How COVID-19 Has Affected Web Design
17th April, 2021
By Elliot McHugh
There’s no doubt web design has changed over the years, and the digital landscape has hugely changed since the global coronavirus pandemic. This has caused many businesses to shift online and encouraged them to come up with new strategies to attract customers and drive sales.
Platforms like Pinterest, Tiktok and Instagram have all seen huge growth in recent years, with many young people turning to such platforms as a source of entertainment.
In the business world, web design and SEO has become much more popular. Businesses like restaurants and clothing shops have had to ‘pop’ up online to be able to maintain businesses and sustain revenue. Think about Just Eat takeaway service, which has seen UK sales rise by 43% in the third quarter of the year in comparison to the same period in 2019. Year-to-date, Just Eats’ sales are up a whopping 27%. Many local businesses have taken a similar route, and seen huge growth in online ordering since the start of the pandemic.
Much of Just Eats’ growth can be attributed to their speedy checkout functionality on their website and easy-to-use, intuitive interface. Websites which are designed to make things easy for the end-user are often the sites which are most successful.
As a web design agency based in London, we have spoken to many local businesses who have been impacted by the COVID pandemic. One key area that each of the business owners touch on is the importance of adapting to the environment and moving forward in a way that suits the demand. At the moment, thousands of consumers are taking to Google to put them in touch with people and businesses who can offer what they’re looking for.
As a result, web design has changed. There has been a big shift towards building mobile responsive websites and a focus on using animations to bring the website to life and really stand out from competitors. It’s important to remember that web design is a process. It takes time to plan out exactly how a website will look and feel. Things like branding, call to actions and navigation menu styles need to be carefully considered before embarking on a complex build.
Nowadays, web design agencies, both inside and outside of London, employ teams to sit down and work through a clear website design plan before presenting anything to a client. If you’re doing website design yourself, however, it is important to consider that using do-it-yourself platforms such as SquareSpace and Wix can be fairly limiting and prevent you from really converting website visitors to prospective clients.
In the coming years, it will be interesting to see how web design will change. It seems at the moment, there is a real focus on e-commerce and responsive website building, due to the nature of the pandemic which has accelerated the growth of e-retail and use of mobile and tablets. If you need a website, get in touch with our team below or on info@ejmwebdesign.co.uk
