Throughout the relatively short history of Internet and web technology, designers have used a huge variety of different trends and styles. Some trends hang around for long enough to become part of how we handle web design, while others disappear just as quickly as they arrived. In the current landscape, new ideas and techniques appear almost every day. They make the web industry one of the most fluid and rapidly changing industries in the world.

Simple Description

When most people think of the word “trend,” they think of something developing or changing due to a new idea or direction. This actually works well for describing trends in web design. A trend in web design typically starts out as a specific idea or design movement. As this new direction gains steam, other websites adopt it in the masses. Trends help designers the direction that the industry is going in the future.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Web Design Trends

One of the main advantages of trends revolves around the growth of creativity and knowledge in web design. Trends help designers understand new ideas and changes in the industry. They often spark new kinds of thinking and increased creativity. Trends also provide job security for web designers and keep the web interesting and fresh. If trends did not exist, there would be a reduced need for website updating and re-designing. That reduced need would translate to fewer jobs for web designers. It would also mean that the average lifetime of webpages would increase. The web would be a dull place without trends and constant change.

On the other hand, designing a website with the goal of following a trend can be very risky. Since some trends only last for a few months, trend-focused website designs can look old and outdated within only a year or two. Some people also feel that trends cause many websites to look too similar. They believe that trends actually reduce creativity and hinder a designer’s ability to create unique work.

Current Trend Examples

Flat design, sometimes called clean design, is a very popular trend in today’s web design world. It focuses on promoting a clean and crisp feel throughout a design. Popular effects and depth tools are replaced with a “flat” simple look in flat design. Large companies such as Apple, Google and Microsoft are all big on this design trend.

In the past year or so, many websites have changed their full-width headers by blurring the background image. This makes the text stand out more clearly. Although this trend is just a small design technique, it can really add individuality to a webpage.

Trends should work as a challenge to you to be different in your work, but sometimes they do act as an aid for simply following the crowd. Trends are also a great communicative tool for gaining insight into what the rest of the world thinks about an idea. Whether you love trends or despise the whole idea, they’re not going anywhere. If you’re open enough to them, they may provide just enough information to help you achieve success in future projects.