Originally posted here on January 1, 2013.
Written by: Jenna Scaglione

In the coming year, minimalism will be king. Many texture-heavy designs will give way to simpler sites. The skeuomorphism trend will die out, and the cleaner metro look will take its place. 2013 will be full of tall footers, bold colors, rich and subtle gradients, and sharp edges. Fewer sites will be inspired by Apple’s web design, and more by Google’s.

As far as mobile design goes, we will see a continuing increase in responsive and adaptive sites. Separate mobile sites will most likely become more and more obsolete, and designers will be encouraged to adopt a mobile-first philosophy. In addition, all newly designed sites will be optimized for touch. Because of Microsoft’s new line of Surface products, designers will realize that any site viewed on a desktop can now be viewed on a tablet-laptop hybrid and will need to be designed accordingly. For example, designers will trade in top navigation for navigation on the left or right. Changes like this will increase comfort for mobile and tablet users. With this improved usability, we are likely to see an increase in mobile commerce. Sites that have optimized their stores for mobile will have a serious advantage over competitors.

What I think will evolve even further than web design itself are web designers. We are constantly taking on new roles. We are now developers, bloggers, problem-solvers, YouTube stars, speech-givers and innovators who just happen to design and implement beautiful solutions. While all this multitasking might make your head spin, it will ultimately prove best for the web design industry. Increasing our skill set and balancing our many talents will only add value to truly great designers. So, move forward, my friends, to a year full of all-nighters, troubleshooting, sketching, coffee-guzzling, testing and analyzing. Can’t wait? Me either.

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