David Lee King
This was a great presentation by David Lee King that was filled with useful information. David reviewed 15 web trends we need to be watching now and into next year.
Mobile
Mobile-first design. You want things you can scroll with your finger, which means big obvious buttons. 56% of US adults own smartphones, and they all have web access.
Responsive design is used to develop websites for many different types of devices.
“Designy” Things
Simplicity in design. Let the text and images speak for themselves. Google is the leader of this–they have not changed their site since 1995!
Use white space for emphasis and to lend simplicity to the design.
No flash! Websites are getting rid of Flash. Use modern web languages like HTML5 and CSS for animation. They work on modern browsers without the need for frequent updating.
Visual
Parallax design is a way to create a 3-D look on a page. It is done with CSS.
Flat design focuses on clean visuals and use of color (almost opposite of parallax) No shadows or gradient.
Blocking. Use blocks of content (see the Pinterest site) for different subjects. All content is on equal footing and is easy to browse. Flickr does this; all photos are equal, allowing easy selection by clicking. (Many people think this might not be the best type of design for library websites because some content may get lost, and it is hard to tell what is most important. There may be large areas of white space at the end of the site because there is not an endless stream of content.)
Big images. Some sites put a large image across the background of their site, which can be very effective.
Colors. Subtle and calm colors, retro colors, and neon are all popular now. Find out what colors appeal to your primary audience and use them. (Idea: Go to Home Depot and get some color swatches to see what is popular and what colors work well together.) Adobe Kuler has lots of good combinations.
Typography
Web fonts. We are no longer limited to a small selection of fonts. see Google’s fonts page and Adobe’s Typekit. We can now use designs from the print age; see webtypography.net or praticaltypeography.com.
Content
Video. There is an increased presence of video on websites. (Recently, there were 25 videos on the CNN website.) 78% of Americans have watched or downloaded videos, according to a recent study. Learn to make videos in your library and put them on YouTube, Facebook, or your website. People want to watch things!
Social Media. It is still big, getting bigger, and it is a great way to push out your content. Many sites now provide analytics to measure which posts are doing well. Make sure there are pointers on your website to social media content.
Navigation
Large buttons. Make them stand out with color so they are easy to find. Indicate the next step for the user with a button.
Vertical scrolling is important especially for mobile users. A “sticky” navigation bar that stays put lets users navigate without having to scroll up and down.
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