You finally have the website design idea you’ve been thinking about for your next project.
You know that one of the best ways to communicate your vision to clients is with mockups, but you’re stuck on how to make the mockup look, so stakeholders understand the idea.
If you’re not sure where to start, don’t worry, this blog post will help you change that because it covers
- What a website mockup is
- Tips on how to create responsive mockup designs
- Examples of mockup template designs to inspire you
Without further ado, let’s get started!
Table of contents
- What’s a website mockup?
- 5 tips on mastering website mockup design
- Finance website mockup examples
- Creative website mockup examples
- eCommerce website mockup examples
- Business web design mockup examples
What’s a website mockup?
If you’re a seasoned web designer, you’re probably no stranger to website mockups. For the uninitiated, a website mockup is a static model of what a website or web page will look like when it goes live.
By static, we mean users can’t interact with it.
Essentially, it’s the spitting image of the final product (website) with its design elements, layout, font, and content on display.
The only difference between the two is that mockups don’t have the functionality that makes a live website look, you know, useful.
So, why are mockups necessary if they’re a lesser version of an actual website?
As a designer or agency, you need website mockups because they can help you
- Communicate your idea and vision to your clients.
- Test different concepts.
- Receive and implement feedback early in the project timeline to save time on iterations.
- Ensure everyone is on the same page from the start.
When designing a website, there are two other deliverables besides mockups that help people visualize your ideas. They’re often confused with one another.
Let’s look at what each entails and why they are important steps in a website design workflow!
Website mockups vs. wireframes vs. prototypes
A wireframe is a low-fidelity schematic of the website you’re building that helps define the structure of your site in the early stages of the project.
It’s an invaluable design resource, and it typically looks like this:
Think of wireframes as a simpler version of website mockups. They’re just preliminary sketches that mockups are built on top of.
With mockups, you can iterate and redesign all the ideas you have in mind before moving to create prototypes.
Prototypes are high-fidelity versions of website mockups. You can use them to test the site’s usability so you know what needs fixing before the website development phase begins.
They also help your clients have a good feel for how the final version of the website will work.
On the flip side, mockups are more about looks. 👀
Now that it’s clear what mockups are and, more importantly, what they’re not, let’s see how you can create them.
5 tips on mastering website mockup design
Acing your website mockup design is actually much easier than you think.
Yes, you may have to harness your superpowers to make everyone (the client, the team lead, and yourself) happy. 🦸
But that shouldn’t be a problem if you leverage the tips we share in this section.
Tip #1: Choose the right mockup design tool
You know how we said website mockups are the visual representation of what the website will look like?
Well, it’s mockup design tools that make that happen.
They help you conceptualize your idea or vision and convert them into a design. As such, you must ensure you choose the right tools to work with.
Here are some questions to help you determine that:
- Is it easy to learn and use?
- Does it support feedback from clients and team members?
- How well does it integrate with social media channels or other tools you use?
While you mull those questions over, let’s take a look at some popular website mockup tools:
- Figma: Allows users to build high-quality design processes and collaborate with different teams in their organizations, including clients.
- InVision: Gives users access to smart templates for quick mockup designs and offers integrations with tools like Slack, Figma, and Loom.
- Adobe XD: Comes with a drag-and-drop feature that allows designers to create web blueprints.
- Mockplus: Uses the What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG) editor and lets users test their mockup on different devices.
- Gravit: Helps designers create pixel patterns that are compatible with multiple platforms.
- Adobe Photoshop: Helps users communicate their ideas with clients by designing high-fidelity and detailed mockups.
Tip #2: Always start with a wireframe
Once you’ve decided on a tool, don’t jump right into mockup design. Start with a wireframe instead — you’ll thank yourself later when the first round of feedback comes your way.
Creating wireframes allows every stakeholder involved to examine the website’s structure and make any suggestions they want to be implemented in the design early on.
Typically, web designers sketch their ideas on a whiteboard after brainstorming. Then, they jump right into the design phase.
While popular, this approach wastes loads of productive time. Instead, it’s worth developing wireframes first.
By doing this, you get to carry your team members and clients along and address any problems before they become a big deal (and super time-consuming to fix).
If you decide to start by creating wireframes, you’ll:
- Get simple and clear feedback without the distractions of the site’s design and aesthetics.
- Save time since you won’t have to finish designing before your client gives feedback.
- Have a better understanding of what your clients want by getting comments on what they like and dislike.
- Get a good view of the website design by mapping out the functionality of each page.
If you feel hesitant and don’t know where to start with wireframing and mockup design, we know something that can help. 🤭
Tip #3: Don’t shy away from competitors’ websites
Keep an eye out for what your competitors’ sites look like. To be clear, this is not so you can copy their website.
…we’re pretty sure you wouldn’t do that anyway.
Rather it’s so you can get inspired and create a unique website that works for your target audience.
By checking out the competition, you’ll learn about:
- The types of websites your audience is used to interacting with
- Gaps that need to be filled
- The best direction to take
But be careful, though; getting too close to the sun is dangerous. So, ensure your design is not too similar to competitors’ sites.
An extra pair of eyes on your mockup can help you figure it out.
Tip #4: Add internal reviews to your mockup approval workflow
When designing your mockup, add internal reviews to the process to ensure the website meets the needs of your client at all touch points.
This means sharing the mockup with other creatives on your team who aren’t close to the project.
They’ll be able to see the design from a different perspective and provide feedback about sections that could harm the website’s performance.
However, if not handled well, feedback can be counterproductive.
We understand that designing is a creative process, and sometimes external inputs that are not properly organized can disrupt it.
That’s where using a tool like MarkUp.io comes in handy.
Our platform streamlines the review-and-approval process for you by allowing you to share your design with your team and get pixel-accurate comments pinned to the elements that need to be improved.
You can then keep track of the feedback added to your mockup to ensure the project is on the right path.
We’ve got one more tip that’s like the icing on the cake when working on your design projects.
Tip #5: Follow the golden rules of user interface (UI) design
Ah yes, the user interface design! No mockup design is complete without it!
Well, the UI is an important part of your product design. It helps ensure you create a responsive website for users to interact with.
For better chances of success with UI designs, there are four rules you need to follow. These are known as the golden rules:
- Allow users to be in charge of the interface: Let them control their actions on the website.
- Ensure user interaction on the website is comfortable: Do away with elements that don’t provide value to your website visitors.
- Tone down the cognitive load: Keep the number of steps needed to carry out an action to a bare minimum, so users don’t have to rack their brains.
- Be consistent: Use the same design system, functionality, user experience, typography, and copy tone throughout the mockup.
Now that you know what goes into mockup design, let’s look at some mockup examples.
Finance website mockup examples
Have you been thinking about designing mockups for finance websites?
We’ve got three examples that can mockspire you. 😊
Example #1: Banking website mockup
In this example, the mockup designer shows different pages users will interact with while using the website’s mobile version.
It provides a clear picture of how users can transfer and receive money in their bank accounts and keep track of spending habits by checking their daily, weekly, and all-time expenses.
Example #2: Crypto trading website mockup
This mockup design shows the desktop homepage of a crypto website.
The landing page is blue, a color known to suggest trust, loyalty, and intelligence — crucial traits in the crypto space.
You can use this design as a guide if it’s similar to what you want.
Example #3: Online payment website mockup
Here’s another cool mockup design showing both the desktop and mobile app versions of a site.
The colors used signify sophistication, making it appealing to visitors. It also shows the features and benefits of the platform, including reviews from current customers — a great touch that establishes trust.
Creative website mockup examples
If your clients are in the creative space — you know, where the cool guys are— we’ve got some examples for you too.
Example #1: Artwork portfolio website mockup
Even without looking at the sub-heading, this mockup already screams “art” thanks to its clever and striking use of the deep orange and white color-combo.
Of course, you can change the theme to fit your website. But this mockup will give you a head start if you design an artwork website.
Example #2: Digital agency website mockup
People feel safer when they’re working with experts. That’s what makes this mockup design worth your while.
The designer presents the agency as a top performer by showing it’s an award-winning brand, using bold copy, and displaying its completed projects.
They also showed how simple the agency’s user flow is — users can get started with them by entering their email addresses.
Example #3: Branding agency website mockup
What better way for a branding agency to showcase its services than by using its brand as a case study?
That’s what you see in this mockup!
The designer shows off the agency’s products and projects, including their experience level.
eCommerce website mockup examples
These examples are good options to look at if you’re designing website mockups for eCommerce brands.
Example #1: Online clothing store UI mockup
This mockup features different web pages that users can navigate to when they visit the site.
And from the homepage, people can start browsing through different products and shop for them.
Example #2: Shopify store theme mockup
Shopify designers, this one’s for you. The cloudy purple colors can be a good combo if your client is in the beauty industry.
You can see how they categorized their products into New Arrivals, Best Sellers, and Top Rates, just above some product examples.
Example #3: Online candy store website mockup
There are several things we love about this mockup, specifically the color palette and imagery the designer used. They kinda fit the profile of what a candy store should look like.
Aside from that, the homepage provides customers with everything they need to place an order on the site.
There’s a tab to the right with the ‘Order Now’ call to action (CTA) for those who are ready to order.
Business web design mockup examples
Our final examples are for people designing website mockups for business services.
You thought we forgot about you? We didn’t!
Example #1: Company culture page mockup
This mockup promotes the company’s culture by showing people why it’s a good workplace.
The designer also filled the homepage with colors that suggest goodness and happiness.
Example #2: Solution page mockup
This example focuses on the services the business provides.
It starts with what the company can do for users and proceeds to show how it works.
The designer also uses a white theme with bursts of engaging colors to draw people’s attention to key information.
Example #3: Manufacturing company website mockup
The layout of this website template looks very organized, with the homepage showing the type of services they offer.
The color scheme they used in the graphic design is equally appealing. There’s also a section showing the kind of products the company manufactures.
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There you have it, guys!
We bet showcasing your ideas will be much easier now, right? Just one more stop before you go!
Streamline your website mockup design with the right tool
Now that you’ve been mockspired, consider integrating MarkUp.io into your design workflow.
Here’s why:
Using our platform, you can share mockup designs with your team or client and get reviews and comments on specific aspects of your work.
MarkUp.io makes it easy for them to give feedback and for you to track and implement it, so everyone is on the same page. This helps you streamline the entire design process.
We know you’d like to see this for yourself — seeing is believing, after all.
Then, by all means, sign up for a free 30-day trial with MarkUp.io so you can experience frictionless feedback with zero misunderstandings and frustration.
Some designers say it’s life-changing! 🤭
