The digital landscape is fast evolving to match the trends in the market and serve user expectations. While some of these trends can be momentary others are here to stay.
At Promatics, we believe every app business must know that users are spoiled for choice when it comes to picking mobile apps. To engage them and be business-ready, they must engage with the app. UX/UI design is the perfect medium to hook a user through visual appeal. We bring you a list of upcoming UI/UX app design trends 2021 that are set to ensure a paradigm shift in the world of app design, initiating a new era of design for everyone to match up.
I. UX Writing and Microcopies
Sometimes, the right product and a famous brand are just not enough to drive conversions. Crafting interesting stories and nuances around the product hooks the target audience in. Users love to be a part of history, a part of the culture they vibe with. Thus, one of the most obvious ways to boost the brand image of your mobile app business and engage the target user audience is to equip the app with a crisp, relevant and thought-provoking copy. Old-school, repetitive product copies that repeatedly target the same emotions, hardly impress users. App designers need to up their copywriting game to reach out and impress more app visitors.
In 2021, we’d be looking at less formal, less wordy product copies that are crafted to have a friendly/humorous approach, depending on the type of audience they are targeted at. Microcopies that capture a brand’s identity would emerge as a popular UI/UX design technique to give a novel tone to the app and make a lasting impression on the user. Highly brand-specific microcopies can be impactful as they are easier to register for a user. Content, when paired intelligently with UX, can create meaningful customer experiences in digital products.
II. Dark Mode
The evident rise in the popularity of dark mode in UI/UX trends 2021; stems from facts like it is uber-chic, and it highlights other design elements. Users appreciate the fact that dark mode can save battery power in OLED/AMOLED display handsets. This particular mode reduces eye strain when a user uses it in low light conditions.
It is common for modern apps to present a choice to users of activating dark mode for themselves. Famous brands and platforms like Instagram, Apple and Android offer alternative themes in their products. Especially Apple users enjoy an opportunity to schedule times to change the appearance of their device, albeit automatically. iOS users can choose the option “Sunset until sunrise” or set a specific time to make the transition to and from the dark mode. As prolonged mobile phone usage strains a user’s eyes in usual scenarios, best UI UX designers will focus on the Dark Mode in 2021.
III. 3D/Realistic Graphics and Animation Elements
Three-dimensional designs are going to be the modern fit into mobile UIs, come 2021. 3D graphics and animations breathe life into the app design, facilitating the explanation of core concepts to the user. Apps developed with 3D components in the UI often engage users and come designed with a well-integrated brand personality. Use of complex animations makes the mobile apps look more dynamic, make user interactions memorable and let app screens be absolutely irresistible.
Hyper-realistic 3D visuals allow app designers to engage potential customers within the app experience and boost conversion rates. Immersive 3D elements, when integrated with the latest technologies like Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), can take the app UX to the next level. UI and UX designers can win app visitors and increase the average session time with the use of 3D elements. However, best practices for mobile app development state that such an app should be fast loading and well optimized to support rich 3D content to omit any chances of delays and short response time.
IV. Voice User Interface
Voice chatbots and virtual assistants are a leading technology trend that can make a mark in 2021. Voice User Interface or VUI has completely revolutionized the way we search for information, take notes on mobile apps. VUI can boost brand presence and leave a positive mark on the app visitors. It is a human-centred design trend. Mobile app users can search for information or avail any services with the help of voice assistants. App businesses must implement a tendency of voice user interface design to become the market leader in their respective category and stand out from the competition.
V. Soft Shadows, Layers and Floating Elements
The innovative design trend of integrating soft shadows and floating images into the app UI is synonymous with intensity and positive emotions. They portray a depth of the elements like texts, videos, images etc.
In times to come, we will see UI/UX designers use such layers to place elements on top of one another beautifully. When paired, these elements can create a sort of drowning effect and a superficial feeling of lightness. They remain the perfect choice for changing the classic, flat and immutable designs where the layers are placed strictly in the correct order. Floating visuals and soft shadows together can also get that coveted slightly 3D effect, but with a much hazed out feel to it.
VI. Bold Font
Making bold fonts a part of UI UX design is not the quintessential new trend, but it will rage in 2021. As businesses come to understand the importance of fonts in the UI interface, Bold fonts captivate the attention of potential clients.
While most users pay attention to the header of the web page first, it is crucial to attracting customer attention by using bold fonts for titles. It adds more visual sense and harmony to the information, category, topic, service or product. Bold fonts do highlight certain main elements, such as your products, services, categories, and so on.
VII. Photography + Graphics
Another new-age design trend that is making way into the world of UX design is the overlay of graphics on images. This creative mixing of elements allows app designers to play around with their imagination and come up with fabulous designs. The amalgamation of photographs and graphics enables app makers to infuse personality into their app design through innovative image customization.
Create stunning images that convey the hearty story of your business to attract attention by displaying fun pictures and graphics together. It’s an innovative approach that app businesses can use to increase the average session time and possibly improve the conversion rate of apps.
VIII. Flamboyant Colour Choices
The choice of colour combination is a very rudimentary factor in the process of UX design, since its inception. Colours help with viewer engagement. Different app genres demand different colour combinations and UX designers will have to pay all the more attention to colour choices in app design in 2021.
App designers can integrate a bold and futuristic edge to app design with bright colours. Bringing together different colours that don’t harmonize well with each other can be a unique way to grab the attention of your visitors. It’s a brilliant way to break the monotonous dominance of minimalistic design with limited colours choices. We are looking forward to seeing app UIs with bright neon shares blended in with rich colour choices.
Conclusion
Great designers stay ahead of their times and that is how they win app design awards, they are not afraid to break any rules, and they put their creativity to optimal use to design mobile app UX that adds to the brand image.
Our team at Promatics believes that it’s essential to stay abreast with the latest and upcoming UI/UX trends to make futuristic apps that enthral the users.
If you are an app business, trying to incorporate a few of these app design trends into your product, we would be happy to be of assistance. Our team of app designers come with experience and expertise to help clients with modern, groundbreaking design concepts that complement their brand image.
Your concerns are legit, and we know how to deal with them. Hook us up for a discussion, no strings attached, and we will show how we can add value to your operations!