Whether you want to apply for a job or are looking to enhance your personal brand, you should consider creating a personal website. This type of website is designed specifically to be simplistic in nature while displaying information about yourself, which is typically shown on a single page. The appearance of the personal website you create depends on the reason that you’re making the website. The many different uses for one-page personal websites include an online shop, a gallery of design work that you’ve completed, a personal brand site, a portfolio, a blog, and a resume.
These websites are effective because they provide individuals with the ability to market themselves on a single web page, which means that only the most important information is included. You won’t need to worry about funneling visitors to other areas of your website when you create a personal site. Personal websites can be created on many different platforms, the primary of which include WordPress, Wix, and SquareSpace.
All of these platforms allow you to create personal websites for free. However, adding extra functionality or features to the page may cost extra. Once you’ve determined that a personal website is right for you, it’s important that you strive to create a site that will automatically catch the attention of anyone who visits. If you need some inspiration before starting work on your personal website, the following article offers a closer look at 13 fantastic examples of personal websites.
1. Owltastic
Owltastic is a stylish and appealing one-page website that’s straight to the point about the services that it provides. The verbiage is positive, personal, and very confident, which allows the site to stand out when compared to basic business websites. If this page proves to be enough for a prospective client to be interested in their services, a contact form is easily accessible by clicking on the CTA button “Sound Good? Let’s Chat”. If the client isn’t fully satisfied with what they’ve seen, they can go beyond the fold and read additional information about Meagan Fisher, the business owner. Another CTA can also be found on the page that takes visitors to the contact form. This CTA reads “Let’s Work Together”.
The creator of the website also states what makes her unique, which is that she works as a designer/developer hybrid, which isn’t widely available. She also states the years of experience that she has working with big-name companies that are reputable and recognizable. The case studies she provides are formatted in an organized and clear manner. The three case studies that she displays on the page showcase the variability of her skills. Some of the more effective elements of her website include:
- Above the fold area is aesthetically pleasing and uses micro animation to engage the user
- There are no additional pages save for links that take the site visitor to case studies that are available on Medium, which helps her credibility
- The user isn’t distracted about the overall purpose of the site
- Elements of personal style are used
- Such elements as micro animations, astrology aesthetic, owl, and nighttime scenes are trendy
- The overall color scheme meshes well with the other page elements
- The best aspect of this website is that it provides clear and concise messaging that displays personality and overall competence, which is bolstered by ample CTAs
2. Gordils & Willis
Gordils & Willis is a digital studio that offers an extensive amount of design services. This one-page personal website is notable for outlining their design process in a detailed manner. They also use micro animation throughout the design that utilizes changing shapes, which should keep visitors engaged with the content. Their bold mission statement is included above the fold to make sure that site visitors understand what they are about.
A very short description of their design studio is also included towards the top of the page. The shapes that can be found throughout the page reflect the primary concept of the website that focuses on creativity. The most effective aspect of the website is that it makes great use of white space. While the site is filled with relevant information, the elements on the page aren’t too crowded.
3. BRNDMKRS
BRNDMKRS is a website design and strategy firm that displays all services on a single page. This website design is particularly notable for including a video that describes who they are and the process they use when designing a website. This video is clear and effective. The website is also relatively unique for providing a checklist that allows customers to obtain an estimate for their services. They include this feature because they believe that prospective customers appreciate honesty and transparency.
They also want to make sure that the customer’s time is valued. The messaging throughout the page is bold and clear, which gives potential clients all the information they need to make a purchase decision. Their competency in the branding/marketing field is demonstrated by their branding and video being placed just below the fold.
4. Ximena Vengoechea
Ximena Vengoechea is a highly simplistic and clean website that focuses on making the illustrations pop and stand out from everything else. These illustrations convey a personal journey alongside her personality. When you use this website, you’ll notice that it makes great use of white space for a clean appearance. It’s very easy to see the menu items, which allows for straightforward site navigation. She uses consistent amounts of custom illustration throughout the site, which means that her personal touch isn’t lost when the visitor navigates to the various sub-pages.
5. Joshua McCartney
Joshua McCartney is a freelance art director with a highly creative personal website. This website grabs the user’s attention immediately through the use of a humorous image. The inclusion of this image instantly conveys personality, which prospective clients may be looking for in an art director. The projects that he has worked on are organized with various tabs that are located on the same page, which include tabs for design, UI/UX design, motion graphics, all projects, and video.
When using this website, you’ll find a stylistic competence that makes the entire design flow well. The owner of the website has also kept things simple by only including two pages, which extend to “Work” and “About” pages. If you want to create a fun and energetic design for your personal website, this might be the ideal website for inspiration.
6. Ana Santos
Ana Santos is a simple website that’s friendly and engaging. The owner of the website is a UX consultant and coach who has worked with a wide range of different companies, which include small startups and large tech companies like Google. All of the services that she provides are readily displayed on the front page of the website, which allows potential clients to know what they’re getting before browsing through the rest of the site. The color scheme is also beautiful and easy on the eyes, which makes the website feel welcoming.
Along with being very user friendly, the site has a great UX design. The elements that are above the fold show site visitors the companies she has worked with, which displays professional competence. She also offers free education to other UX designers, which goes to show that she’s knowledgeable on the greater industry. One notable element of her site is a “How Can I Help” section, which offers four different groups that users can enter, each of which has its own sub-pages.
7. Green Chameleon
Green Chameleon is a beautiful and stylish website that’s outfitted with an array of subtle animations that you’ll be able to see as you scroll down the page. The page is broken up by large header texts that make it very easy to distinguish between the different projects that their design team has worked on. Because imagery isn’t static but also animated, the modern site visitor should find the site to be appealing. There’s also a unique placement of imagery throughout the page that makes things more interesting. The black background is a bold design choice that makes the imagery stand out even more.
8. Melanie Daveid
Melanie Daveid is an elegant website that includes a unique loading animation of the site owner’s name. This animation greets visitors immediately after they enter the website. From here, you’ll notice that she bolds and uses different colors to make certain site elements stand out, which ensures that the written content on the page is easier to read. Hovering over a project provides a distinct animation. A sticky sidebar on the right side of the page makes for simple and efficient scrolling. The subtle animations that are situated throughout the site allow the design to be more interesting, which gives the site owner the ability to show more personality. She also goes into great detail about her design process.
9. Ollie
Ollie is a simple, interactive website that comes with a highly unique mouse cursor. This cursor allows the user to have a fun experience when browsing the website. There are also unique loading animations on the website that occur when landing on the page. These subtle animations make the website more engaging and interesting for users.
The navigation bar is simple, which ensures that the scrolling element of the page doesn’t take away from the overall design. When scrolling over different projects, users are provided with information about what happens when clicking on the link. Each project also comes with a concise description that’s easy to understand. All services are clearly labeled, which is essential when trying to bring in new customers.
10. Charlie Waite
Charlie Waite is a sleek one-page personal website that provides users with unique scrolling and a personal tagline that reads “designer, builder, husband, and father”. It’s important to understand that the information you place on your personal website doesn’t need to be solely work-related. The colors that he places throughout the page are contrasting, which showcases their personality.
Some additional elements that are included on the page extend to links of websites that he works at, easy-to-understand projects, extra resources at the bottom of the page, and a unique favicon. While the design is simplistic, it’s also modern and aesthetically appealing.
11. David Gamache
David Gamache is likely the most straightforward website on this list. All of the important information is included on the page, which extends to a Behance link, a GitHub link, the owner’s email, and stylistic imagery. The only words on the page show that Gamache is a designer and builder who is based out of San Francisco. This type of design works very well if you can easily display the services you offer with just a few words.
12. Nicole Saidy
Nicole Saidy is a visually appealing website with some very subtle animations that help keep the user engaged. Towards the top of the page is a clear description of who Nicole Saidy is and what she does. The text on the page is separated by different icons, which allows the design to be organized.
She also included a small selection of the work that she’s done alongside a button that allows users to view the rest of her work. If she included all of her work, it would be too overwhelming for the visitor. The colors on the site are consistent as well. When browsing the site, users will notice clear calls-to-action as well as buttons for various social media accounts. Despite the straightforward and simplistic design, a bevy of relevant content is provided on the page.
13. Aaron Zarabi
Aaron Zarabi is a comedian with a fantastic personal website. This website is great because it provides visitors with personal and laid-back images, which should make the site more welcoming to visitors. There are also several understated animations alongside unique sidebars. Large calls-to-action are included throughout the page, which extend to “Follow Me” and “Catch Me Live”. The site also uses consistent colors of white, light gray, and dark gray, which allows the small amount of brighter colors to pop.
With 13 highly effective and varied personal websites to look at, you should have enough inspiration to design a strong personal website that displays your overall message in a clear and concise manner. If you want to make sure that the final design of your personal site is mistake-free, consider requesting the services of a website design team that has experience with creating personal websites.
