Must Design

Navigation feels old and moldy. There are few things MORE critical than navigation. We've moved from left nav sitting firmly in the "golden triangle" to horizontal top navigation.

Neither of these options inspire and both are feeling long in the tooth and stupid. The social / mobile web requires a RETHINK about navigation. Can we find ways to make very page a homepage?

Can navigation be more relevant and less middle of the road boring? Here are some navigation examples from AWWWARDS.com that don't solve the problem...yet. But the dialogue helps begin the process of reducing our dependency on static, boring, "has-been" ideas like left or horizontal nav.

Are you as surprised that navigation hasn't been on the "top changes" list for web design in 2014? Has to be on our 2015 list because every current option is BAD and getting worse.

Mobile is the secret driver of many of 2014's hottest web design trends. One of the hottest is flattening out web design. Small screens can't handle shading and three dimensionality as well as bigger screens, so flat is one of the HOTTEST web design trends as these 33 examples share. .

This post is important and valuable on two fronts. First we all need to start thinking MOBILE FIRST and that is a very different way to think. Second the great list of new to me tools is worth a scan and test.

I like Salesforce and SquareSpace and was surprised I didn't hate the Microsoft design.

Strong first few pages of examples here. My favs include 

Cat Magnet for actually telling a fish story (nice large CTA too). 
Design Council - love the flat, few colors with red as accent. 

True - don't like blocking the face, but works here. 

Stealable Ideas ae consistent with 2014 design trends:

* Big heros (tells a better story).

* Limit color palette. 
* Flatten out the design so it looks good on mobile too.
* Large Call-to-actions (DECLARE what you want your customers to do).

That last bullet, using a clear CTA, seems to be the hardest one to sell designers who feel to DECLARE is to shout. I disagree. I view DECLARATION in this context as helping by MAPPING and POINTING.

No one wants their TIME wasted and when you point them in the right direction with a large, high contrast CTA you've created a helpful hint. Subtle, when you have seconds, seems an unsupportable luxury. When DON'T we want to be CLEAR and help our visitors know how to journey along our paths?

A: NEVER :). M  

My favorite is Petersham Nuseries @PetershamN. Peter Sham may be the best content / commerce site I've encountered. Social is a tad hard to find, but the smooth synergy between storytelling content and commercial selling is elegant, well architected and seamless.

Love this (great, intimate content):

"The teahouse has evolved to now offer a seasonally inspired, Italianate lunch menu, as well as daily homemade cakes, loose whole leaf teas and filter coffee. Horticulturally, the nurseries expanded with the reopening of the Greenhouse III to extend the onsite propagation alongside the expansion of the cutting and kitchen gardens directed by Lucy Boyd, whilst the development of the community and education based Petersham Platform sees the Nurseries' fundamental ethos central to the growth within our walls opened up to those outside it.
 

The success and ripening can be attributed to the ideas and determination of eldest daughter Lara Boglione. Since 2011 Lara has been the driving force behind the development of the Nurseries. Her passion lies in sustainability, gastronomy, agriculture and education, an ethos that is spread across all business functions. Lara explains: “We hope to have created a place of calm, away from the bustle of London, somewhere that respects and is in tune with nature and positive living."

Peter Sham is more than just an amazing responsive site. The site is a great example of how content and commerce can live in harmony.