13 Aug 4 Modern Design Trends for Medical Practice Websites
Is your website in style, and more importantly, doing its job by engaging potential patients? Good web design can visually appeal to the reader, help communicate your practice’s message and information, and make your website easier for potential patients to read and understand. Likewise, poor design can make all of those things more difficult.
Web design has evolved a lot, and some of the top current trends are elements that improve both aesthetics as well as the site’s functionality. Here are four modern design elements that can help your medical practice website look and function at its best.
1. Hero Images that are Large and Responsive
What it is:
A large hero image is an image that is placed at the top of a web page and takes up most or all of the viewing device’s screen. The image may have some text superimposed over the image, but it’s usually pretty minimal.
Why it works:
Since all the reader’s attention is focused on this hero image, it gives a great opportunity to pique their interest and draw them into wanting to read more. Capturing the reader’s attention immediately upon landing on your site is critical, since site visitors decide within just seconds whether or not to even stay on your website.
Images are also more evocative than just text alone, and engage the reader while helping to tell your practice’s story in a visual way.
Using a responsive design and image ensures readers get the same experience and above benefits of this element regardless of what kind of device they’re using, creating consistency, which fosters trust in your brand.
2. Semi-Flat Design
What it is:
Flat design means that elements like images and text appear two-dimensional rather than using shadows and other effects to make them appear three-dimensional. Semi-flat design represents a style that is primarily flat, but uses text effects and shadow features very judiciously, to highlight key information.
Why it works:
Flat design elements are clean and simple, with the focus on the content rather than distracting designs. This makes it as easy as possible for visitors to understand and process the information your website provides them. Careful use of shadowing a feature when the cursor hovers over it is an example of semi-flat design, where the benefits of flat designed are maintained but a small visual shift adds interest, depth, and may indicate an opportunity for engagement.
Flat and semi-flat designs also load faster than more complex design layouts, making them a great choice for mobile, as well.
3. Card Design
What it is:
Card design is presenting information on your website in “cards,” or small tiles that contain information in chunks that are easy to understand and process. Often, the cards expand as the reader hovers over or clicks on them, providing more information.
Why it works:
Controlling the flow and quantity of information presented to a site visitor is an important part of any successful website. Card design makes this easier because it allows the reader to choose the amount of information presented while maintaining a clean, uncluttered look to the page overall.
Card design can also help medical practice websites present things like products and services in a “side-by-side” format that makes them easy for potential patients to compare.
4. Short Feature, Product, or Service Videos
What it is:
These are concise videos that illustrate a specific product, service, or feature of your practice (as opposed to a long video tour of your entire facility, for example.)
Why it works:
The independent market research group eMarketer expects that this year adults in the United States will spend an average of 1 hour and 16 minutes each day watching video on their digital devices. Video is on the rise, and is only becoming more popular!
Short videos can present an idea or bring information to life without a large time commitment from your site visitor. Consider creating a video explaining the science of one of your top procedures, or a short commercial about your qualifications and background as a physician.
If you need help developing videos, eDoctors can build, edit, and code a professional video for you that’s ready to be viewed and shared. Our video commercial service allows you to take advantage of the highly engaging nature of video, without the hassle of tedious video shooting and editing.
If your practice’s web design needs to be modernized, give us a call. We specialize in creating websites tailored specifically to medical practice’s needs. eDoctors makes building a beautifully designed, HIPAA compliant website simple and painless!
