5 Ways to Make Your Website Stand Out From the Competition

Everyone involved in website creation — web designers, illustrators, frontend developers, content creators, and others — wants their work to stand out from the competition. Clients aim to leave a strong impression on potential customers, designers seek originality and enjoy competing with fellow webmasters, developers strive to build a portfolio of success stories. And for all of them, an original, outstanding website can help achieve that.

Recalling a conversation between two characters in a book: “ Envy is too burdensome… It’s easier to become the best or to acknowledge someone else's superiority. You can’t outrun a horse or outlive a turtle — so why envy them? ” To avoid envy, it's better to aim for results that are on par with or better than others’. There are countless recommendations on how to do this — but many of them repeat the same critical mistakes.

We’ve all experienced that nagging feeling that a project isn’t quite good enough. We check, recheck, compare, estimate. Everything seems fine, yet there’s no thrill, no spark. Where’s the inspiration? The creativity? All recent works feel like copies of each other. Where’s the originality, even in the smallest details? If a site performs as well as competitors, that’s not necessarily bad.

But it’s possible to create something better — to “become the best.” You can design a site that truly stands out among others . Yes, it takes planning and effort, and each such project will have its own strengths and weaknesses.

Perhaps this time there won’t be as many examples and ideas (screenshots) as usual, but the point of this article isn’t to encourage copying or creating clone websites.

Structure

This is one of the primary ways to make your site stand out — and one of the hardest. Think about what hasn’t been done yet. Imagine layouts or structures inspired by things you’ve seen in completely different fields. After working with three-column layouts fifty times, try mixing things up.

In reality, there are countless ways to organize content on a canvas before users start losing usability or ease of reading. Creating a truly convenient layout takes time, and many “wild” creative web projects rely heavily on JavaScript — although ideally, they shouldn’t.

Check out the site narrowdesign and see what structural ideas were implemented. Scroll the page with your mouse or keyboard arrows to explore its navigation and content. It’s genuinely impressive. Similar examples include POM WONDERFUL , LAMP IN ROOM . There’s something about them that’s rarely seen on the web. At first glance — a typical eCommerce layout with product cards, depth effects, parallax. But the execution feels fresh and different.

Branding

Branding is another very obvious and often easier way to distinguish a website from its competitors. Just talk to the client and find out what the brand stands for — its values, personality, mission. Then bring those elements to life in your design. Embrace the brand, “wrap the space with it.” Make the client feel overwhelmed by seeing their brand colors everywhere — and then tone it down with softer or stronger shades to give visual breathing room.

But this method only works if the client’s brand is truly unique. If the entire style is built around Helvetica and nothing more, the designer will be in a tough spot. Try suggesting alternative combinations or enhancements.

The Verge project is a great example — combining fonts, colors, tones, and yes, even structure. Note how color and typography are used on MONODOM ST. PETERSBURG , THE BUYER , and NEW VISTA BEHAVIORAL HEALTH . In each case, the logo either stands out or blends in neutrally — but never loses visibility. The fonts used for branding and content are distinct. Altogether, each site feels like a small, self-contained world you don’t want to compare with anything else — because it already feels beautiful, understandable, and impressive.

Graphics

If structure and branding aren’t enough, you can always rely on graphics, imagery, or photography to build a distinctive visual style. Why did full-screen image layouts become so popular? They grab attention, evoke emotions in users , and encourage deeper exploration. Plus, there are countless visual styles to choose from — it’s fast, easy, and effective.

On the other hand, beautiful, original, “wow-effect” imagery often costs money. Typically, such visuals are outsourced to artists. That’s why we focus so much on helping readers learn how to create these types of images themselves — because every unique image erases repetition and clone-like elements that you might use in a standard layout.

The site kennardlilly uses original graphics that blend photos with brushstrokes, smudges, and paint marks. Sometimes the photo is almost hidden behind the effects, making it more interesting to examine. Look at MENYA BIBIRI , brunner , and KILLIAN PACIFIC to see unusual combinations of photography and visuals. Rich color palettes, motion blur, cinemagraphs. One site even turned a photo of a hall into a navigation menu with parallax and animation. The ways to achieve uniqueness are endless.

Content

This is perhaps the most important — and often the most difficult — element that can stand on its own, regardless of the overall design. What you publish on a site (text) should reflect the client's personality or the company’s mission. It should be clear and understandable to anyone, no matter the project's language. What sets one site’s content apart from another? Usually — quotes, microfilms, or video messages from the client.

But to create something unique, you first need original input from the client. You can’t write an “About Us” section by copy-pasting from competitors. That won’t lead anywhere. Once you receive proper info, your job is to rewrite it — in a way that feels like it was created from scratch. Most marketing content has a very specific tone that often feels like it breaks the norms of traditional writing. As readers, we need clear cues that trigger a desire to purchase something. And for content writers — that's the challenge. A tricky and demanding one.

There’s also something called microcopy — and this makes a huge difference in how design is perceived. Users generally expect to read about a product or service and see some images. But imagine a site where everything else interacts with the visitor. Where the design talks to the user not as a customer — but as a human.

For clarity, check out the site uiviking and ask yourself, why is it so engaging to explore? Look at the contact form, the Case and Skills sections. On one hand, it’s just portfolio content. On the other, we (as visitors) are having a dialogue with the author.

Great examples of content and microcopy can be found at aerdesign , flippo , zenit-orel , huee , and THIRD MAN . Each of them speaks to visitors as people — as casual guests who might have landed there by chance, only to realize — “oops, this isn’t what I was looking for… but it’s kind of interesting.” Whether it’s a photo of the creator, a video service explanation, or a detailed product range — each one is unique and expressive.

Animation

Animation has been used for years — and for good reason. When done well, it creates an excellent and memorable experience for users. Thankfully, many splash screens have gone the way of the dodo ( the extinct bird). Many remember the blinking, jumping, and twitching animations from the ‘90s. Back then, no one really understood their visual impact.

We’re talking about animation last here — not because it’s unimportant, but because it’s one of the most powerful and difficult tools in web design. More complex than layout, structure, or branding. And since animations need copyright protection — it gets even tougher. Unlike text and images, animations are rarely copied online.

Plus, if a client wants something “unusual and playful,” animation is often the best way to deliver that. It can even be turned into a game. Yes, animation can affect usability and performance — but it’s visually striking, effective, and memorable.

The project Google Be Internet Awesome helps kids learn about online safety. One feature is a simple adventure game with characters and text hints: Interland.

Another example is the educational site Curious Critters — a cross-platform project offering insights about mysterious creatures from our planet’s past and present.

There’s also the pre-order promo page for the new champagne Les Cinq Filles , and the official site of Triotech — a company that creates multi-sensory and interactive attractions for theme parks and wellness centers worldwide.

All of them feature different types of animation. Not videos per se, but light and airy animated elements — like a twinkling star, a swarm of butterflies symbolizing sparkling bubbles in a drink, or a planet-spanning journey with characters — an alternative to dry academic text. Animation varies — but adults love it too, and it can genuinely captivate.

Conclusion

Look around the web and you’ll notice — rarely is only one of the techniques described above used in isolation. Web designers often combine all five methods. That’s usually the best way to maintain focus and not overwhelm visitors.

Ask yourself: what are your strengths in web or graphic design? Maybe you’re good at writing or illustration? Then focus on sites with rich content and graphics. Combine them, experiment, develop, animate your text, draw your ideas with words. Maybe you’re an animator who designs original logos? Create logos that are both simple and memorable — dynamic yet static. Most importantly, remember that the most joyful and rewarding moments come from making something truly new and creative.

Otherwise, you might end up like the continuation of the quote from the beginning:

“ — You can eat the turtle.

— But the years it didn’t live can’t be stolen. And other turtles will still disturb your peace while you're alive — and crawl peacefully after you’re gone. ”