The web development profession has always been receptive to new developments in technology. It is one of the sectors that has gradually evolved in response to new technological trends every year. The market size for the web design services in the United States alone is projected to be worth nearly $41 billion by the end of the year. One of the reasons that the industry has grown so steadily is its utilization of big data and other technology driven solutions to industry challenges.
Deep learning technology is one of the most significant disruptive trends in web development. Most of the discussions around machine learning and web design focus on backend development. However, deep learning technology is arguably at least as a relevant for front-end web design, even though its impact may appear less visible. A number of machine learning tools can even help write HTML code, which can help streamline the web design process. However, the benefits go far beyond that.
How is deep learning transforming the web design profession? What technological advances should front-end web designers consider leveraging in the near future?
Deep learning technology is the future of the global web design industry
There are a number of compelling reasons to use machine learning technology to improve the quality of web design. Some of the most promising benefits of artificial intelligence for this profession are outlined below.
Realizing the benefits of content personalization
Content personalization has become a lot more popular in recent years. One study has found that 80% of customers say they are more likely to purchase from a brand that offers personalized content.
Machine learning technology is at the heart of content personalization. In its simplest form, websites can use personalization to evaluate purchases made by customers that have logged into an account with an online store. However, deep learning technology has created many more useful opportunities to personalize content.
Machine learning algorithms are able to evaluate a number of different variables, such as geographical locations, the time of day that somebody is visiting the website, previous interactions with a site, purchases that have been made, whether the user is subscribed to the brand’s social media channels and the specific pages that the user tends to look at the most.
Creating aesthetics that resonate with target audiences
Many web designers are very gifted at creating beautiful, stylistic elements and fascinating visual layouts. Unfortunately, the fact that they have the talent for creating excellent visual graphics doesn’t mean that they can pair their appealing visuals with customer expectations.
The frustrating reality is that customer preferences for web design formats vary tremendously across different industries. They can be difficult to predict, even for developers that specialize in serving specific verticals. Even visitors themselves might not give useful, actionable feedback on front-end design elements, since their reactions to visual elements are largely derived from subconscious variables.
Artificial intelligence can facilitate the development of new visual styles that enhance the user experience. This technology is embedded in sophisticated analytics tools, such as Crazy Egg. It can carefully monitor interactions between users and websites that they are interacting with. These insights can be extrapolated across websites in similar industries. This means that web designers that specialize in creating sites for specific industries can use deep learning technology to better understand the collective mindset of their clients’ target customers.
Providing better internal search features
Customer preferences for navigation features have evolved over the years. In the past, users were content to have simple navigation formats, such as well-organized menus and pages of relevant links. Although these formats are still relatively popular, they don’t go nearly far enough for the majority of Internet users.
One of the most popular new navigation trends is the shift towards internal search engines. Search engines embedded into a website are great for helping users have more control over discovery of new content.
AI technology has significantly improved the quality of internal search engines. Here are some ways that web designers can improve the quality of internal search engines:
- Search engines built on machine learning can become better at deciphering spelling mistakes, so users can still get accurate results even with typos.
- The search engine can differentiate the contextual relevance of different iterations of the same word based on larger phrases.
- The search engines are able to identify the most valuable and relevant content on the site based on user engagement factors and other content quality indicators.
Artificial intelligence technology is making content discoverability better through improved search engines. Web designers that use machine learning along with website search engines are able to connect visitors with the best possible content.
Machine learning technology is going to permanently alter the direction of the web design profession
Many industries are strongly affected by developments in machine learning. The web design profession is among those impacted the most. Web developers are investing more heavily in machine learning technology to create the best possible designs for their respective clients. The potential created by new machine learning algorithms is massive.
