Whether you're a novice developer or a seasoned coder, listed here are the trends that will rule the web development industry in the upcoming years.
Technology is continuously evolving as innovation is in human nature. However, not many areas witness as much creativity and innovation as web development. There are more than 1.8 billion websites on the Internet, but professional web developers can make their websites stand out from the crowd by staying up-to-date with the latest trends and technologies.
Whether you're a novice developer or a seasoned coder, listed below are the trends that will rule the web development industry in the upcoming years. From progressive web apps to chatbots to dark mode, find out everything you should incorporate into your custom web development plan in 2021.
Progressive Web Apps (PWAs)
A Progressive Web Application is a new age web development technology that combines the power of both a native mobile app and a classic website to deliver users a smooth, native app-like experience within a browser, even when offline.
According to studies, PWAs have up to 80% higher conversion rates than native apps; therefore, they will continue to remain the hottest web development trend throughout 2021.
Single Page Applications (SPAs)
As we say, 'beauty lies in simplicity,' and this is utterly true in the case of single-page websites and applications built using leading-edge front-end web application frameworks, such as Angular.
Due to being lightweight, fast, and efficient, single-page websites and apps work well on both desktop and mobile devices. With the continuously growing number of mobile users, this trend will continue to dominate the web development industry in 2021.
Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMPs)
According to a report, even a 1-second delay in web page response can reduce conversions by 7%. Introduced by Google to deliver users an equally speedy browsing experience across mobile devices, AMPs are mobile-optimized copies of your existing web pages that load in a blink of an eye.
On average, AMPs load four times faster than ordinary pages. As the demand for blazing-fast websites is continuously growing, you can expect more and more businesses to leverage the potential of AMPs in 2021.
3D Visuals
With the evolution of AR and VR technologies, the coming times shall witness the inclusion of realistic three-dimensional (3D) visuals and elements in the UX part of the web.
Not only the gaming and movie industries but business websites will also be leveraging 3D technology to add a futuristic touch to their websites and deliver users a near-physical-like experience.
Motion UI
Given that attention spans are getting shorter from year to year, you need to make your websites even more visually appealing to grab users' attention. This is where Motion User Interfaces comes into play!
Motion UI is one of the latest front-end technologies that allow using animations, graphics, and transitions to make websites even more interactive and immersive. Motion UI was already a trend in 2020, and it will continue to prevail in 2021.
Voice-Enabled eCommerce
The exponential rise in digital voice assistants and smart speakers has encouraged web developers to integrate speech recognition and cognitive intelligence capabilities into their websites and applications. Especially in eCommerce, people prefer to use smart speakers and virtual assistants to access the product information and make purchases. This is probably because voice search is 3.7x faster than typing.
Since voice shopping is all set to reach $40 Billion by 2022, you will see more eCommerce websites implementing voice UI in 2021.
Mobile-First Web Development
Mobile-first design is an approach where you start developing a website or application with mobile devices in mind and then optimizing it to function well on larger screen devices. Given that nearly 73% of Internet traffic is expected to come from smartphone devices by 2025, no business can take the risk of overlooking the mobile-first approach.
This web development trend will become even more prevalent in 2021 because Google has recently switched to mobile-first indexing for all websites. This means if you want to rank higher in SERPs, you have to embrace mobile-first website development.
Serverless Architecture
Also known as API-first, Static, or Headless approach, Serverless Architecture functions without a front-end. It dissociates the back-end from the front-end so that you can improve the less performing areas of your website through a more tailored development.
By leveraging the potential of cloud computing, serverless app architecture enhances flexibility and reduces development and ongoing support costs. The most common example of the serverless approach is using WordPress as a Headless CMS.
With more and more eCommerce platforms and CMSes supporting the Serverless Architecture, you can expect this trend to continue in 2021.
Dark Mode & Low Light UX
Today's world is more inclined towards the dark and low-light user interfaces as they work well on OLED screens, save electricity, and are easy on the eyes. The dark mode is stylish, convenient, and unconventional enough to give your website a modern touch and provide users the best possible browsing experience. It is exceptionally beneficial for all those users who need to watch the screen for a longer time.
Moreover, developers can provide users with an option to switch between the dark and light modes. Since big giants like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Reddit have already jumped on the bandwagon, dark mode will come into full force in 2021.
Chatbots, AI and Machine Learning
The list of web development trends is incomplete without mentioning AI-powered Chatbots. According to a study, 69% of consumers prefer to use chatbots because they respond quickly to simple questions.
Since AI is expected to power 95% of customer interactions by 2025, demand for AI-powered Chatbots will rise in upcoming years.
Augmented & Virtual Reality
The increasing use of AR and VR in web development is gradually revolutionizing the browsing experience. YouTube VR is one of the best examples of these two game-changing technologies in action.
Moreover, WordPress also allows you to embed 360° photos and Virtual Reality (VR) content through plugins. The trend will continue through 2021 and even beyond because AR and VR market size is expected to reach $215 billion in 2021.
Multi-experience Development (IoT)
Initially started from desktop, mobile, and tablet devices, web development is now paving its way to smart speakers, watches, TVs, and Vehicles. This leads to a multi-experience approach that enables users to access your website or application across various interconnected IoT devices. Gartner predicts that 25 billion connected things will be in use in 2021, so this trend will dominate the world of web development in 2021.
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