Given all the drama, panic and fear that dominated 2020, we are seeing brands tone down their usage of color in 2021. Businesses, their customers, and the population as a whole have had to make adjustments. and may have to make even more as we prepare for what will be the new normal, whatever that new normal will look like. This applies to web designers as well.

While design trends may tend to change with time, some are more or less evergreen. If they change at all, the change is slow, while newer ones may suddenly be thrust upon us.

None of the following 5 new design trends for 2021 should cause a web designer any grief. They are not radical, mind-bending conceptions. They make sense, they are not difficult to implement, and they even suggest that the new normal may be an improvement over the old one.

We’ll show you examples of websites that are already incorporating some of these new trends, together with a selection of BeTheme pre-built websites that are also onboard.

1. Use soothing and reassuring color palettes

Strong, bold color palettes along with a variety of gradient schemes have been emphasized in recent design trends to capture a visitor’s attention.

We’ve tired of the stress, strain, and shouting associated with 2020’s “normal”, and we are more than ready to change to calmer times, and softer and more toned-down color palettes as well.

The Bellroy company’s website is an excellent example of a toned-down look. You can in fact almost smell the leather in its line of practical everyday products.

Note the toned-down background’s effect on the brightly colored object. The object still stands out, as it should do, but without shouting for your attention.

The BeSpa pre-built website’s color scheme offers another example of sending a message that is calm, inspiring, and above all, doesn’t shout to get attention.

This calm and comfortable imagery invokes pleasant, live in the moment feelings; feelings of well-being and security, and feelings that invite a visitor to explore further.

2. Effortlessly blend physical and digital imagery

Many, including numbers of new remote workers, were stuck at home with not much to do but look at their screens in 2020. This led to a greater blending of their physical lives with the digital world.

Taking note of this change in scenery, some web designers began blending graphics and special effects with real-world images, as is the case with the fashion designer Constance Burke website:

Note the blending of real models with hand drawn sketches of real products.

The BeSki pre-built site also blends the real with the digital, but takes a vastly different approach in doing so:

Note how the snow in the hero section with its real image on the homepage blends in with the next section with its digital image, which in turn blends back into a real image section, and so on.

3. Create friendly and more efficient online shopping experiences

In 2020 we witnessed a boom in online shopping, a trend that is likely to continue and accelerate. With more people shopping online than ever before, ecommerce sites need to present visitors with pathways to conversions that are efficient and easy to follow.

When they are in a brick and mortar store and know what they want, shoppers want to get in and out as quickly as possible. If they are not sure of exactly what they want or are just looking, they still want assistance or suggestions to help them make comparisons or selections.

Walgreens’ product page design sets a good example for what shoppers would like to see in an eCommerce website design in 2021:

Everything a prospective buyer needs to know is up front, and other useful information such as special offers, discounts, and customer ratings are above the fold. In the event a purchase is to be made, the next steps are clearly presented.

BePestControl’s pre-built site uses a similar method:

In this example, a shopper can either place a selection directly in the cart or read the additional information beneath the button before doing so. BePestControl highlights the importance of using straightforward navigation aids to make shopping a more satisfying experience in 2021.

4. Emphasize user-controlled video content

Once upon a time video on websites was the greatest thing since warm bread, and it is still an important vehicle for providing informative content. But are today’s users thrilled with it? Not quite so much.

Most users only want to view a video if they feel the need to see it. In other words, user-controlled videos are in, and embedded autoplay videos are becoming more and more unpopular. If viewers are given the choice as to whether to view or not to view, you can expect video to make a substantial comeback this year.

This is how Payoneer has dealt with the issue:

Notice how the Watch Video button stands out against the background. Although it invites and even entices a visitor to view the video, he or she is not forced to do so. Either way, the visitor will appreciate having been given the option.

The BeOptics pre-built site uses an analogous, albeit a slightly more subtle approach:

Here, the See More botton acts as a gateway to more information and makes visitors aware that they have an opportunity to learn more instead of compelling them to do so as would be the case with an autovideo.

5. Spend more time showing off trust builders

Although trust builders are indispensable elements in web design, finding the right ones can be a challenge. Instead of spending several minutes to size up a brick and mortar business, an online shopper will often do so in a minute or less.

Fortunately, the following trust building approaches are familiar to web designers, and they can make use of any one or of several:

• Data visualization (e.g., charts, graphs, counters, statistic callouts)
• Logos, whether they are a client’s, a partner’s, or media’s
• Client or customer reviews and/or testimonials
• Case studies/portfolios
• Security seals (e.g., Better Business Bureau (BBB), TRUSTe, PayPal Checkout)
• Proof of social involvement, environmental involvement, etc.

It’s simply a matter of which of these would be a good fit to a business’s website and could convince a visitor to become a valued customer.

The approach taken by Omaze is to emphasize social involvement, encourage its visitors to make donations, and offer prizes when they do so.

It also brings added legitimacy to the table by reserving a space for highlighting reputable publications that have featured the organization.

Testimonials and data visualization are two additional trust building elements that Omaze puts to good use.

No matter how large or small the organization or enterprise you’re designing a website for may be, there’s always room for incorporating one or more impressive trust builders.

BePortfolio shows how you might incorporate trust builders in a portfolio site:

BePortfolio’s home page dedicates plenty of space to the following trust builders:

• Portfolio samples
• Satisfied customer counts
• Testimonials and case studies
• Client logos

Giving people a reason to trust your brand is fine, but it’s a lot better if you can give them more than enough reasons to do so.

Have you begun to use these new web design trends yet?

As we noted earlier, some trends stay with us a long time. The lifetime of others can be dictated by external events, as can be the emergence of new events such as those discussed in this article. 2020 changed the way we looked at certain things, and 2021 is changing the way we look at things again as we begin to define and understand the new normal.

Whether you want to bring existing sites up to 2021 standards or implement these new trends in your new designs, BeTheme’s 600+ pre-built websites are guaranteed to get you started in the right direction.

There can be multiple reasons for not delivering a product on time. An example would be where progress slows down or grinds to a halt because of a client’s requirement cannot be met. It can be due to the designer who doesn’t have the right design tool for the task.

Your toolbox may be well stocked, but there may be a tool or web design resources you frequently use that simply isn’t up to the task at hand. Even though it is one that has served you well in the past.

The following 15 tools and resources for designers and agencies are the best in their respective categories. As such, they can be productivity boosters, and in some cases, life-savers.

1. Be Theme

This multipurpose WordPress theme is tops in its class in terms of its potent array of core features and design options, together with its flexibility and user friendliness. Given that sales of this long-time favorite web design tool now exceed the 200,000 mark, you you can be assured of getting tangible value and a great return on your investment.

• Be’s 40+ core features provide all the tools for designers and flexibility you’ll need to meet the harshest of deadlines
• The BeTheme Muffin Builder/Admin Panel/Shortcode Generator trio lets you drag and drop your way through a task without any need to write a line of code.
• If there is a single secret to Be’s success it would be its library of more than 600 responsive and customizable pre-built websites. They cover 30 industry sectors along with every popular website type or style.
• Be’s Layout Generator makes it a simple task to start a page from scratch, and you can rely on this theme’s wealth of layout and other design options to see your project through.

Click on the banner to learn more about what BeTheme can do for you.

2. Trafft Booking Software

Trafft’s brand new and modern design with easy to use dashboard and booking forms can simplify a booking operation’s workflows from beginning to end and speed up the operation by 75% or more, making it a real game-changer for service driven businesses.

Trafft:

• Manages your appointments, services and employees
• Automatically transmits email notifications to your customers and employees
• Easily and fully integrates with Zoom
• Lets you customize the Trafft Booking Form to go with your brand
• Manages pricing, online payments, and employee’s work and vacations schedules

Trafft is still in an early phase of operation. If you would like to help shape and improve it you can do so by providing feedback, this way you can shape this software to make it even better.

Click on the banner to learn more about Trafft and to sign up and participate.

3. wpDataTables

While there is no shortage of quality table and chart-building applications on the market, the number of those that can be counted on to do a good job for you significantly decreases if you require one or more of the following:

• The ability to create responsive and interactive tables and charts
• A frontend editing capability that allows tables and charts to be easily maintained
• An ability to process extremely large amounts of data that can come in various formats and/or from various sources
• The ability to process large amounts of data, including real-time data in minutes if not seconds
• Conditional formatting and styling capabilities to improve table/chart readability and understandability by highlighting or color coding key information

With the wpDataTables plugin, you can do all the above and more. Additional features include advanced filters, Gravity and Formidable Forms add-ons, and a detailed user manual.

Click on the banner to learn more about this best-in-its-class tool.

4. Uncode – Creative Multiuse & WooCommerce WordPress Theme

This pixel-perfect creative multiuse theme is particularly suitable for creative individuals and agencies. More than 80.000 sales have made it a ThemeForest best-seller.

Features include:

• A Frontend Editor for designing in real time;
• More than 400 Wireframe section templates and 70+ pixel perfect design concepts;
• The WooCommerce Custom Builder that features the Single Product, Cart, Checkout, and more;

When visiting the site, be sure and visit Uncode’s inspirational library of user-created websites.

5. LayerSlider

LayerSlider, a longtime favorite of web designers, is no longer just for creating amazing sliders. It is now a multi-use application for animation and content creation that millions of active users enjoy.

• It’s the perfect tool for giving an old website a modern look
• Popups with extensive animation capabilities are a unique LayerSlider feature
• LayerSlider is all drag and drop and mobile device and SEO friendly

6. Amelia Booking Plugin

With the Amelia WordPress booking plugin you can manage appointments, events, and employees’ schedules with a single tool.

• There is no limit to the number of appointments, clients, or employees
• Clients can book or change appointments online 24/7, and do not have to login to WordPress to do so
• Amelia easily integrates with Google Calendar, Outlook Calendar, Zoom, and the Elementor page builder
• Clients and employees have their own separate front-end panels for easy booking management

7. 8b Website Builder

8b is brand new, easy to use, features a simple and futuristic UI, and can be used on a desktop or a mobile device whether you are at home or on the go.

• Google AMP guarantees your site will be lightning-fast and responsive
• 8b comes with 250+ website sections and 16 cool starter templates
• You can link to any domain you wish

Download your own copy for free.

8. Total WordPress Theme

Total is a flexible, fast, super user-friendly multipurpose theme that you can use to create any type of website’

• Features you are not using won’t slow you down
• The Dynamic Template Function and Theme Customizer give you the flexibility to design layouts and pages exactly as you want to
• Total is Translation ready and WooCommerce and WordPress plugin friendly

9. Dr. Link Check

Broken links are not only annoying but can hurt a site’s search engine rankings as well. Dr. Link Check saves you the trouble of having to periodically check every link on your site.

Dr. Link Check crawls through your site looking for:

• Broken links and improper URL formatting
• Blacklisted sites with malicious content
• Placeholder sites that lack meaningful content
• and generates a daily, weekly, or monthly report with its findings.

10. Mobirise Website Builder

Mobirise is easy to use, offline, and free. This website-building tool enables you to create a fast, responsive, Google-friendly website in minutes.

• Because Mobirise is offline, you have total control over your design
• 4,000+ stunning website-building templates come with the package
• Since Mobirise is drag and drop there’s zero need for coding
• Mobirise’s Google AMP and Bootstrap 4 frameworks guarantee outstanding performance

You can download Mobirise to Windows or Mac for free.

11. Heroic Inbox

Heroic Inbox helps business departments and teams manage their email inboxes.

Heroic Inbox:

• encourages staff members to work together to manage email assignments and responses
• features a snappy UI and smart workflows that makes it possible for staff members to achieve the coveted Inbox Zero status in no time at all
• tracks key metrics to better understand team performance

12. WHATFONTIS

WhatFontIs is the best online tool for helping you identify fonts from uploaded images in a matter of seconds. This application’s rapid search capabilities are based on its advanced font-finding AI software and its catalog of more than 700K fonts.

• 60+ related fonts are shown for every clean uploaded image
• WhatFontIs correctly identifies a submitted font in 90% of the cases
• Cursive fonts can be identified as long as the letters are separated

13. Litho – The Multipurpose HTML5 Template

The Litho responsive multipurpose HTML5 template, with its ready-made template blocks and professionally-crafted inner pages, offers an excellent starting point for any business’s website design.

• Litho’s Bootstrap 4 framework guarantees fast performance
• The package features 36+ home pages, 230+ ready templates, and beautiful page styles for blog, shop, gallery, and portfolio sites
• Attractive hero sliders, interactive banners, working contact forms, and other useful website elements are included

Litho provides detailed documentation and top-of-the-line user support.

14. XStore – The Most Customizable WooCommerce Theme Ever

A word to the wise for anyone looking for a low-cost, trouble-free way to build an online store: Don’t overlook xStore!

Here is what you get for only $39:

• 100+ amazing shops you can customize to fit your brand
• $500+ worth of premium plugins
• A Single-product page builder, product filters, and a full Ajax shop

You’ll quickly discover that building an eCommerce website doesn’t have to be difficult.

15. Goodiewebsite

GOODIE helps people and businesses get their websites reliably coded and up and running.

• GOODIE delivers custom web design, custom WordPress development, WooCommerce development, email development, and more.
• GOODIE supports web designers who want to connect with a reliable web developer and startups looking to test their business concepts on the web

GOODIE specialties include small websites, WordPress websites, responsive email templates, and eCommerce websites

*****

You’ve no doubt placed an impressive collection of industry tools, tips, and tricks in your designer’s toolbox. There might even be a few old favorites of yours in that collection you would be hesitant to part with and replace with something else.

You want to remain competitive it’s important to seek out and stock up on the latest and greatest design tools you can find. Even though it can be time consuming and at times frustrating to do so.

We are delighted to be able to assist you in that regard by sharing with you these top 15 tools and resources for designers and agencies. Choosing one or more will definitely help you stay on top of your design game and could even make your day.

In most cases, when we are creating a web design, we are moving towards a black and white trend. It seems that it is the simplest, most elegant, and the best way to give readability on the web. However, it’s not always like that. We must take into account, based on the general function of the web, each section and determine whether the introduction of backgrounds gives an original point to the project or not.

With a black/white design, it is very easy to introduce a color that is the one that accompanies the project and gives it a note of contrast. But, if we talk about a background, we have to take different factors into account so that they fit the project and become a point in favor for it. Mainly, we have to think about how the background will transition from one page to another.

It doesn’t matter what sort of website you’re designing, if you follow these few rules, you’re backgrounds will fit in just fine:

1. Define the importance of the font

Less is more!

If you are clear about the message, why use more than we need? The font has to help us to strengthen it, but never take away from it. The font has to compliment the message in a way that perfectly describes those thoughts that are dancing around in your head, but not so much that the users notice the font more than the message.

In fact, it should almost go unnoticed by users. It should be so perfectly thought out, that the users are receiving the your message, even if you aren’t telling it to them directly.

Maybe this is easier said than done, but the font should be heavily considered when talking about backgrounds and textures.

Make it big!

The font doesn’t necessarily have to go completely unnoticed with all of your projects. Some projects require a font that is noted and that makes sense of all the content. If this is your case, make it big, do not stay half-hearted. Make a statement if you have to.

2. Incorporate a trend

If you’re looking for the perfect background or texture, you might be looking for a while. The easiest way to make sure your textures and backgrounds respond well with the users is to incorporate a trend, especially if you’re in a pinch for time. Here are a few of the big trends of 2018 and 2019:

Gradients

This year we already knew that gradients would be fashionable, so it would be a good idea to use them. Also, since, large fonts are a trend, it can be a good option to incorporate them in the header on the background, for example.

Union of colors

If you think that the gradient is too much for you, you can also play with the combination of two colors. You can further this idea by using texts with different colors. As long as the colors don’t clash, you might have a great contrast on your hands.

If we take different shades of the same color, we can create depth and visual interest. Use complementary colors to create contrast… As you can see, this idea is as big as the colors in the chromatic circle.

Hand drawn images

We’ll get more into using images in a second, but for now, just know that hand drawn art works well with many brands. Typically speaking, users see hand drawn or custom artwork on websites as a personal touch.

Combine these pieces of art with a nice contrasting background, and you might just be able to call yourself a trendsetter.

3. Use an image

The use of an image as a desktop background won’t go out of style anytime soon. You can use images in many different ways, covering the whole space, cutting out an object or person that you want to highlight, or with the introduction of gradients or elements of color.

It’s pretty clear that images help us tell our stories. After all, how boring is a page with no images? But, using the right image can mean the difference between a simple story that will be forgotten and a message being delivered.

Using abstract shapes and simple imagery can also help you a good bit. This sort of practice has sort of gone in and out of style over the past few years, but it’s always a good option for filling space.

The conclusion

Backgrounds and textures provide great insight into web design. Not only do these things take an otherwise bland space and transform it into a unique domain, they help us convey our messages.

With all that said, next time you want to change a background, or add a new one to a newly built website, give it a little extra thought. In the online space, anything that can help you stand out will help, and if that particular thing can help you grow and share your story, even better.

With such a massive digital word at the click of a mouse, it’s not all that hard to find something that meets our needs. But, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t plenty of bad web designs out there. Let’s talk about it.

What does good design mean?

Although it takes many hours of practice to become an expert in web design, the basic principle of good web design is easy to understand. In short, a good website design must be user-friendly. That is, any site visitor (be it a blog reader or a buyer of products) must be able to complete their action on the site with ease.

So think about who you are addressing with the site you own. Make sure that each page on the site gives the visitor a pleasant experience and that the information provided is logically structured, so the visitor’s needs are easily satisfied. The easiest way to identify issues with your site is to put yourself in the place of your potential client.

Let’s take a look at some design errors and identify ways you can diagnose them.

Mistake #1 – Not mobile friendly/optimized

If you have an older site, it’s time for an upgrade. Recent studies show that more than 80% of the world’s population with Internet access uses navigation and their mobile phone or tablet for navigation. We can only expect that number to go up in the future

Technology is advancing at a rapid pace. As such, we are all trying to keep up with these innovations. People actually prefer to browse mobily. In traffic, at the wheel, on lunch break. we all use smartphones to browse the internet.

It is imperative that the site you own is optimized for users of these mobile devices. Otherwise, you will lose many of your potential customers. So if your site does not work well on a mobile device, it’s upgrade time.

But, how do you know if your site works well on mobile?

How do you know if your site works well on mobile devices? The first step is to try it on your own smartphone and/or tablet. If you can quickly and easily navigate the site using your own devices, then you can stay somewhat quiet. However, there are a lot of mobile devices on the market. Each has its own operating system. It would be impossible to test them all to see if your site works well on all of these devices.

Instead, if you have Google Analytics installed, you can see how people interact with your site based on the screen size of the device you are using. Simply go to the Audience> Devices section. Mobile Device Info In the mobile device info section will show you information about the type of mobile phone users to access your site. You will also find information on the bounce rate.

What does bounce rate tell us?

This rate monitors the behavior of a prospective customer. It’s the percentage that site visitors give up staying on the page. They are looking for more attractive sites. The higher the rate, the more users leave quickly. This means they have not found what they’re looking for or are not happy with your site. Also in this section, you will find information on how long a user’s interaction with your site pages lasted. If the interaction rate is low, this translates into a lack of interest for the site or for certain pages of the site.

How can you fix this problem?

The first step is optimizing the site for mobile devices. Careful! There are sites so old that they can no longer be optimized in a competent way. The only solution is to make another, modern, mobile-friendly site.

So you have a few solutions at your fingertips. One of the solutions would be to get in touch with a professional to advise you on the new trends in web design. Or, if you use a WordPress site, you can find a new mobile-friendly template. Thus, you can make the actualization yourself if you feel confident about it.

Mistake #2 – Bad formatting

It is very important to have users experience on your site. The fact that they can easily navigate the site, going logically from one page to the next, adds to the positive experience potential customers have when they interact with your site. For the process to work smoothly, visitors need to understand what page to navigate to reach their goal and to get what they wanted. But identifying navigation issues within the site can be difficult, especially if you know your site well and you know how it works.

How to identify navigation issues on your site

For example, it may seem logical for you to place a particular page under a certain category in the menu. However, visitors to your site may not think the same. Or maybe the button they need to click to place a command is not quite obvious. It is good to put yourself in the place of those who visit you, try to understand the site and from their perspective. There are a great number of possible navigation problems, whether large or small, can hinder your attraction of potential visitors to your site or even customers.

HOW CAN I FIX THIS PROBLEM?

The first step is to make sure that your site visitors do not encounter navigation problems. To help you outline a pertinent idea, you can ask for help from your friends. You can ask them to try to perform a certain task on the site (such as buying a product) and report any problems you encounter in the process. You can also test your site by calling a specialized company. Testing users using a specialized firm is a complex process that can provide you with much more information. You can find out the user’s opinion about the category that could fit a particular good or service (a pertinent answer that could help you design your menus better).

MISTAKE NUMBER 3 – CONTACT FORMS ARE TOO LONG

If you have a website focused on generating potential customers for your business, then the contact form is a vital tool. Often, it may be tempting to include as many possible fields as possible to get more information about users. This is not a successful one. Overloading the user can cause him to change his mind. A uploaded form will cause the customer to leave the site without completing the order. The more orderly the order form, the fewer you will have to complete it.

HOW DO YOU GET RID OF THIS PROBLEM?

Very simple! Try including only the absolutely necessary information to make the sale (phone number, mail address, delivery address, timeframe for making that delivery, etc.)

ERRORS NUMBER 4 – A COMPLEX PROCESS OF ORDER VALIDATION

If you own an online store, you need to make sure that the process of validating orders on your site is not a complicated one. If this process takes a lot of time, it involves the filling of too busy forms, you will surely lose your customers.

HOW CAN I FIX THIS PROBLEM?

There are several tactics you can adopt. You can provide checkout on the site without registration – or quick checkout. Do not force users to account or avoid paying extra charges. Also implement multiple payment options. The user should be given the choice between paying or reimbursing the card (which must necessarily be secured). It should be able to choose whether delivery will be by mail or courier. Terms and conditions must be visible as well as the return variants that you provide to your customers.

MISTAKEN NUMBER 5 – THE SITE DOES NOT SEEM TO BE TRUSTWORTHY

If people do not trust us then they will not even do business to get involved. Nothing easier. If you had a real store then you would have the opportunity to meet people face to face. This would make it easier to build relationships and win your clients’ trust. In the online environment, winning user trust is a little more complex process, given that the human factor is passed to the 2nd place. So without the face-to-face interaction one has to win the trust of our clients on our behalf will be the site on which we have it. So the site you own has to inspire confidence so people are not reluctant to do business with you.

HOW DO YOU GET RID OF THIS PROBLEM?

Obviously, you need to do something to make the site inspire confidence. But, what are you supposed to do? Well, the basics are contact details (including a real-world address) so people know they can come in contact with you if things go wrong. Also, information about how you manage complaints should appear on the site and be accessible. More advanced ways to increase customer confidence in your site are reviews and testimonials. These demonstrate to potential customers that those who have already done business with you have been pleased. They also appreciate the services or goods they have purchased online. However, it is very important to place the site where you decide to enter the reviews or testimonials of other clients. You should first test these variants to make sure they have the biggest impact.

MISTAKE NUMBER 6 – DO NOT TEST CHANGES ON SITE

Imagine that you decide to change the color of the “buy” buttons, from blue to green. Your sales are up 5% over the next month. You seem to have made a good decision. But you can not be 100% sure. After all, sales growth may be due to other external factors such as a new online marketing campaign or season change. In other words, it is good not to make hasty conclusions. If you make changes to your site without testing them, then you can not be sure of the effects these changes have on your sales.

HOW DO YOU SOLVE THIS PROBLEM?

You have to start thinking about A / B testing. Although it can consume a lot of time (or it costs a lot of money if you hire a specialized agency), this test provides a very good insight into ways to increase sales.

CONCLUSION

Improving the design of your site is a continuous process – whether it’s a major overhaul or minor changes. You must always be looking for the improvements you can make. Be attentive to the competition, do not be outdone, and do not forget to test your ideas before putting them into practice so you can make the best decisions about the improvements you can make.

What makes a good website? Depending on what industry you’re in, or your preferences, that answer may be a little different from person to person. There are a few key factors that make up a good website, but depending on the experience the owner is trying to give the audience, it’s never quite the same. With that said, today we’re going to focus on some of the elements that go into a good real estate website design.

As you might expect, a real estate website is a very specific niche. Yes, there are lots of different houses displaying different styles, but the goal of the website is very specific: sell houses. So what exactly goes into real estate website design? Let’s dive a little deeper:

Beautiful images

It is incredibly hard to sell a product online with terrible pictures. If the customer can’t get a good sense of what the house looks like from a computer screen, they may get the wrong impression, and lookover a house completely. High-quality, detailed images are absolutely vital to the overall design of the website.

You should try to provide the best images possible for the listings, yes, but that theme should carry throughout the entire website. Don’t cut any corners.

Let your images do the talking

You know that phrase, “A picture is worth a thousand words”? That phrase rings incredibly true in the real estate business. Working off of our last point, if you have high-quality images of beautiful homes, you can easily implement them into the main theme of the overall sight.

Remember, people are visiting these websites for one thing and one thing only: to look at beautiful houses. What better way to please them than to give them what they want, front and center?

Take a look at Piercommercial.com, for example. It’s a simple, clean design that isn’t overwhelmed by tabs and sidebars. They’ve provided all the necessary information you need as a potential buyer, and topped it off with a nice image.

Include client testimonials

Granted, this is a great idea for any website selling a product or service, but you can understand why. Testimonials are a great way to include custom content that no other website can obtain. Each customer served or home sold produces a unique, one-of-a-kind experience that just simply can’t be duplicated naturally.

Besides that, a real estate website is all about pulling in traffic, and converting them to customers. The absolute best way to do that is to include past experiences that resulted in a happy customer. You can huff and puff all day long about how awesome you are at selling houses, but the average customer will believe another satisfied customer over you 9 times out of 10.

All of that being said, you’ll want to include images that represent the market you’re in. It doesn’t make much sense for a commercial real estate agent to use images of a country cottage. Perhaps the best practice would be to use images of homes or buildings that you’ve sold in the past.

Make it mobile friendly

It kind of goes without saying at this point that any website design should be created with mobile users in mind. In this case, we’re talking about real estate website design, which means that you’ll have clients out and about, going house to house as they find them.They’ll need a quick way to look up some information about the house that they very well could be standing right in front of.

As time goes on, the need for more mobile friendly websites will increase to a point where it will pretty much be unavoidable. So, if your website isn’t already created with mobile users in mind, you have homework to do.

Keep the navigation simple

There’s no need to get fancy with the navigation in your real estate website design. The best practice in this case would be to be straightforward. Again, this is something that a lot of websites struggle with. While it is appropriate to be a little silly or playful on some websites, a real estate page should be simple and professional.

I know, I know, professional can be boring, but it will help you in the end. You have to remember what kind of an audience you’re reeling in. most of the time, you’ll have people that want to get in, find what they’re looking for, and get out. Make it simple and straightforward, and it’ll avoid any potential confusion.

Focus on speed

Real estate websites contain a lot of information. This, of course, can result in very slow loading times, which isn’t a good thing. In fact, if your website loads slowly, not only will potential, high-paying clients leave, Google will, too. With that said, you should take every chance you get to improve loading speeds.

There are a few ways to help your site load faster, but perhaps the best and most widely used method is condensing image files. For a website with loads of images, it’s pretty important that all of their file sizes are as small as they can be without compromising the quality of the image itself. There are lots of free softwares that will help you do this online.

Create area profiles

Most people, when searching for their new home, know exactly the area they want to live in. if you create an area profile, it will help you in two ways:

First, it will really speed up the search process that everyone goes through when looking for a home. They don’t want to look at every house available in the state, or even city. They want to look neighborhood by neighborhood.

Second, it really helps with SEO search results. When someone is looking for a house in a specific neighborhood, they type ,”Homes for sale” and then the name of the neighborhood. If you’ve created a profile dedicated to such neighborhood, you’ll rank for it. It’s a win-win.

The conclusion

Real estate website design isn’t any sort of new industry or practice. It’s been around for quite a while, actually, but it does change. Although there are plenty of experimental methods out there (as there are for just about everything), there are methods that remain true to success. If you’re struggling with your real estate website design, or maybe just looking for ways to improve on it, give these tips a shot.

At Webdesignledger, we always try to help designers the best we can, by gathering all the good stuff the great virtual world aka internet has to offer. After a quick research, we came up with a list of five crucial tools for web designers. 

A designer is like a carpenter. In order to get things done, a carpenter needs materials and a professional tool kit. Without it, a carpenter is only a simple man with great dreams, a Sisyphus who never fulfills his aspirations. Because different projects require different utensils, a designer’s tool kit should be as diverse as possible. In order to put together two pieces of wood, a carpenter can’t do anything with a hammer if he’s lacking nails. Also, owning a professional tool kit doesn’t make you a carpenter. In order to become the best of the best you have to diligently study “at the feet” of a master, in a specialized school, or even learn through an online course.

A tool kit is an investment, we won’t deny that. From our experience, designers are passion driven, which makes things a bit easier. When you really want something, you do anything it takes to achieve it. We encourage you all to have the following tools under your belts so that your hard work gets one step closer to success.

1. Sketch

Sketch is rapidly replacing Photoshop due to its Bohemian Coding’s vector UI design tool. Rory Berry, creative director at Superrb, affirmed right after using Sketch the first time: “Having been a user of Photoshop for over 10 years, it was hard to change and learn something new. But literally after the first day of using Sketch, there was no looking back. I’m a total convert.”

2. Figma

This amazing tool connects you with other designers for everyone’s benefit. Figma allows you to design and get feedback from fellow designers in real time. “We were recommended Figma by our web development agency and use it for landing page wireframes. We love that you can quickly create designs for desktop, tablet and mobile,” says David Eastwood content writer and art-worker for Co-o Electrical.

3. Avocode

With this tool coding apps and websites from Photoshop or Sketch is so much easier! Avocode co-founder Vu Hoang Anh says “It gives users everything they need for coding – a preview of the design, and access to all layers and export assets. The best thing is that developers won’t need Photoshop or Sketch at all. The current workflow really sucks and that’s why we created Avocode.”

4. Zeplin

A time saver tool, Zeplin translates Sketch or Photoshop files into a free Windows, Mac, or web-based app. “The best part is that Zeplin provides quick reference for the colours, dimensions and fonts from your designs. It even generates CSS and style guides. I’ve found Zeplin to be a massive time saver and my developer friends seem to really like it too,” affirms James Stiff.

5. Canva

The social media content never looked better! With Canva, you can easily create social media images and info-graphics. “Canva is pretty good for making nice images,” says Lawrence Harmer, founder of Solve Web Media. “Images are the window into the soul of your website and social media, so a tool like this can be key to success,” he continues.

What tools do you use regularly for your designs? Let us know in the comment section below.

Web designers understand the need to create coherent, user-friendly website navigation features. They also know that doing so is much easier said than done. In fact, it’s fair to say that this area of web design is an ongoing challenge for many.

There is no one-size-fits all navigation scheme for all website types. In the same way, there no one single solution to every client’s or user’s needs and expectations.

The need for responsive design has put us back on the right track however. So have the best practices addressing minimalist website architecture.

Follow these 5 best practices and you will do well:

Best Practice #1: Help the visitor reach her main goal

Visitors often like to see what’s new or has just been introduced on a website. Show information like this up front. Make sure its marked or highlighted appropriately.

It would make no sense at all to relegate a new line of clothing to “the back pages”. Place an eye-catching image and CTA that points to its location in the catalog on the home page.

Like this:

BeClothing

A search bar at the top of the page will help to ensure a visitor doesn’t get lost. Strategically-placed CTAs will make sure she finds what she’s looking for.

“Buy Now” takes her right to the spot.

BeDietitian2

“Read More” starts a visitor along his or her chosen path.

BeWanderer

Best Practice #2: Always let the visitor know where she is

The use of a Current Locator has been a website navigation gold standard for years. The eCommerce website megamenus point to a host of different product categories. These can become quite complex. Thus, making it easier for a visitor to forget where he is.

Tracking where the user is now, where he was before, and where he might go will greatly help to avoid that problem.

A contrasting color indicating where he is now will be a great help.

BePizza3

A mini-map of the user’s journey on the page can help him trace back his steps:

BeCompany

Keeping a fixed menu on top of each page will help the user decide where to go next.

BeAccountant2

Best Practice #3: Use standard icons and lingo

Use a Hamburger menu? By all means.

BeGSMServices

How about a cleverly animated menu with random clickable areas? NEVER!

A bold logo that takes you to the Homepage when clicked? Always a good idea.

BeCarWash

An animated logo that takes a visitor to an unanticipated location? Don’t even think of it!

Best Practice #4: Don’t go over 7 menu items

“For Him” / “For Her” is a good start.

BeDenim

Only list the most important sections or locations for the user. The two major attractions should be placed at the top and bottom.

BeBistro2

Best Practice #5: Choose the menu type according to the amount of content

A simple menu works best for promoting a single product or product line.

BeShoes

Your online shop might sell 90 brands and styles of clothing for men, women, and children. If that is your case, you want to use a well-structured megamenu.

A collapsible vertical menu will work as well.

BeStore

A Simple, Yet Effective Solution – BeTheme

Navigation standards and best practices are likely to change over the years. Your best bet is to keep everything simple and well structured. This is the best practice that’s more likely to be evergreen.

The easiest way to do this is to use BeTheme’s pre-built websites. Best practices are built in, and these pre-built websites will save you tons of time and effort.

2 of more than 320:

BeMusic2

BeHerbal

Summary

Here’s a wrap-up of what’s been covered:

• Direct visitors toward their goal. Do this on every page
• Let visitors know where they are, have been, and where best to go – always
• Use standard icons and lingo so as not to confuse users
• Limit the number of menu items to seven
• Select a menu type in keeping with the amount of content on the website
• Use pre-built websites. They’re designed to make website navigation easy.