8 new technology trends in web design you should know about

Thanks to constant technological innovations, new trends are emerging in web design every year. And staying ahead of the curve is the only way to make sure you’re offering the best possible service to your customers. 

So whether you’re a web designer or just doing research to create a top-quality website for your business, make sure you’re following these new technology trends in web design:

1. Progressive web apps (PWA).
2. Accelerated mobile pages (AMP).
3. Voice search optimisation.
4. Prioritising application programming interfaces (API).
5. AI chatbots.
6. Virtual reality.
7. Single-page applications (SPA).
8. Automation testing.

Progressive web apps combine the best features of web and native apps. 

Web apps are hosted online and accessed from a browser. They take up less storage space on devices and are more discoverable through search engines. In addition, they’re easier to develop because you don’t need to use a specific programming language for each platform. 

Native apps, on the other hand, are downloaded from app stores directly onto your device. They don’t work through a  browser, so they can be used offline, offering a more seamless user experience. 

Progressive web apps are web-hosted, so they don’t need to be programmed for specific operating systems, but they can still be installed like native apps, allowing you to access them offline. 

For web designers, PWAs offer the functionality of a native app with all the practicality of a web app. Overall, it adds up to:

• Lower development costs.
• Better marketing potential – PWAs are easier to find through search engines. 
• Cross-platform functionality.
• Ability to be used offline. 
• Improved security. 
• Faster user experience. 

As the name suggests, accelerated mobile pages refer to the trend of developing web pages that can load much faster than traditional web pages. 

The faster loading times ensure a better user experience, reducing bounce rates. The technology was initially created to help small businesses easily create a smooth website that functions across different devices to stop losing vital customers to slow loading times.  

Voice recognition isn’t new, but its popularity has changed the way web designers need to approach search optimisation. 

As more people use voice recognition to find information through their devices, like Alexa, web designers should start tailoring their sites to make sure they show up in searches. 

The best way to do that is by preparing for the manner in which questions will be asked, and designing content that can give simple answers. 

For example:

• Keyword research should focus more on conversational words and phrases
• Simple question-and-answer formats will become more valuable – FAQ pages and headlines phrased as questions, followed by simple answers

API software essentially allows different kinds of technology to communicate with each other. They’ve been around for almost 20 years now, commonly used for payment portals like Paypal, or online booking platforms like Booking. These are great services, but they’re entirely separate applications. So the whole process is quite inefficient.   

The latest trend is to prioritise APIs during product development, ensuring the final product works seamlessly with different applications without the need for additional, third-party applications – a growing necessity in a more connected digital world. 

Chatbots have become a common feature in modern websites thanks to their low running costs and reliability compared to other customer service options. The next step is to keep improving them using artificial intelligence. 

While current chatbots can answer FAQs and take orders, the next generation of AI-powered chatbots will be able to:

• Improve themselves with machine learning. 
• Better understand people by using natural language processing. 
• Understand user intent. 
• Solve complex user issues. 

Companies like Intercom and Sprinklr are already breaking new ground in this area. Their AI powered chatbots can alter their answers based on customer activity, language, and history. 

The advancement of virtual reality is having a significant effect on the way web developers can approach web design. 

The plan is to create virtual 3D spaces where customers can interact more dynamically with your content. This has incredible potential to improve a range of online experiences, including:

• Product pages – customers could interact with virtual models rather than viewing a photo.
• Online conferencing – group video calls could be replaced with fully immersive 3D meeting rooms. 
• Tourism – before booking a venue or hotel, customers could take a virtual tour. 
• Estate agents – agencies could offer virtual tours, allowing potential buyers to view a property from anywhere in the world.

The idea behind single-page applications is to build apps that don’t need to reload themselves while running in a browser. The result is a smoother user experience uninterrupted by loading times, allowing you to hold the attention of the app users for longer. 

Everyday apps like Facebook, Gmail, and Twitter are already SPAs. And they’re seeing great results from the more responsive design. In 2022, we can expect to see more and more apps built in the same way.

As the name suggests, automation testing allows software testing to run without the need for human interference. 

Instead of a lengthy manual testing process, developers can use automation testing to perform vital product tests much faster and cheaper than ever before. 

There are already plenty of tasks that automation software can handle, such as:

• Unit testing – to test single units of an application.
• Integration Testing – to test how units work as a group
• Smoke Testing – to test the overall stability of a system
• Regression Testing – to test how recent code changes affect existing features

It’s a response to the competitive nature of web design. Automation testing software, like Ranorex and Testim, allows smaller teams to work faster without sacrificing quality. 

As you may have noticed, almost every trend on our list is about providing a better service for users. And Countingup is on a similar mission – to make financial management faster and easier for small business owners with a simple, intuitive app. 

Countingup is the business current account with built-in accounting software that allows you to manage all your financial data in one place. With innovative features like invoicing on the go and receipt capture tools, the Countingup app is the perfect companion for the tech-savvy entrepreneur.

You can also share your bookkeeping with your accountant instantly without worrying about duplication errors, data lags or inaccuracies. Seamless, simple, and straightforward! 

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Find out more here.