One of the key requirements for a successful career in any creative industry is the ability to keep up with trends. These eminent changes are a product of experimentation, modification, and innovation. In the web design industry, there are multiple new trends and styles nearly every year.

While every business hopes to be on the cutting edge of website design trends, it is important that you work with a San Diego web developer that understands the practicality of some of the latest design techniques for your type of business and audience, and only make use of those that make sense to your brand. Making the right decision can mean the difference between improving website usability and sacrificing profits.

Here are some ideas that a skilled web developer in San Diego can use to identify the most ideal trends for your website:

1. Web design is not art While art communicates feelings and provokes emotions, design helps people pursue action. Everything in web design, from content to imagery to navigation must serve a meaningful
purpose. Many old websites have accumulated large amount of clutter over the years. So the first step when redesigning an existing website is to perform a content audit and remove whatever does not aid in the customer journey. If building a website from scratch, the web developer should start by identifying the top tasks, wireframes, and sitemaps as a way to emphasize clarity.

2. Use actual numbers to build credibility A San Diego web developer that has built 50 websites appears more credible than one who has “year of experience in the industry”. Similarly, an agency that has stores/offices/big clients in 5 different cities appears more established than one claiming “nationwide” presence, especially for clients looking to work with a local business.

3. Personalize pre-made themes Coders are increasingly using available CSS frameworks and grids as a basis for their web design projects. They are great for beginner web developers looking for inspiration, and allow established agencies to streamline their work. While frameworks have been accused of contributing to bloated code, they drastically reduce development time and feature device responsiveness, which makes them ideal for most personalization projects. Moreover, developers of paid templates continuously iterate their products based on customer feedback, giving you access to a professional website fast with moderate customization.

4. Stock images versus realistic images While some professional websites can use stock images without diminishing credibility, web developers must know when to use real images that highlight the product or service. An effective image is one that is genuine and relevant. An authentic image could be a product image, a believable story about people benefiting from the product/service, an image showing your expertise or superior quality of product, or an image showing ethics – green, charitable, organic, etc. These could be great alternatives to overused stock photos that could make your site appear outdated.

Final Note While a web developer should be enthusiastic about trends and how they can benefit a client, it is important to choose the elements that showcase the business as credible, ethical, and passionate about their work.