Flat Design serves as a tool for UX
Web design based on user experience has a great ally in flat design. Find out why!
WHAT IS FLAT DESIGN?
Flat design is a style of web design that is defined by the absence of bright or three-dimensional visual effects in the graphic elements that make up a page, being considered a branch of minimalist web design.
The main purpose of flat web design is to make the design simpler for both designers and users by removing all irrelevant components (gradients, shadows and textures) and keeping only the essential ones.
ORIGIN OF FLAT DESIGN
The birth of this trend is closely linked to the expansion of mobile devices, which led to the need for a functional web design capable of adapting to each type of screen and its size, and concentrating on the fundamentals.
We must not forget that on mobile devices such as tablets or smartphones, users seek simplicity and that web pages focus on content and interaction.
FLAT DESIGN FEATURES
Flat design has a series of characteristics that have a direct impact on the user experience:
- Functionality comes first – As they focus on the essentials, they are much more functional pages, specially designed to satisfy their main objective, whether it is to show information about the products and/or services of a certain company, increase participation in an event, retain customers or achieve conversions.
- Typography, the protagonist– By eliminating superficial components, typography once again occupies its rightful place as the axis of web design. In addition, the typography is shown "naked", without decorative elements, which favors a better appreciation of its nuances.
- Vibrant colors that convey positive feelings – Due to the particularities of flat design, its colors create an optimistic environment that, complemented by its icons, makes a very friendly site.
- Simple and clean graphics– Flat web design is based on the contrast of elements, such as color, typography and buttons or icons that are made up of well-defined lines.
- Focuses on what's important –As it contains fewer graphic resources, it does not overload the website, attracting the user directly to the content, that is, to what is truly important.
- Intuitive and attractive pages – The web pages that follow the trend of flat design are one hundred percent intuitive and are very attractive from an aesthetic point of view.
- modular design – The display of modules that house different sections of content, construction grids from frameworks, and even recurring card patterns like Pinterest, is another feature of flat design that aims to create standardized interfaces that facilitate content expansion .
- hamburger menu – Most pages with a flat design opt for the hamburger menu as a way to remove unnecessary elements from the screen so that the user can directly experiment with the content. These menus are placed in the navigation bar, hiding the rest of the sections.
THE FLAT DESIGN AS AN ALLY OF THE USER EXPERIENCE
All these properties of flat design make it a great ally for web design focused on user experience:
- Less charging time – By eliminating the excessive use of text and graphic content, web pages reduce their loading time, something highly valued by users who hate having to wait too long to see a site.
- Easily adapt to all types of screens: They can be viewed from any mobile device, an essential aspect considering the number of mobile device users that there are today.
- easy navigation – Visitors find what they are looking for quickly as it is a very intuitive and functional design.
For these reasons, flat design has become the preferred trend for web designers who build pages based on user needs.