Greetings from the JamJo Bunker.

We get it, your website is covered in digital dust and hasn’t been taken out for a refresh in quite some time. It’s the same old story. You launch a brand new site with the intentions of driving sales and leads and really utilising it as a marketing tool for your business. Instead the site stays dormant, unvisited and ultimately unloved. You resent your site. You wish you hadn’t picked that certain shade of orange as the menu colour. Your logo doesn’t look right. Your website designers are perpetually sunning themselves in Barbados and won’t answer the phone.

Don’t worry, this is a very common theme that we have seen happen over the years. If you find yourself in this position, a fresh look at your website design and digital strategy might just be what the doctor ordered. Join us as we take a look at 5 new website design trends in 2024 and how you might plan to integrate them into your old rusty bucket of a website!

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Too long, gimme links!!

It’s been around for a while but parallax scrolling has become very popular in recent years. In a nutshell it’s the effect of when a user scrolls, different layers move at varying speeds (the background, middle and fore), providing a visually dynamic experience. It adds a nice bit of visual flair to any website.

Interactive 3D models and graphics can also allow users to engage with content in a more tactile way. Think about how you might display a product, artwork, or architectural design. A 3D model can provide a holistic view that goes beyond static images or text descriptions and allows the user to really interact with your content in an engaging way. Apple has some lovely 3D models of their phones for example where you can really get an all-sides view of the iPhone.

TL;DR: You’ve seen parallax scrolling in cartoons for donkeys years. It’s a nice touch in websites now.

Augmented reality (AR) is another interesting one to add to the list of new website design trends in 2024. It’s an interactive experience that pops computer generated content straight into your real-world view. In the e-commerce sector, it’s is being used to enable virtual try-ons for clothing, accessories, and even furniture. Users can visualise how products will look in their real-world environment before making a purchase for example.

AR Storytelling is another relatively new concept. Brands are leveraging AR to tell immersive stories. Users can use their smartphones or AR glasses to explore augmented elements overlaid on physical spaces, creating a more memorable narrative.

It is very common to see websites that use a white background with black text. This provides a comfortable viewing experience for the user. But it is not the only option. Dark mode presents content on a dark background rather than this traditional light one. It can give you a really modern aesthetic but crucially acts to reduce eye strain.

With this high contrast too, new options open up. You can really make vibrant elements pop off a dark background. The visual aesthetic of dark backgrounds with contrasting text and elements has become increasingly popular but there are practical benefits too –  on devices with OLED displays for example, dark mode can even be more energy-efficient! Did you know Wikipedia has a dark mode in development?

TL;DR: Did you know dark mode can even save on your devices energy consumption?

No, Neumorphism is not a creature in a Ridley Scott sci-fi horror film. It is a design trend towards bringing a little more depth to the current tendency towards flat design (clean, flat shapes, no depth). Skeuomorphism was all about interface objects mimicking their real-world counterparts (think notebooks or stick-it notes) in how they appear and/or how the user can interact with them. Neumorphic design relies on subtle shadows and highlights to create a tactile feel. Elements appear to rise from or sink into the background, adding a sense of depth. While it introduces realistic elements, neumorphism maintains a minimalist approach, avoiding the excesses associated with earlier skeuomorphic design. So be careful with those drop shadows and bevelled edges! This is all about subtlety.

Microinteractions are little feedback features that can add a touch of delight to your user interface. This can make the user experience more responsive and enjoyable. Think animations that can be tailored to user preferences, creating a personalised touch. For example, changing the colour scheme based on a user’s favourite colour or displaying custom animations for specific actions.

TL;DR: It’s the little things that make you go ah; swiping up to refresh, the way a menu slides in when tapped, or a card glides off the screen when swiped. Someone had to design that!

There are plenty more website design trends in 2024 to be thinking about. We’ve just covered a few off here. These trends showcase the diverse ways in which designers are pushing the boat out for web design and aiming to create not just functional interfaces but memorable and engaging user experiences.

As always, if you want to add some of this delight to your website, then please do touch base with a member of the JamJo team.