2018 Website Trends – 5 Trends To Help You Prepare

With 2018 upon us companies are coming to us with plenty of questions – “Blender, what’s in store for next year? What are the 2018 website trends that I need to know about now? How can I get my website ready for the year ahead?” – so if these questions have been percolating in your mind as you prepare for 2018, you’ve landed at the right place.

Last year we shared our digital trends and predictions for 2017, packed with tips like the importance of video, mobile marketing, social integration and more. This year, it’s all about website design – and what you can do to get your website ready for the year ahead.

With this in mind, here are the top 2018 website trends you need to watch for.

1. Investment Highlights pages are more important that ever.

Every website has a purpose. While some are meant to attract customers, others – like yours – are meant to tell investors who you are and what you’ve accomplished. Your website should include investment highlights and initiatives should clearly outline who your company is and how you create change within your industry.

Investors – especially millennial investors – are becoming increasingly focused on transparency. Transparency from companies just like yours. White Gold Corp has done a tremendous job in sharing their exploration highlights on a dedicated page here, while Uranium Energy specifically tells investors why they should invest in UEC on their highlights page.

2. Bold fonts, engaging colours.

We’ve seen plenty of changes and trends within design over the years, yet one thing has truly stuck – the focus on clean lines and modern designs. With this comes the complement of bold fonts and engaging colours, ones that encourage users to focus on your content. In 2018, we expect to see such fonts and colours take the place of some images on websites. This is because images tend to slow pages down, especially when viewing on mobile or tablet devices. Typography, on the other hand, doesn’t impact performance. Faster sites, happier web visitors. Easy as pie.

3. Mobile as primary.

We’ve talked at length about the need to integrate mobile into your website strategy and build, though 2018 is all about mobile – meaning, mobile first.

The truth is in the data. Google says that 61% of users will not return to a mobile site that they had difficulty accessing, while 40% of these users will visit a competitor’s site instead. This should be a shock for those in the IR space. If your target investors don’t love your website, or if it’s not mobile friendly, they won’t come back – and they’ll end up in the hands of a competitor.

4. Video is integrated everywhere.

Website development is certainly moving in a direction that focuses on video; in fact, video accounts for nearly 70% of all internet traffic. When it comes to web design and integration of video, this form of content is increasingly being used everywhere, from corporate pages to investment pages, and CSR sites in between. Does your business have a video strategy in 2018?

5. SEO has become a necessity.

Online experiences start with a search engine. In fact, 93% of all online experiences begin with a prospect or potential investor heading to Google and typing in keywords that are related to your business. If your website isn’t optimized for search, you’re missing on a plethora of traffic opportunities that are available to you. In 2018, websites will be optimized – we’re talking meta tags, meta descriptions, meta titles. With 61% of people performing an online search before deciding to partner with a business or make a purchase, this is more important than ever.

These 2018 website trends are the focus for those of us in the IR space as we prepare for the year ahead. From CSR to bold fonts, mobile-focused to video, we are preparing each and every one of our clients for a brand new year. From all of us at Blender Media, Happy New Year!

 

2018 website trends


Nicole Van Zanten
Nicole Van Zanten

Nicole is fascinated with all things Investor Relations, lending her penmanship to Blender's blog subscribers and loyal readers. She's focused on delivering the goods (and latest IR updates) each and every week.