WordPress is on track to become even more user-friendly as we head further into 2018. It’s already the most popular content management system in the world, and for good reason. Not only does it power 27 percent of the Internet, WordPress sites publish an average of 24 blog posts per second, according to Torque. By WordPress‘ own admission, it has grown to become the largest self-hosted blogging tool in the world, used on millions of sites and seen by tens of millions of people every day. WordPress helps many businesses of all sizes, especially cost-conscious startups, build their web presence affordably and efficiently. When it comes to home care website design, WordPress offers many benefits due to user-friendly navigation and easy management tools.
As we settle into 2018, there are many changes on the horizon that can only add value to home care businesses like yours. Here’s a look at five of them:
- Gutenberg Editor: Named after the inventor of the printing press, the Gutenberg is designed to make the editing experience less complicated and more logical. Basically a page builder, the Gutenberg creates content blocks on pages whereby you fill them in with relevant text or images. A more intuitive approach to formatting, the company made its public release of the beta plugin back in June of 2017. Developers have been hard at work making updates and seeking feedback in an effort to polish the user experience even more. Official roll-out is expected in WordPress 5.0, likely in the second quarter of this year.
Here are some features of what to expect:
- Left-hand side content will be found on the right in an effort to allow publishers to create new entries in rich layouts.
- Text pasted from Word will automatically convert to blocks.
- A palette of options ranging from font size and background color to text color and block alignment when you right click on a block of Paragraph content.
- Ability to create up to four columns.
- There will be no more attachment options within the Media Library.
- Can create up to four columns.
- More push notifications: Known as one of the most important up and coming marketing channels, more push notifications are being incorporated into the design. As a result, more websites can offer them to their users. This can have many benefits, including solid browser and device support, high acceptance of mobile devices and higher click-through rates. Others say too many push notifications can be obtrusive — even the simple act of asking users to turn off the capability. Despite the challenges this poses for home care web designers, such notifications are no doubt becoming more mainstream, prompting designers to get creative when it comes to integrating the prompt into their designs.
- Mobile first: 2017 broke the mold as the year that saw mobile traffic beat out desktop traffic as the preferred global Internet device. This has led WordPress to take a long, hard look at what it means to have a truly mobile-first design. Knowing that Google puts added importance on a strong mobile site presence, the case for a versatile mobile design can’t be ignored. Expect a decline in the importance of “above the fold” design due to the fact that so many users are accustomed to scrolling. Look out for sticky elements at the bottom of designs. Sticky, or fixed, navigation involves the integration of a website menu that is locked into place so that it does not disappear when the user scrolls down the page, explains Smashing Magazine.
- Custom graphics and illustrations: Web design has historically been about visual impact, and that isn’t about to change. Visuals offer an engaging and appealing way to convey thoughts and intentions that simply can’t be measured with the written word. Plus, when optimized right, images can have tremendous SEO value. The stock photos on WordPress are essential to the design elements already in place and aren’t going anywhere. However, there’s also another trend that is taking over those generic visuals. Make way for more customized handmade images that give you unique illustrations and graphics to help you stand out from the rest. Not only will your website feature a more distinguishable personality and tone, it will load faster thanks to illustrations that are less content-heavy than other types of images and photos.
- More vibrant colors: Historically, web design has shied away from anything other than web-safe colors. But now due to higher quality monitors and devices, a whole new spectrum of colors is available. Look for more vibrant hues, more daring color schemes and more colorful contrasts.
Contact A Servant’s Heart Web Design and Marketing
A Servant’s Heart Web Design and Marketing relies on WordPress for our innovative designs. We spend a great deal of time familiarizing ourselves with the latest and greatest advancements in WordPress, and 2018 is no different! Contact us at (760) 227-2720 for a free consultation and to learn more.
