Introduction
Hello, my name is Samir Magar and I am a senior at Dauphin County Technical School in the Web Development Program. In this blog, I will be talking about three innovative features that would elevate your website. Over the past years, the Web Design and development scene has been ever evolving, and I, as a WEB student, have long since made it my mission to stay up with the trends. And as the months have passed, website features such as responsiveness or fast loading speeds were once seen as “innovative,” but now there is something that is expected. To really stand out from others, websites must offer innovative features that not only improve the user’s experience but also their ability to do things
Auto-Translate
The internet is a global place, meaning that it is used by people all over the world. This means that there will be language barriers. Language barriers cause many websites to lose out on users and potential customers. To fix these issues, a feature that website owners can add is an auto-translation feature. If using wordpres,s developers can simply add a plugin that auto-translates the website, and if manually coding it, you can add API’s such as Google Translate, which automatically translates websites. Giving users an auto-translate option not only is another way to improve user accessibility but also expand the reach of the website on a global level. A simple button that allows for the language on a website to change works wonders. For example, a small graphic design business that has their website in Spanish might miss out on hundreds of customers who can’t understand Spanish. A simple auto-translate feature would solve this problem.
Dark And Light Mode
Another innovative feature that has gained popularity over the years is dark mode and light mode toggles. Websites nowadays are expected to have customization options that make users’ experience easier and more comfortable, which light and dark modes do exactly. Dark mode helps reduce eye strain for users and also usually save battery life on devices, and light mode improves readability for many users. Allowing users to be able to choose between these two visual options help accommodate these preferences and help them want to stay on your website. For web developers and designers, this might sound like a tough process, but there are many plugins on wordpress that help with this and also youtube video tutorials for manual coders. This feature is not only visually appealing, but it also engages users and lets them know they have options.
Accessibility Tools
Accessibility is one of the most important innovative features in web design and development. For a website to truly be good, it must be accessible to everyone, including all users with any kind of disabilities. A few accessible features that are vital for accessibility are text sizing, contrast modes, dark and light modes, and screen reader help. There are tutorials on YouTube for this, and trust me, they are much easier to implement then they sound and there are many plugins in WordPress for this. A few I would recommend are UserWay and EqualWeb, as they provide menus with a bunch of accessibility features all grouped in one plugin. By making your website accessible, you communicate that you care and respect all users.
Conclusion
In conclusion, adding innovative features like auto-translation, dark and light mode, and accessibility tools will greatly help you improve user experience on your website. These features will not only make your website more accessible to a bigger audience, but it will also show that you care. Modern users expect websites to feel just as modern, they want websites that feel personal, give them options, and feel easy to use. By adding these three innovative features to your website, you are guaranteeing that you meet these qualifications. When we implement these features onto websites, we are letting users know that no matter where they are from, who they are, or how they are different, we care.