When I envision minimal design in my head I simply picture . . . less. More open space. Less colors. More of one color. A plethora of whites and grays. Minimal design embraces the truly simplistic focal point of a webpage and lets it do all the talking. It is a space which feels roomy, yet not unfinished. All of these things sound wonderful, but finding that balance can be difficult. Is it worth the effort? I think so.

 

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When I come across a web page with a lot of content, I skim down the page looking for things that catch my interest and then MAYBE I go back and read the entire page if something pops out at me. However, if there is a minimal amount of text, there is a much higher chance I will read it.

Keeping the text minimal is not the only way you can embrace minimal design. Colors, spacing, shadows and images (or the lack of them) all contribute to the minimal design effect. The key with minimal design is to literally omit every needless thing. Unfortunately, there is such a thing as going overboard with minimal design to the point where your webpages become boring. As you remove the unnecessary elements take special care not to strip too much from the page. Then pay extra special attention to the components you intend to keep. As previously mentioned, balance and harmony is vital.

I want to encourage you to make use of the essential concepts of minimal design whenever you can. There is no reason on earth that you should want your website to be cluttered. There is actually research which shows when people are presented with too many choices they are less likely to choose anything. I understand sometimes you have a lot of information  you need displayed on a page, and that’s okay . . . work with your web designer to find a way to display it without having a hodgepodge of information which overwhelms your readers. Think about what they need to know first. Focus on that. If you have impressed them with the first taste they are more likely to dive in for more.

Is strict minimal design for everyone and every website? Absolutely not. But everyone can learn from it and apply some of the minimalist techniques to their own website. Most people will agree less clutter is better, or as you have heard probably 1000 billion times, “less is more.” But what does that really mean and how can you apply that to your website?

Minimal design is characterized by:

  • Open space
  • Limited color scheme. When color is added it often becomes the focus point of the page.
  • Special attention to detail
  • Interactive features to keep the space interesting
  • Pages with a single focal point.

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