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Before going into any detail on minimalist website designs, it needs to be made clear that no style of web design is better than others. It all depends on what the website is trying to accomplish and the general needs of the customer (after all, that’s who everything we do as web designers is for). This article is only meant to highlight the effectiveness of minimalistic web design and the reasons why it can often times be a successful route to take. With that being said, minimalist does not equate to low quality.

Essentially, a minimal site will be absent of any unnecessary design elements; thus keeping the design, code, and content as clean as possible. A common misconception is that this means the website has to look extremely plain, which is not the case at all. Complex websites have numerous aspects to them that aren’t exactly necessary, but rather artistic additions that serve no purpose other than adding fluff to the page. Minimalism web design will attempt to remove any of this fluff, leaving behind only the pertinent content. But why do this? What purpose does it serve? We will highlight a few of the key reasons below:

Advantages in Minimalism Web Design

• Faster load times. It’s common knowledge in web development that the faster your website loads, the better. The internet has become so vast that there is an almost infinite number of alternative websites that the user can choose to visit. We’ve all tried to access a website, only to click the back button because it took too long to load. And “too long” in this case doesn’t mean minutes; anything over 12 seconds or so and you’re putting yourself at a much greater risk of visitors bouncing off of your site. With a minimalist website design it is much easier to keep the code clean and simple, resulting in faster load times.
• Information is easier to absorb. Quite a large percentage of visitors on any given website will not take the time to painstakingly go over every aspect of each page; they instead quickly scan the pages to find what they need. For this reason, extremely complex and bogged down sites will often times lose visitors who don’t have the patience to figure out where the information they’re looking for is located. A simplistically designed website will inherently be easier to understand and comprehend, because it has done away with all of the fluff that would have distracted the visitor.
• Navigation is made simple. A minimalist website usually only contains the most important information in regards to that particular company. This means fewer site pages, and a less cluttered design. By choosing to include only the information your visitors will need, and possibly combining pages that have similar topics, you can greatly reduce the chance of someone leaving your site because they couldn’t find what they were looking for. Make sure that your menus are clear and easy to understand, and that the interface is consistent throughout the website and you will be making the lives of your visitors that much easier.
• Problems/bugs are easier to fix. With a minimalistic website design, the code being used in the back end will usually be much more streamlined than, and not as cluttered as a complex site. This leads us to the obvious conclusion that whenever a bug arises (which is inevitable in any online business), it will be easier to locate the problem and subsequently fix it.

Simplify Your Site!

By no stretch of the imagination are we saying that minimalism website design is always the right decision. Depending on the industry or what the company is trying to accomplish, there may just be too many functions or needs that the site needs to fulfill. Don’t ever leave out important information or content in order to achieve a simpler design. The easiest way to figure out just how simple you can make your website is to ask, for each and every element of the site, “Is this necessary? How important is it?” Things like unnecessary decoration can usually be removed without doing any damage to the functionality or quality of the website. As mentioned earlier, combining similar site pages can also be an effective strategy in simplifying your website. Just remember that more complex doesn’t always mean better, and simpler doesn’t always mean lower quality.

What is a Texture in Regards to Website Design?

In web design the line between a pattern and a texture is one that is a little bit blurred; the terms have been thrown around almost synonymously, to the point that a lot of people have skewed perspectives of each. Patterns are elements of an image that can be made into tiles. Typically a pattern will be a small, repeating image that is rendered in a way that looks symmetrical. A texture, on the other hand, is usually a larger picture that doesn’t have any repeating elements. While they both have their uses in eCommerce website design, they can be utilized in very different ways. An example of both a pattern and a texture can be seen to the right in order to make it easier to understand the difference:

Creative Applications of Texture in eCommerce

Using texturing effectively in web design can add a tremendous amount of depth to an otherwise flat website. The goal is to not just build a website, but an experience that keeps people fully engaged and away from the back button. Proper use of texture can achieve this in several ways:

• Get their attention: Textures can be used as an effective tool for guiding the visitor’s attention. Typically, the first place they will look is a textured part of the website. Using this method strategically means a designer can use texture to draw attention to titles, logos, headers, banners, or call to action buttons. When visiting a site for the first time, it is much easier for the visitor to process information if they know exactly where it is they should be looking.
• Create more than just a website: With how far web design has come in terms of industry standards and overall quality of work, it is no longer enough to simply make a functional website. To be truly successful, designers need to create an experience. Think about some of the best websites you’ve been to, what do they all have in common? They create an atmosphere that fully engrosses the visitor and keeps them on the page for long periods of time. Texturing can accomplish this in many ways, for example using realistic textures like wood, ice, or sand can add a level of realism that draws people in and keeps them enraptured by the site content. A creative use of texturing that adds to the atmosphere of the website can be seen in our design for Bell Off Road
• Add contrast: A huge concern while designing a website is the amount of content that needs to be presented, and how it is going to be done without cluttering the site pages up. Too much information presented in a bland manner can be overwhelming for a visitor, but have no fear; textures can alleviate some of these concerns. Using textures as a backdrop for written information boxes, menus, or other content sections will allow a substantial amount of content to be displayed without making the experience overwhelming for visitors. An example of this concept in action can be seen in our website design for Besaw Services

Don't Overdo It!

While texturing can be an extremely valuable tool in web design, there is a fine line between effective application and overzealous usage. The art of using textures effectively is nuanced and subtle; it should be used as a complimentary feature, not a focal point. Too much texture on a website will create a chaotic and distracting environment, which is obviously the opposite of what you are hoping to do. Legibility is always the most important consideration while designing a site; don’t ever sacrifice the legibility of the page in order to add more visual stimulation. “Content is king” is a phrase that all web developers are familiar with, and for good reason: it’s absolutely true. Don’t lose sight of the fact that all of the visual aspects of a website design are there to make the actual content more appealing to visitors. As soon as everything starts distracting users from what is really important, the design of that website has become counter-productive.

What is UI Design?

User interface design, or user-centered design, is simply designing an application or software program while focusing on the experience it will present to the user. It’s a concept that’s easy to understand and agree with, but can be somewhat tricky to implement. When it comes to web design, the reason why it can be problematic is that it’s difficult to find the right balance between aesthetics and functionality. As challenging as this can be, it is also a crucial factor in whether or not a website will be truly successful. The user is the one that is ultimately deciding if they want to stay on your page, or find whatever it is they’re looking for elsewhere. This leads us to the conclusion that the user needs to be on your mind throughout the entirety of the design process. There are a variety of design aspects users have come to expect during their internet browsing escapades, and some that will often times drive them away from your site. Here are some basic features you should include and some you should avoid:

User Interface in Web Design DO'S:

• Try to keep some semblance of redundancy in the navigation layout on any website you design. If a user goes to a page on the site and all of a sudden the entire menu layout has changed, there’s a very good chance they will get frustrated and leave. Keeping the users satisfied with their browsing experience is extremely important; if the layout of the website drives people away, then you have not done your job as a Web Designer. Paths to important information need to be easy to find, clear, and consistent throughout the entire site.
• Make sure the calls to action for the company are properly placed on each page and stand out against the rest of the content, much like you would do for the website logo. A call to action, or a form that allows users to contact the company, is arguably the most important aspect of certain websites. The reasoning behind this is simple: the content on the site can be perfect, but if there’s no way for a potential customer to contact you, what will they do? Most likely, they will leave and find the next best option.
• Make the entire website an easy read. In order to fully grasp this concept, you need to understand the ways in which people browse the internet nowadays. First of all, the patience of the average user is not very high. If someone arrives at a website and can’t figure out how to navigate through it, or is overwhelmed by cluttered content, more often than not they will leave. Don’t overstuff the pages with excessive amounts of pictures or walls of text. The text that is written on each page should be easy to follow and concise.

Website Design UI DON'TS:

• Do not use unclear link text anywhere on a website. Links are meant to assist users in their navigation and guide them to where they want to be, if it’s difficult to discern between a link and the regular text then you aren’t giving your users the best possible experience. In order to increase conversions, customers need to be able to enjoy their experience.
• Avoid using pop-ups for the sole purpose of presenting content; respect the user. A pop-up just for the sake of a pop-up interrupts their browsing experience and will often times irritate the user. If a pop-up is the next step in a process that they chose to engage in, that’s fine. Don’t advertise your own products on your own site via pop-ups; it may end up doing more harm than good.
• Dead links can be a death sentence for a website that depends on keeping users engaged in the site. Again, the main factor here is the mentality of most people browsing the internet. If someone clicks a link that you presented to them and is subsequently led to an error page, the chances are high that they will just leave the website altogether.

In its entirety, Color Theory is an extremely complicated concept that encompasses many different ideas. Essentially it is a guide to color mixing and the impacts that certain colors have subconsciously on the human mind. While it wouldn’t hurt to learn as much as you can about it, this particular post will focus solely on this one aspect of Color Theory and how it is relevant to a high quality website design.

It goes without saying that one of the most important parts of any design is the color used throughout. While creating a design, you should always have the target audience in mind; what kind of message is this website trying to send? How should someone feel while looking through the individual pages? Before delving into the actual emotional responses that are evoked by specific colors, it is important to understand the relationships that colors have with each other.

• Red, blue, and yellow are the primary colors. These can be mixed to create every other color on the color wheel
• Secondary colors consist of primary colors mixed together; these are purple, orange, and green
• All of the colors in between, like blue-green and red-orange are known as tertiary colors
• Complimentary colors are the colors on the wheel that sit directly opposite each other and go together well, while analogous colors are located next to each other. Analogous colors don’t automatically look terrible together, but being so similar will provide little to no contrast

The colors used on your website are the first impression you give to users, so you want to make sure you’re creating the right emotional response. There are 3 groups of colors to consider when breaking them down into emotional categories. Warm colors will bring about energetic and joyful emotions in users, and consist of reds, oranges, and yellows. Cool colors are perfect for establishing a professional, corporate feeling while visiting a site. Blues, purples, and greens are examples of cool colors. Understanding these basic concepts behind the psychology of color recognition is the first step in deciding on a color concept for your ideal website design.

Emotional Responses to Specific Colors

Every color has the ability to create certain emotions in the viewer, but not all of them are necessarily good emotions. For the most part, each and every color has positive and negative connotations that go along with it. Here are some very basic explanations:

• Red is a powerful color that represents strength and passion. It can create feelings of energy and excitement, or conversely, anger and aggressiveness
• Orange plays on the same kinds of emotions as red, but is much less aggressive. It is an upbeat and cheerful color that is known to generate a higher level of mental activity in the viewer. Traditionally, orange can also be seen as a symbol for deceit and lack of trust
• Yellow is an inarguably exuberant color. It instantly conjures thoughts of sunshine and summer, leaving the viewer with feelings of refreshment and energy. However, a more dull yellow can represent laziness and cowardice
• Green creates a sense of safety in peoples' minds. It represents nature, health, and well being; it is for this exact reason that quite a few spas or hospitals will utilize green accents in their designs. Green also subconsciously represents greed and jealousy
• Blue will more often than not evoke a general sense of calm and peacefulness. Blue is a very common color used in banks or large corporate companies because it provides a sense of stability and trust. Certain darker shades of blue can symbolize depression or apathy as well
• Purple is another color that can have extremely soothing effects. It represents sophistication and spirituality, and can be perfect to create a sense of wonder, as brighter purples have an almost magical quality. Much like shades of blue, dark purples can intensify feelings of sadness
• White, while not technically part of the color wheel, can still be used to evoke an emotional response. It is widely regarded as a representation of purity, and can promote feelings of trust. It can also be seen as harsh and cold and create an uninviting environment for visitors
• Black represents depth and power. Good usage of black can give your website a more professional feel and bring about feelings of sophistication and steadiness. Obviously, black is also associated with quite a few negative concepts such as death and sorrow as well

Real World Examples

High Flow Performance: We designed this automotive eCommerce website using a primarily black, red, and grey design. In this particular industry it is important to showcase power and reliability, a lot of trust is put into the quality and functionality of an automobile. Red is a warm color that represents energy and power, while black and grey represent strength and dependability.

Hanbleceya: For a company that promotes health and well being, a combination of some of the cool colors was the obvious choice. Hanbleceya is a treatment facility that aims to help those who are suffering from mental afflictions through relaxation and meditation. A combination of soft blues and greens brings about feelings of comfort and calm in visitors, which is exactly what the company itself represents.

eCommerce and other types of businesses that are focused heavily on the internet and all of its applications are extremely fast moving by nature. Technologies and ideas are constantly being developed, and subsequently replacing previous standards in functionality. It’s a fast paced environment, and as an online business owner it is your responsibility to avoid being left behind. Every once in a while it’s a good idea to give your website a revamp; whether it’s a complete redesign from the ground up, or a few tweaks here and there. This may seem like an unnecessary use of time and resources, but in the long run it may give you just the boost you need.

Technologies and industry standards are constantly changing. A universal truth in any business venture is that you can’t allow yourself to appear to be behind the times. This is even more crucial nowadays, with people being able to browse the internet and find your competition so easily. A website designed ten years ago might have been revolutionary and terrifically advanced at the time, but would appear outdated and bland when held to today’s standards. An eCommerce business venture is never a case of “set it and forget it,” it needs to be improved and expanded just like every other business in every other industry.

Even in regards to the visual aspect of a website, new technologies allow designers to constantly improve the quality of their work. Color gradients, advanced shading and blending, and more detailed logos are all things that would not have been possible a decade ago. A visually dynamic design can work wonders for the success of your growing e-business, don’t underestimate the extent to which people are affected by aesthetics.

Always try to make the layout of your website as user friendly as possible. This is a multifaceted subject, as there are a variety of things you can do to make you site enjoyable to visit. Picking a design with complimentary colors that fit with the theme of the industry you’re involved in is a good first step. There’s a reason a large percentage of automotive eCommerce websites use a lot of strong colors; such as red, silver, and black. However, these colors would be a bad choice for a spa, or any company that would benefit from a more relaxed and soothing vibe. Colors play a huge role subconsciously in the way people feel about what they’re looking at, so don’t just pick your favorite colors. Do some research!

Arguably the most important aspect in design catered to the user is the way the navigation is set up on your site. We’ve all ended up on pages with hard to understand drop down menus and an even harder to understand layout. With any online venture, your goal is to keep people on your website, and this is accomplished through top of the line functionality. If your site isn’t easy to understand on a first time visit, take the opportunity of a revamp to alleviate those problems. Businesses live and die based on perceptions of the public, so at the very least a site revamp will give the impression that the company is successful and can be trusted.

A few days ago, online juggernaut Google announced that as of March 1st they will be implementing some new policies. These changes will primarily be in regard to privacy and overall functionality of the services that Google offers. The goal seems to be to create an even easier to use platform that blends seamlessly between multiple applications. Any services that use your Google account will be interconnected in order to provide the easiest and most fluid browsing experience to date. Google will track some of your information and browsing tendencies in order to offer an intuitive experience that is catered specifically to you. This includes ads that are more relevant to your interests, and better search results. For example, having your tendencies tracked could make a search for a broad topic, such as retail eCommerce, yield results that are directly related to websites you have shown interest in.

The truth is, though, that this is more or less how it’s always been; Google won’t be collecting any information that they weren’t collecting before. The new privacy policy is simply an attempt to help users understand exactly what is being monitored and how the information is being used. On their blog, Betsy Masiello notes that there won’t be any information tracking that wasn’t already being done. She expands on this later on, saying "We're making things simpler and we're trying to be upfront about it. Period."

Obviously, a function like this will raise some concerns, especially in regard to privacy. With quite a few internet users still reeling from the SOPA/PIPA situation, it’s no surprise that these issues were brought up pretty quickly. With all that has happened recently, it’s easy for people to forget that Google has consistently been the “good guy” when it comes to our internet rights. This new privacy policy is no exception, and in reality not a lot has changed; the policy itself has just been rewritten in a way that’s easier to understand. Simply refraining from signing into your Google account will prevent any browsing from being tracked, and using incognito mode in your Chrome browser will accomplish this as well. You can even edit your account preferences and decide what information you’re comfortable sharing.