When it comes to new web design trends, you can hear all sorts of new and cool concepts from various sources.  Many things have actually changed these days.  Simpler tools and platforms for web development, new web apps, robust web content management systems, and new SEO strategies among other new stuff.  For a non-technical restaurant website owner, just hearing those things can be quite overwhelming.

Figuring out what’s important and relevant for your business can be even more daunting.  Just like other business website owners, you realize the impact a well-designed website can have on your restaurant business.   With web design trends constantly evolving, how do you keep up?

In an effort to make things easier for you, we are simplifying the new trends that people in the industry are seeing today and in the coming years.

1. Quality fresh content remains a very important thing

The only thing that hasn’t changed since the first days that websites existed is good quality content.   Content is “king” as they say.  Google’s algorithms have already changed several times, as you may be familiar with the penguin and panda updates, but quality content remains an absolute necessity for any website.

Business websites should have content that is always relevant and current.  Nothing does it better than an updated, fresh set of articles or blog posts related to your business.  Just make sure you have a content management system (CMS) that allows you to control your content, manage your menus and publish them across hundreds of sites.

So, for your restaurant website, there are also three primary pieces of content that you should keep fresh and up to date:

Food menu

Nothing is more frustrating to customers than showing up on to your restaurant only to find out that the dish they’re expecting to eat is no longer available on the menu.  This is the reason why your online food menu should stay up to date.  When customers get frustrated, you know what happens.  Thus, what’s featured on your online food menu should be exactly what customers can expect when they show up in your restaurant.

Restaurant events

Promoting a special event has never been easier on the web.  But make sure to keep your events calendar regularly updated for customers to stay in the loop.

Blog

A blog is a mini site or a page integrated with your website that you can use for a myriad of purposes.  You can either use it to tell the story of your business or post video tours of your restaurant.  It could also be the best place where guests can post their feedback and positive reviews.  You can actually use it as the official voice of your brand or business.  Your blog can also be used to link to other interesting pages on your restaurant website.  Wordpress is one of the most popular platforms that make blogging a lot easier.

2. Make your website mobile ready

One of the sweeping web design trends in recent years and beyond is the mobile revolution.  This means making your website viewable and accessible to smart phone or tablet users can put you one step ahead of the competition.

Smart phone usage grows at a very fast rate.  Such devices easily allow hungry local customers to run a quick search for restaurants nearby whenever they’re out and about at your location.

As a restaurant owner, your goal should be to make sure your website beautifully fits all of the new and similar future devices.  It should be designed to responsibly fit mobile and tablet devices.   In other words, the restaurant website design should adapt to any screen size and different mobile devices.

3. Make your website simpler and cleaner

One of the most important things to remember when developing a website is to make it simpler and cleaner.   Focusing on the most important elements is a simpler yet brilliant design idea.  A restaurant website should be custom designed and tailored to its own brand.  The Food Menu, Contact Info, Location with Google Maps, Directions and Photos – these are the most important pieces of information that customers usually want from your restaurant website.  Keep in mind also, that the most important thing to do when planning a mobile website is seriously thinking through HOW your visitors would use the site and WHICH bits of information are most important to your visitors.  Limiting the mobile options to the most important elements allows your website to load up quickly and makes it easily navigable -these two are perfect ingredients for a great browsing experience.

These 3 popular restaurant web design trends are critical.  If you don’t have a solution for these, reach out to a professional to help you with it.