How to Use Animation and Motion Design to Engage Your Website Visitors

Animation and motion design play a much greater role than website eye candy.

Motion graphics designed with a purpose will grab attention, simplify complex ideas, and make a website easier to use.

The truth is that we live in a world where the average user’s attention span and patience levels are waning. Through visual content, websites need to evoke curiosity the moment people land on them.

And that’s where motion comes in. Different types of motion design, background objects, and visual effects turn static pages into responsive and engaging experiences.

This blog explores how you can use animation to grab and keep attention, improve clarity, and enhance navigation and user experience.

Why Animation Matters

Modern-day technology and internet speeds have made animation a viable option for any website.

Properly implemented animations act as guides. They tell the users what to look at first and what to do next. It’s like holding a user’s hand, making navigation feel easy and natural.

It helps your brand stand out, too. A consistent animation style reinforces brand identity and makes the experience last longer in the user’s memory.

Animation also helps simplify complex information by breaking things down into clear, digestible steps.

All this makes for an enjoyable website experience.

And while you can hire a motion designer to help you with animations, there are also AI tools that can help you create stunning visuals for a fraction of the cost (or for free).

Let’s explore five of the most common and easy ways to add animation to your website.

Hero Animations

Hero animations sit at the top of a webpage and are often the first thing users see. They help create a strong first impression by adding movement to large visuals, headlines, or background elements.

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Watch how the text of this home page appears and how each element loads in a specific order and style.

Use this animation technique to draw your users to the first thing they should be reading or observing on your website. This minimizes the chances of a user bouncing.

You can do this by:

• Animating text transitions
• Adding zoom effects
• Shifting gradients

Loading Animations

When a website takes time to load, even a few seconds of silence can feel frustrating.

Loading animations tell a user to wait because something is indeed happening in the background.

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They reduce uncertainty and keep users engaged, whether it’s a simple spinning icon or a branded animation that reflects your visual identity. These animations can also set the tone for the rest of the site, adding personality during the blander parts of a website journey. Remember, a visually appealing site will do much more than a block of unappealing text.

Scroll-triggered animations

Scroll-triggered animations activate as users move down a page – like this one on Dribbble.

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They can make content feel more dynamic and help structure the information into digestible parts.

As elements fade in, slide into view, or gently appear, users are naturally guided through the flow of the page. This approach makes longer pages easier to explore and helps users stay focused on what matters. It also encourages deeper scrolling by making each new section feel like they’re discovering something new.

Hover Effects

Hover animations are one of the most practical and easy-to-add motion design techniques. And the best part is they’re so subtle.

Hover animations become active when a user moves their cursor over certain elements. The element’s activation upon hovering tells the user that they can interact with said element.

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They work effectively with links and buttons, informing the user that they can be clicked on.

The animation can be as simple as:

• A color change
• A zoom effect
• An underline

Or they can be a more complex and interactive content animation like:

• Flipping over
• Electricity
• Bouncing

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The consistent use of hover effects across clickable elements helps the user become familiar with your website’s mechanics.

Accent Animations

Accent animations are similar to hover animations in the sense that they subtly draw a user’s attention to important parts of your website, like call-to-action buttons, form fields, or alerts.

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In the above accent animation, ‘Full body’ is highlighted to let the user know which part of the workout they’re on, and the green shaded button to the right signifies the current live action.

You can make these buttons or elements pulse, shake, or glow. The idea is to signal to the user that something needs to be actioned or help them identify the next step in their user journey.

Best Practices for Animation Design

Animations should be stunning and practical in equal measure. Here are four principles of motion design to consider to guarantee the right balance between style and substance.

Intentionality

Before getting carried away with the elements, think about the purpose they should serve. Have a clear idea in your mind of the function the motion or animation will play.

This could be to guide a user, reinforce a message, or highlight a key element on the page.

For HR portals that discuss compensation management benefits, thoughtful animations can help simplify complex information and make employee benefit options more engaging and easier to understand.

Whatever it is, make sure the motion supports (without hindering) the user’s experience.

Big, bold animations that don’t serve a purpose can frustrate users and cause confusion.

If the animation doesn’t help the user, you’re probably better off without it.

Consistency

A consistent animation style helps your site feel cohesive. That means using similar speeds, styles, and effects across all animated elements.

When motion is predictable, users feel more comfortable and in control. Inconsistent or mismatched animations can break the visual flow and make the site harder to use.

Optimization

Improperly optimized animations weigh heavily on a website. Pages take longer to load, or, in worst-case scenarios, the animations don’t properly load or work.Top UI UX design companies understand this and prioritize data quality and accessibility, ensuring their designs are user-friendly for everyone.

And nothing annoys a user more than a website they can’t navigate.

Keep your website running smoothly by:

• Limiting the different types of animations per page
• Compressing elements like videos

Accessibility

Motion design should work for everyone, including users with different needs.

Fast flashes, loops, or intense motion can cause discomfort or trigger motion sensitivity.

Use motion as a complement, not a requirement, and provide clear alternatives where needed. Accessible animation creates a more inclusive experience for all visitors.

Final Thoughts

If you’ve yet to tinker and experiment with animation on your website, now is a good time to start.

Don’t worry about adding complex or heavy animations. If you’re starting a new motion design project, focus on small touches. Something as simple as accent animations or hover effects instantly improves a site with minimal complexity.

Our advice is to pick two types of animation and perform A/B tests with them. Pay close attention to how the animations perform. After your test period, choose the animation that resulted in higher conversions.