2013 Website Resolutions
New Year’s resolutions are great if you can make them stick. The standards of web design and marketing are constantly changing, so the start of a new year is the perfect time to take stock and check you’re up with the play and have the correct web strategy. Therefore our New Web Resolutions are based on trends for 2013 that look set to define the web world.
1. Responsive web design. We’ve mentioned responsive web design before, and those who got ahead of the game last year are already seeing the benefits as smartphones and tablets continue to dominate the home electronics market. Responsive web design is all about providing the best possible experience for these users regardless of screen size, meaning you are more likely to convert them into paying customers. For any business with a mobile audience of 10% or higher, this should be your top resolution this year.
2. Be attractive and compelling. Web design trends are heavily about aesthetics. Dated looking websites give the appearance of a stale business, so it’s important that your site represents you properly. Styley typography, parallax scrolling and clever branding ideas are predicted to be the hallmarks of 2013.
3. Film it. Youtube is the third most visited website in the world, and the right video marketing approach encourages these users to not only watch but share your uploaded product. Google’s partner program places strategic ads around said videos, splitting the revenue with the creators. If you can make something that racks up the views, you can make some significant cash. Not every business suits the video medium of course, but for those that do it could be an interesting venture for 2013.
4. Put it in the clouds. Cloud based tools have a host of advantages – they can be accessed by any computer at any time, have customisable user access restrictions, and offer the security that if your computer goes kaput, you have an up-to-date backup ready to go. Products such as the suite of Google tools (Gmail, Drive, Calendar, etc.), MailChimp and various SEO tools allow hassle-free access anywhere you have an internet connection. A great way to update your current work-flow.
5. Socialise better. Social media is not exactly a new trend, but the ways we can measure our success are becoming more and more precise. Google’s new Wildfire app indicates that even the big guns understand the value of serious social media strategy, while other tools such as HootSuite and FollowerWonk continue to gain features and traction.
A “13” year might not be the most comfortable for those superstitious types, but we’ve got the vibe that 2013 is shaping up to be a great year. The Christchurch rebuild is in full swing, the Black Caps will have a clean sweep against England in May (unconfirmed), NASA is hoping to land an In-Situ Explorer on Venus, India will launch a Mars probe… and we’ll likely see new films such as Austin Powers 4, Iron Man 3 and The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.
