It is said that “Change is the only Constant” and Web development is no exception. The technology which was considered innovative only a few years ago has become obsolete. The last thing you want is for a prospective customer visits your website but leaves as your website looks old or is not responsive.
Some of the basic aspects, like being user-friendly and easy to navigate, will always be required. However, with time, new features, design elements, and technology will always be welcome.
Amazing Website Hacks for 2023
In this blog, we will go through seven elements that every company should try to include in their website. It may not be possible for all to include these elements, but including a majority of these can do wonders for your business.
#1 Smart Content Loading
Many websites are resource-heavy, with infographics, images, and videos attached to many of their pages. These, along with third-party integrations, can slow down the website. However, with new technology, this can be taken care of by only downloading the content you want to see or need.
Although, Lazy loading and infinite scrolling are not new technologies, as they have been used by social networking sites for years.
Lazy Load ensures that the web browsers like Google Chrome or Firefox will only download the content which is visible on the screen at that point in time. The server resources will not be wasted on content that you don’t even see.
Many website visitors never scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page. So, it does not make sense to load everything at once.
You can also opt for multiple pages, which can be opened by clicking on buttons at the bottom of every page or using a “Load more” clickable link.
#2 Geolocation & Browser-based content
You all may have experienced this once when you visit a website after a few hours or the next day, and the content has changed. Another scenario is that you change the browser and visit the same website and find that new content is displayed.
Well! You should know that most advanced websites know your location and keep track of your browsing history. Based on these parameters, they display dynamic content to their audience.
So, in 2023, you need to follow the same strategy. Your website content should change based on past user behavior and what you know about that particular user.
Gone are those days when you served the same content to everyone. Custom content created for users visiting your website a second or third time increases the chances of conversion.
Google also uses geolocation to give more relevant results to its users.
#3 Virtual Reality
Virtual Reality is something that needs to be incorporated by almost every product-based company and especially E-commerce. Many people abandon their carts just because they don’t know how a particular product would look on them or in their homes.
This is where technology like AR/VR comes into the picture. You may be wondering how a particular sofa would look in your living room, and the E-commerce store allows you to upload a snap of the room on their website to show how exactly it will fit in.
Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality can be game changers for E-commerce businesses and are the need of the hour in 2023.
Metaverse is an imaginary world of the internet that can be accessed using Augmented Reality(AR)/Virtual Reality(VR) headsets. It can also be defined as a network of 3D Virtual Worlds that focuses on social connections.
In 2023, as more people get used to AR/VR, the design style of Metaverse will become a vital part of the visual language of web design. It is a form of Virtual Reality(VR), which means every element in it contributes to forming a cohesive world.
Websites should incorporate the Metaverse concept in 2023 instead of just having a single 3D element on a webpage. It should include everything from backgrounds to animations.
#4 Website Load Time
In 2023 and beyond, nobody is going to wait more than 3 seconds for your page to load, and that is why ultra-fast load times for web pages are needed. Quick loading is important both for UX and SEO and will continue to be so.
Research reveals that more than half of internet users, no matter where they are, expect the website to load fast and in no more than 2 seconds after clicking on the link. If it takes longer, they will leave and probably never come back.
A website’s performance has a major impact on the company it represents online. Studies have revealed a direct link between increased traffic and reduced wait times.
#5 Chatbots & Voice Search
Chatbots have been around for some time now and are increasingly becoming smarter by making use of AI & ML. So, chatbots which become better with time, are a must-have feature for all business websites.
Another improvement could be voice recognition by chatbots instead of text, which needs to be typed. Chatbots should also be able to answer queries via sound mode instead of text.
You would have heard about ChatGPT, which was launched by OpenAI last year. GPT stands for Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer. ChatGPT is a fine-tuned version of GPT-3.5, which uses supervised learning and reinforcement learning.
Websites can consider using ChatGPT to their advantage. Although, it should be used carefully as it can give factually wrong responses and is still in its nascent stage.
#6 Remembering the Past
In 2023, the Y2K aesthetic continues to grow as the early 2000s style is back in vogue. It is known that nostalgia trends historically run in a 30 to 50-year cycle.
So, you should follow this trend and incorporate Y2K designs like retro typeface use, custom cursors, pixelated fonts, and images.
These designs are less minimal and use dense text or mixed fonts to create an eye-catching design.
You can also go for unique cursors, which include shapes like a cat, a green alien head, or a smiley face. In case you surfed the net in the early 2000s, you would remember cursor effects like fairy dust or clock.
Cursors can use original images as icons or animations to create an interactive experience.
Web Designers should create new typefaces or hand-created lettering for web pages that are text heavy.
#7 Mobile-First Approach
As there are more smartphone users as compared to desktop/laptop users in 2023, most of the website traffic comes from mobile phones. This makes the mobile-first approach an absolute necessity.
The mobile-first approach basically means designing for the smallest screen, which is a mobile screen, and then working your way up. It is a principle of progressive enhancement based on the belief that mobile design is the hardest and should be done first.
Progressive web apps, Accelerated Mobile Pages and offline access complement the mobile-first approach.
PWA or Progressive Web App is a web app which can work both as a web page and mobile app on any device. It uses standard technologies to deliver native-like UX and faster, cleaner browsing even with poor internet connectivity. It can even send push notifications.
AMP, or Accelerated Mobile Pages, is an open-source project which was launched by Google to ensure that mobile pages operate at maximum speed. AMP helps firms in creating streamlined, clean, and relevant versions of their web pages. This gives mobile users a faster web experience.
Even in 2023, Internet connectivity is not the same in all parts of the world, and that is the reason why you would want to have offline access to web pages. In case someone is traveling and accessing web pages through mobile, offline access feature is a must.
Wrapping up…
World Wide Web, or the Internet, is an interactive place, and it has been that way since it was first launched. In 2023, it will be no different, but the users will demand more interaction and engagement.
The good news is that we have the technology to give users what they want. You can build engagement on your website with the seven website hacks we have discussed. One fact which is obvious is that websites have to be lively & engaging to get more visitors, leads, and increased conversions.
Mobikasa is a Web Design & Development firm that can help you with E-commerce Store development using Magento or Shopify. We have offices in the US, UK, Dubai, and India. Get in touch with us to know more.