There are all kinds of elements that go into making a well-designed website. You have to ensure short load times, a user-friendly layout, and entertaining visuals, among many other things. However, some websites go above and beyond to provide truly unique user experiences. They might use stark color contrasts or mind-bending visual effects, but they all push the envelope in terms of what their users would enjoy.
You may not have encountered this type of website yet, but you will in a minute if you keep reading! All of the examples below have something special about them, even if it’s just a striking choice of color scheme.
- Fuse Animation
Fuse Animation’s website has been getting lots of hype lately. The company reached out to a popular design agency for website services. Fuse needed to communicate one thing – that they were experts at making photorealistic 3-D animations. The tried-and-true method would be to push site visitors to a portfolio page, or maybe even showcase some of their highlights with photos on the main page, but Fuse Animation did better than that. If you visit the site, the main thing you’ll notice is an embedded video that simply shows you examples of their work. The trick isn’t always to convince people to “act now”; sometimes it’s more effective to simply establish yourself as one of the best there is, and let your work do the talking for you.
- Yusuke Fukunaga
This is both the name of a person, and of his personal website that showcases his portfolio of web designs. Even for a website of a web designer, though, this one is pretty wild. The home page features a parallax effect, in which the images on the screen seem to shift as the screen tilts away from you. Infinite scroll technology (and some pretty trippy visual effects) create a user experience that’s unlike any other.
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- Homecult
The interior design website may look serene, but it certainly isn’t static. Dragging the pointer across the home page will reveal various examples of home designs, brought onto the screen with a glossy rippling effect. The projects page shows off many different designs, but first you’ll notice the clean lines of the simple grid layout. There isn’t any text cluttering up the pictures, but if you need more details, just hover the pointer over an image to get more information.
- Revols
This Web Design & Branding takes a rather small product – earbuds – and presents them in larger-than-life photos for a dramatic focal point. At that size, you don’t just see earbuds; you see statement pieces, for both you and the web page. There are text elements to match, sticking with oversized but simple phrases that impress users without seeming overbearing. Wrap it all up in a dark, calming color scheme, and you get a very sleek web design.
- Avoriaz 1800
You could reasonably expect a luxury French ski resort to have a great website, but this one is truly stunning. Yes, you have the visually pleasing layout and really awesome pictures; but what sets this site apart is the 360-degree virtual tour that lets you get a panoramic view of the resort. Summer and winter tours are available, and you can take a peek at both nearby apartments and the actual ski areas. All that in luscious colors and an easy-to-use format – what’s not to love?
- Beauvoir
You’d expect a creative agency to have a certain amount of imagination when it came to designing their website, but Beauvoir definitely broke the mold for theirs. Users quickly notice the sidebar menu, which is interesting, but not necessarily groundbreaking. Then they start scrolling, and realize that a section lower down uses a horizontal scrolling technique. Instead of just using visual elements to mark a new section, there’s an entirely different scrolling dynamic. Now that’s cool.
- Boosted
Visual puns are great, and they’re even better when they look good. That’s what you’ll find on Boosted, a website that offers electronic skateboards and other related items. Most of their products follow the same color scheme: black or gray body, orange wheels. Guess what the website looks like? Muted gray or white, with vivid orange “call to action” buttons. Not only does it look snappy; it also mirrors the actual products on the site.
- Burger & Sauce
When you combine amazing food photography with a superior web design, the result is a website that you can almost taste. This is what happened with Burger & Sauce. If you don’t live in the UK you won’t be able to order one of their meals, but you can almost experience one simply by perusing the site. Now that’s user engagement! Given the fact that most people use pictures to help them decide what food to order, Burger & Sauce is on the right track with their buffet of visual delights.
- Buero112
With a predominantly black-and-white web design, Buero112 (a digital design and branding agency) makes an impact through visual storytelling. Among the first things you’ll see will be a video which shares the brand’s message and background. Further exploration will reveal a few muted colors here and there, but nothing drastic – mostly just a line of text, or a full-color photo of a model wearing black and white. The web design may be subtle, but it’s anything but subdued.
- Frans Hals Museum
Museums are known for their exhibits, but not usually for their web designs; not so for this one! You’ll still see some of their key exhibits on the home page, but they stand out because of their digital design elements and a truly striking color scheme. Greens, yellows, and pinks that aren’t quite pastel cover the page in abstract blocks, tied together by tasteful black lettering. Even if you don’t visit the museum, the site itself is worth a look.
These web designs didn’t have to be awesome, but they were anyway.
You could use them as influences on your own web designs, or you may just admire them because they generally seem interesting; whatever the case, they can be inspiring for just about anybody.