphics, providing users with awesome interactive information will increase retention. We have already championed it – see one of these here.

There has been a surge in FRONT-END FRAMEWORKS. We saw BootStrap and Foundation picking up well last year, and we predict similar break-throughs this year too. Most of the new frameworks will be easily deployable and they will resolve the issues pertaining to testing servers, task-runners and web development. They will benefit users by allowing them to seamlessly integrate the site with multiple platforms.

Wear your creative hats if you have a SWEET TOOTH FOR COOKIES. Using cookies is good and it is trending quite high, but 2015 will emphasise on notifying users about the cookies in smart and creative ways. With the EU cookie law, developers will need to let them consume content without actually insisting to download cookies. Monks predict that websites will allow users to sort the kind of cookies they want to eat, we mean use and play around the site as required.