What are the must-know design terms in digital marketing?

Design is an integral part of digital marketing, and along with development, it’s one of the most technical aspects of building a website. There are plenty of interesting terms used in the design industry, and to the uninitiated, they can be challenging to grasp.

If you’re looking to refresh your website or build a new one from scratch, chances are you’ll meet with a designer. The following deep-dive into design terms will leave you a little more fluent and able to “talk the talk” when building the perfect website for your business.

Core Design Concepts

The following design terms are helpful when discussing the main components of a website’s layout and structure.

Layout – The arrangement of visual elements on a page or screen.
Composition – How visual elements work together to create balance and hierarchy.
Hierarchy – The visual ranking of elements to guide user attention.
Contrast – The difference between elements (color, size, shape, etc.) to create emphasis.
White Space (Negative Space) – Empty areas that help focus attention and improve readability.
Alignment – Positioning elements in a visually connected way.
Grid System – A structured framework that helps maintain consistency and alignment.
Typography – The style, arrangement, and appearance of text.
Color Theory – The study of how colors interact and evoke emotion.
Focal Point – The main area of a composition that captures the viewer’s attention and guides their eyes (e.g., headings, graphics, or calls to action).

UX and UI Design Terms

The acronyms UX and UI stand for User Experience and User Interface respectively. The UX and the UI of websites encompass the entire look, feel, experience, and flow of a site.

Without even realizing it, you have likely experienced both good and bad UX and UI. Sites that bury the most important information, like pricing and phone numbers, are frustrating to use. Conversely, sites that have proper headings and navigation are a breeze and a joy to experience.

Designing a site also requires taking the content into account and making intentional decisions about layout. What’s the most important message? What can be placed closer to the bottom of the page? What information do we want every visitor to leave with?

The design process aims to accomplish many goals. A website should look aesthetically appealing and interesting enough to keep a user’s attention. It should flow well and be organized in a way that is natural. Your site should function properly with responsive designs that compartmentalize and highlight information in a clear and appropriate way.

User Experience (UX) – The overall experience a user has when interacting with a product.
User Interface (UI) – The visual and interactive elements that make up the product interface.
Wireframe – A basic, low-fidelity layout showing the structure of a page.
Prototype – An interactive, mid- or high-fidelity model of a design used for testing.
Mockup – A static, high-fidelity visual representation of a design.
User Flow – The path a user takes to complete a task.
Persona – A fictional representation of a website’s target audience, typically based on market research. Personas help designers create well-targeted, user-friendly websites.
Usability – How easy and efficient a product is to use.
Accessibility (a11y) – Designing for users of all abilities, including those with disabilities, especially hearing and visual impairments.
Information Architecture (IA) – Organizing and structuring content for clarity and navigation.
Responsive Design – Adapting layouts for different screen sizes and devices.
Hamburger Icon – An icon of three horizontal lines indicating a menu. It is often set in the top corner of the page and expands into a full menu when clicked.

Visual & Interaction Design

Visual and interactive design can make or break the success of your site. Visual communication through design is just as important as written communication through good quality content.

Words on a page won’t pack the same punch if they’re not beautifully laid out in a way that’s clear and pleasing to the reader’s eye. Buttons like “Purchase,” “Contact Us,” and “Learn More” should stand out. Blocks that reveal more information when a user hovers will be useless unless properly designed.

Iconography – The visual language of icons and symbols.
Microinteractions – Small, subtle animations or responses (e.g., button hover effects).
Call to Action (CTA) – A button or element encouraging user engagement (e.g., “Sign Up”).
Visual Hierarchy – The order in which the eye perceives elements.
Affordance – The visual cues that suggest how something should be used (e.g., a button looks “clickable”).
Gestalt Principles – Psychological laws explaining how people perceive visual groups or patterns.

Design Processes & Methodologies

Just like the writing process, digital marketing design is an art that takes time and multiple revisions to perfect. Good designers will work through a few different iterations with a client in order to perfect the vision and goal for the website. No two websites are exactly alike and a good design will make yours stand out.

Design Thinking – A human-centered approach to problem-solving through empathy and iteration.
Ideation – Generating ideas and concepts during early stages.
Iteration – Refining designs based on feedback and testing.
A/B Testing – Comparing two versions of a design to see which performs better.
Heuristic Evaluation – Reviewing a design using usability principles.

Design Tools & File Types

Designers use lots of different technologies to create their products. The following are some examples of common digital marketing design software and tools.

Vector Graphics – Scalable graphics made with paths (e.g., SVG, AI).
Raster Graphics – Pixel-based images (e.g., JPG, PNG, GIF, WebP).
Figma / Sketch / Adobe XD – Popular UI/UX design tools.
Adobe Photoshop / Illustrator – Common tools for image editing and vector design.
Style Guide / Design System – A set of standards for colors, typography, components, etc.

Content-related Design Terms

Deciding where to place content on a website is a very important step in the design process. Content writers will often engineer the best flow for the text ahead of time and then collaborate with designers for placement on the website, based on the desired UX and UI. The following terms help designers communicate about content-related design decisions.

Below the Fold – Anything “below the fold” is only visible after you scroll down. The phrase originated in the newspaper industry when publications would place the most crucial content on the top half of the first page (above the fold). In design, placing something above the fold signals that you want the user to see it without having to click or scroll. Anything below the fold is also important but will need scrolling to be seen.
Breadcrumb Navigation – This navigation shows the user’s position within a website’s hierarchy. Breadcrumb links often appear at the top of web pages and allow users to quickly navigate to pages that are higher in the hierarchy.
Breakpoint – The breakpoint refers to a specific width or size of the browser window at which a responsive website will adapt its layout to correctly render on screens of different sizes. If a screen’s width is below a certain breakpoint, the layout will adjust accordingly for a better UX. Mobile and desktop devices are examples of breakpoints.
Call to Action (CTA) – CTAs are links, buttons, phrases, or other elements that urge a user to take a specific action. Common examples include “Subscribe Now” or “Contact Us.” CTAs are placed in prominent locations so visitors can easily see and interact with them.
Hero Image – A hero image is a large banner or picture placed at the top of a website page. Hero images grab attention and should connect visitors emotionally.

Hopefully this little dictionary has you ready to dive into the details with your designer. If you are looking for more in-depth design knowledge, peruse the rest out our FAQs, or check out our YouTube channel.