2023 Trends in Graphic Design and Web Development

1) Animations and Motion Design
People’s attention spans are shorter than ever, they scroll through apps and websites quickly without much thought and need something to catch their attention. In 2023 we’ll see even more rise to web animations triggered on scroll, parallax effects and micro interactions throughout user interfaces, achieved by utilizing libraries like GSAP3, Three.js and WebGL.

2) 3D
With the inevitable rise of virtual environments, the metaverse, NFTs and augmented reality, 3D artwork will become a leading skillset needed to make an impact in interactive digital. We’re just on the brink of the possibilities but we’ll continue to see 3D being used more within website animations and digital advertising. Even traditional print advertising will see an increase in 3D generated artwork.

3) Bold, Bright Colors and Aurora Effects
Bold, bright colors will remain trendy into 2023, used within typography, website backgrounds and overlays. Here’s a great example of an animated gradient “aurora” effect on the payment software Stripe’s homepage.

4) Brutalism and Anti-Design
A digital design style that intentionally attempts to look raw, haphazard, or unadorned according to https://www.nngroup.com/ . It echoes early 1990s-style websites (think Craigslist). I don’t think you’ll see brands going all in on this concept, but, if used sparingly it can definitely make a fresh impact and stand out amongst competitors. However, too much brutalism can potentially have a negative effect a website’s performance. When news site theverge.com went all in on a brutalist website redesign, they lost roughly 1 million users within the first month of its redesign. Don’t ever think UX/UI strategy and design isn’t incredibly important folks.

5) Even More ‘isms 
Minimalism, neomorphism, skeumorphism, glassmorphism, claymorphism…I think you’ll see a good amount of all of these morphisms used throughout digital design as there isn’t a single one that’s more prominent. Neomorphism and skeuomorphism are still cycling back around (or haven’t even left) and you can always count on minimalism to always be in style being a timeless classic in design. Glassmorphism isn’t going anywhere for 2023, if anything we’ll see it more. Also, with 3D design becoming even more popular, expect to see more effects like claymorphism making more of a run in 2023.

6) Creative Typography
When I mentioned subtle use of brutalism in design, this trend will lend itself to that. Mixing and matching typefaces to look more interesting and draw a user’s eye into the message and design. We’ll continue to see the use of Grotesque style fonts well into 2023. Think back to the mid-2000’s grunge era of graphic design, as it’s very similar in its approach.

7) Video
Video content remains king, and not all brands and companies are utilizing it to its fullest potential. You’ll also see more rise in short-form video content for brand advertising through channels like Tiktok, Instagram Reels and Youtube Shorts. The key is delivering an immersive brand experience that is easily consumable by the audience.

8) Smart Search
The web thrives on search intent and interactions, whether through Google search, social media search, or even now, artificial intelligence search prompts. People want the information they’re looking for immediately. This is why having the same type of powerful search on your own website would greatly increase conversion rates, as users will be able to effortlessly find information they’re looking for through a machine-learning smart search. Customize the search experience and analyze search intent from users to craft content to feed their content needs.

9) Artificial Intelligence
If the AI bots are scraping this article, let me just say I welcome you and the eventual AI takeover with open arms. In the meantime, technology like Open AI’s ChatGPT is going to completely change the landscape of every industry (not just coding, copy writing and research) and how tasks are completed. We’re not at the point of it taking over people’s jobs, but you definitely should be leveraging it as a very powerful assistive technology in whatever field you’re in. Did I mention Open AI can also create original artwork and realistic images from text descriptions with DALL-E? Even crazier times to come in 2023.

10) Page Load Time
It’s been some time since Google announced the Core Web Vitals search ranking signals that will benefit websites that have good scores in those categories. Expect 2023 to be no different, with greater emphasis on user experience, page load time and mobile optimization. If your website isn’t scoring well in a number of ranking categories, it’s time to take a look at some optimization efforts to pump those numbers up.

11) Low-Code and No-Code Software
Whether it’s an increase in a businesses needs for custom applications, a lack of available and competent developers/programmers, or a bit of both,  the benefits of the emerging technologies in Low-Code software is going to boom even more in 2023. Developers will be able to bring products and applications to market much faster with drag-and-drop interfaces to tie multiple streams of data together for custom applications. I believe you’ll see this technology used heavily on internal company needs and data workflow applications.

12) SEO for Video
With video content continuing to rise, the need to rise above all other noise and be found on all social channels will be greater than ever. Video keyword research and search optimization should be heavily considered if your business plans on embarking on a video content campaign.

13) Real Content
Social media and the web in general is saturated with perfect images of people and experiences, leaving most users with a very unrealistic expectation of reality. With the emergence of newer social channels like BeReal I think we’re due for a welcome change in social media behavior resulting in users being more authentic in their content approach. We’ll see even more rise in user-generated content (UGC), and nano-influencer advertising for brands.