At the end of each year, we are flooded with opinions on what the latest trends are going to be the following year, whether it’s for food, fashion, fitness or digital! TPG thought we’d look back and review the top 5 trends predicted for 2014 and look forward to 2105. 
2014
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- Responsive websites This was the year that responsive design really came to the fore. Keeping your clients happy by having a website that can be read clearly on smartphone and tablet sized screens was a must.
- Parallax Scrolling The continual scrolling approach, usually on the home page and making use of the full screen and photography. The design elements of scrolling also works well with responsive design.
- Less Text The rise of infographics and icons beat down the use of too much text. Can be a great idea infographics and icons are appealing and can speak a 1000 words, but a balance still needs to be struck between minimalism and helpful information for your users.
- Staying On The Same Page This trend was predominantly for shopping/products and gallery/portfolio sites. Clicking on a product to view a larger image and rather than being taken to a new tab, the selected product is shown in a light box and highlighted. Keeps the user engaged in the site and not drifting off.
- Tile/Mosaic/Card Design This trend is best described as looking like a Pinterest board – works well with magazine style content and makes the most of great photography.
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Summary
These trends were certainly popular in 2014 and will no doubt be built on for 2015. The use of large background images was also popular, again the balance needed to be struck between imagery and information. We were also told that content is king more times than we’ve had hot dinners, but to coin the well used phrase from Gary Vagnerchuck “Content is king but marketing is queen.” Not just getting a blog out once a week or month, but choosing your audience and how you get it too them became increasingly important in the choka block world of blogging. So how about 2015? Does it look that much different to 2014? Let’s see…
2015
- Responsive Websites Mobile and tablet usage is still growing and isn’t going away. How many of us browse on smart phones/tablets on our way to work or on the sofa? Increasingly sites that aren’t easily read from different sized screens will look dated. And it’s not just tablets/smartphones – TVs and watches are now in the frame.
- Parallax for All Here to stay and proving popular as template software takes this trend forward, providing lower cost options. We’re a nation of scrollers not clickers.
- Ghost Buttons You’ve seen them appearing as white outline boxes, discretely positioned over a large background image, usually with a one word call to action. Perfect for minimalist design with a nod to marketing.
- Hidden Menus These can take some time to get used to. Usually top right or left corner showing three short paralle lines that once clicked show a drop down main navigation menu. Useful if you wan to be minimliast but can leave visitors to your site not sure where to get information from.
- Colour and Font 2014 was all about monochrome with an accent colour. 2015 is predicted to be about hue. Choose your base colour and then use shades there of with classic black and white.The use of large typography to grab attention and moving away from large back ground images is looking popular. Well placed and careful choice of fonts is key.
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Not too different from 2014, with those wanting to break away from the large photography crowd heading towards large text. It will be interesting to see if hidden menus takes off.
