mobile web designAccording to a recent poll, a stunning 52% of users are less likely to become a customer of a given company if it has a bad mobile site. This statistic shows just how fickle the modern consumer can be when it comes to mobile user experience. In order to connect with an increasingly mobile customer base, businesses need to play by new rules. Having a highly functional mobile web design is just one of them, but how exactly do you achieve that goal?

Here are some of the top mobile web design ideas and trends for 2018.

  1. Shadowing
    Creating a website that looks good is not too difficult. Creating one that looks great… That takes skill. Shadows are the first step toward taking the ordinary, adding depth, and creating the extraordinary. While flat design has been the dominant trend in 2016 and 2017, keep an eye out for more 3D elements such as shadows this year.
  2. Saturation
    Like with shadows, saturation is a quick way to make aesthetics that much more impactful. Especially with the ridiculously high-resolution screens on the market, aesthetics matter more than ever.
  3. Animation
    Clever loading icons, page transition movements, and responsive web design in general are in right now. Make sure to keep animations as lightweight as possible to reduce loading speeds.
  4. Illustration
    Hand drawn, or apparently hand-drawn artwork instead of super-polished graphics, add a bit of familiarity to the right type of website.
  5. Tasteful Asymmetry
    Are grids gone? Not quite, but play with people’s expectations by rearranging display boxes in a slightly off-center fashion. Just don’t get too carried away and make the navigation confusing.
  6. Rounded Edges
    Pay attention whenever you browse bigger sites. Do you notice any squares or triangles with visually sharp edges? Smooth and oblong are the shape of the moment, so break out your digital sandpaper and stop being so rough around the edges.
  7. Mini-Maximalism
    This is not a trend yet, or at least not in the mainstream. Some professional web design teams are moving gradually away from minimalist chic to present a cluttered and cacophonous site. It’s fresh, bold, attention-grabbing, and in your face. Use with caution, though; the general public isn’t quite ready for full maximalism.

Mobile web design, and indeed the field as a whole, is a moving target. One thing will almost definitely continue for some time, though. Mobile websites will keep getting more important as we move forward. So, shelve your 17-inch graphic design laptop and break out your phones next time you brainstorm.