Web Design Inspiration: 10 Websites We Love

Digital Marketing / February 11, 2021

Working for a digital marketing agency and being digital natives mean we spend most of our time online. And, once in a while, we visit a website that totally draws us in. Some websites really do push the envelope when it comes to design aesthetics, usability, user experience, branding, or interactivity. 

We’d like to share 10 websites that, in our opinion, excel in at least one of those categories. And, although we have no insider view on actual website performance, the sites mentioned below are definitely worth learning from or get inspired by.

Let’s go!

Website Inspiration #1: Care/of

Shopping for vitamins and supplements can be quite the challenge as there are so many options. The Care/Of team found an interactive way to simplify the research and buying process through their website. Their clear call-to-action throughout the site encourages users to take an interactive quiz that gives personalized product recommendations based on lifestyle and health problems. Plus, each product’s ingredients and benefits are explained in detail and the minimalist website design makes it easy to digest complex information. 

Website Inspiration #2: Foli

We could spend hours looking at this plant shop website. They hit the nail on the head with their visual aesthetics: the colors, imagery, icons and photos are beautiful and inspiring. But, what’s even more impressive about this site is how thoughtful and detail-oriented it is. 

The company clearly cares about creating a smooth and fun user experience all around. For example, when browsing a product page, the visitor can choose from a variety of card designs if the plant they are about to purchase is actually a thoughtful gift. 

They also use clever and quirky messaging throughout the site which fits in perfectly with their product and brand image. Their “size guide for plants” is a great example of that.

Website Inspiration #3: Empress 1908 Gin

 

The Empress Gin website is a perfect combination of minimalist design and powerful imagery. The designers behind this website used videos and animation incredibly well to create an immersive experience and showcase the flavours found in this particular gin.

Bonus: a beautiful visual experience can be hard to recreate on mobile, but the responsiveness of the website is really well thought out. 👏

Website Inspiration #4: Olive Healthcare

Olive’s homepage is such a great example of an app download landing page. Their website simply gets the job done: each section is clearly defined and all the design elements help the user quickly understand the information and key differentiating features. 

Also, the short vertical video (a popular format for mobile) where a healthcare professional explains what the app is all about is such as a smart idea. You can tell this web page was designed in a mobile-first approach, which makes perfect sense when trying to sell an app! 

Website Inspiration #5:  Packwire

Packwire offers a fully customizable packaging service. Businesses can go to their site and make their mailer box idea come to life with their user-friendly builder. In minutes, designers and marketers can have a quick mockup of what their shipping boxes could look like and how much they would cost. This clearly simplifies the consumer journey as it removes the need to fill out a form and contact client services for a custom quote.

And, to top it all off, the website design is very pleasing: the contrasting colors, product photos and animated elements really enhanced the customer experience. 

Website Inspiration #6: Grupo Nabeiro

Navigating to this site will immediately invoke a sense of intrigue. We don’t usually abide by auto-playing music on a site, but this implementation is tasteful enough and easily disabled. The attention to detail and consistency of visual identity throughout the site is really satisfying. The fluidity of transitions between pages & sections, loading animations, and video backdrops make it feel as though we’re interfacing with an interactive museum exhibit more than a website.

All of this is made more impressive by the entirely respectable page speed insights scores for this site. They managed to compress their hero videos while maintaining a high-quality aesthetic (there’s probably some form of lazy loading in place to defer loading of deeper page sections).

Website Inspiration #7: Nixit

It feels like the period care industry is led by a few big brands that offer very similar products. The Toronto-based company, Nixit set themselves apart with their sustainable menstrual cups and their modern branding. The images found on their website are bold, unique and completely different from what we usually see in this space. Their key brand differentiators are highlighted beautifully on their site through clever copy, distinct images and simple icons.

Website Inspiration #8: Ergonofis

If you’re looking for product page inspiration, you have to check out Ergonofis’ website. Their product page contains all the information a consumer needs to make an enlightened decision: photos, product specs, clear benefits and differentiators, frequently asked questions and consumer reviews.

Plus, you can customize every part of the product in the right column and immediately see the final results on the left. That’s amazing!

Website Inspiration #9: Juno College of Technology

Juno College of Technology’s website combines User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX) beautifully. 

For example, the course pages contain a lot of information (course curriculum, schedule, pricing, testimonials, FAQs) but the spacing, the backgrounds, the colors and the different fonts make everything easy to understand and enjoyable to read.

You can also tell that this company really understands its consumer’s buying process. Their conversion funnel includes various steps that will appeal to users depending on where they are in their journey:

• Book a call with a “Success Consultant”
• Download a student experience package to learn more about a specific course
• Register to a free workshop to meet the community and get a feel of the overall learning experience
• Apply to a course

Well done!

Website Inspiration #10: Simplex

It’s quite remarkable to see a tools and equipment rental company with such a strong brand image and modern-looking website. 

Simplex’s website is also really well-structured which makes it super easy to browse the impressive number of products and services. The full-page interactive menu really contributes to the user experience as it clearly categorizes every product and service available. Check it out here.

The website is one of the most important components of a strong online presence.

There is definitely a lot of work put into designing the websites mentioned in this article. Shout out to the creative agencies or freelancers who worked on those projects and clearly master the art of combining branding, design and functionality to offer a smooth user experience online. 

A website is the foundation of a business’ online presence. And, a strong foundation will benefit other digital marketing initiatives such as paid media and search engine optimization. Feel free to reach out to us for help on that matter.

Otherwise, if you have other great website examples, please share them in the comment section below!