7 Most Popular Website Types To Inspire Your Own

In your quest to develop an online presence, it’s helpful to understand different website types and their distinctive features. While there’s certainly some overlap between 7 primary categories, each type of website has specific objectives to accomplish and its own set of best practices. In this article, we will help you find your website type and provide you with tips to help you succeed online.

Upon the 9th anniversary of .XYZ, the domain made specifically to help websites stand out, we want to give you some shining examples of .XYZ sites that made it big online. Hopefully, they’ll inspire you to find your own digital voice and showcase your uniqueness. Let’s get started!

Category 1. Portfolio website

A portfolio website can be a great opportunity for showcasing your work, highlighting your special skills, displaying your employment history, and just about anything you wish to present to the world. Everyone from artists, graphic designers, photographers, models, and more can use a portfolio website to present their work to potential employers, clients, or collaborators. A portfolio website can be designed like a resume, demonstrating your full potential beyond what can be shared on a traditional resume. With that in mind, your portfolio website could be one of the first interactions people have with you. This is your opportunity to make a lasting impact with a website that reflects you.

MichaelHo.xyz is an example of a personal website that makes an impact and communicates important information about its owner. Michael Rikio Ming Hee Ho is a Cantonese, Japanese American contemporary artist currently based in Tokyo. He specializes in creating art that is aimed to encourage dialogue about today’s society. Michael graduated summa cum laude with a BA in Fine Arts from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2018. At the end of that year, he moved to Tokyo and began showing work in Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Los Angeles.

Michael designed MichaelHo.xyz to be easy to explore with a simple and informative website design. Visitors can easily navigate to each page, which can help make Michael’s information easy to find. Prospective buyers and curators can easily visit Michael’s Selected Artwork, CV, and his Bio pages to get a strong understanding of Michael and his art. MichaelHo.xyz features a slideshow of his unique, text-based artwork on his homepage. For a more detailed experience, you can see each art piece with a full description, such as a work titled Good Enough. This work is made of enamel, acrylic, ink transfers, spray paint and resin on canvas and stands over 4 feet tall. It is a black and white oblong structure that has been spray painted with the words “GOOD ENOUGH” in bright orange. With Michael’s inclusion of his CV page, potential collaborators, galleries, and clients can gain a full understanding of Michael’s talent, background, and experience.

Developing a personal website that communicates who you are and presents the information you wish to share with the world can emphasize your talent, promote your skills, and attract valuable opportunities.

Category 2. Blog

A blog is a type of website often used for personal commentary or business content. Blogs can be interactive and include sections at the bottom of each blog post where readers can leave comments. Blogs can be written in a conversational style to reflect the voice and tone of the “blogger,” or the operator of the blog website. In fact, the primary difference between a blog and a journalism website is that journalism is supposed to be fact-based, while blogs contain the opinion of the writer.

A “blog post” is the piece of content in a blog. Blog posts are typically presented in reverse chronological order, so that the newest content appears first. Some corporations include blogs as part of a larger website, where they publish informational articles pertaining to their business. Blogs can also function as online journals, available for the world to read. You can even create a family blog to keep your relatives and loved ones informed about your family updates.

TheLushLife.xyz is an example of blog website that offers sommelier Sarah Tracey’s wine knowledge and professional advice for the best pairings, wine gifts, style guides, and more. Sarah Tracey is a certified sommelier who has shared wine advice for Martha Stewart's website.

Her website includes a dedicated blog page featuring resourceful and informative posts like 3 Invaluable Tips for Wine Gifts, From a Sommelier and 4 Unexpected Ways to Pair Sauternes Like a Pro. Each blog post shares more of Sarah’s insights and can encourage visitors to return often to continue learning. Sarah shares blog posts fairly regularly, as often as once a week. She also regularly uses her Instagram account to post inviting content for over 20K followers, including 12 days of cocktail recipes leading up to Christmas, and guides her followers over to her website. She links her bio to TheLushLife.xyz, which serves as her permanent online hub for her online identity and her blog content.

Blogs are websites or parts of websites that are actively and routinely updated with articles, which can demonstrate that you value your visitors and can foster a positive association with your website.

Category 3. Business website

A business website is a website that is committed to representing a particular business or corporation. Many businesses, whether big, small, established, or brand new, have a business website and an online presence. Many potential clients may expect that if they look up your business online in search of more information, they will find your business’s website. Having a website and meeting that expectation can help make your business appear more professional and legitimate.

Dragonfly.xyz is an example of a business website that promotes their services, conveys their messaging, and demonstrates authenticity. The San Francisco-based crypto investment firm backs teams building generational companies designed to exist for decades and products in crypto across sectors and stages. Their website says they particularly enjoy backing teams working on “something weird” and pushing the boundaries of the industry.

Dragonfly.xyz introduced their hacker-inspired website at the same time as they announced their newly rebranded name and logo in an effort to signal a global presence and deep technical expertise. In a post shared on the firm’s Medium profile, managing Partner Haseeb Qureshi provided information about Dragonfly.xyz’s messaging and values. “We’re dropping the ‘Capital’ from our name, and our new look is more crypto-native, inspired by the hackers and weirdos (we say with love!) who have built this industry from the ground up. Our aesthetic is less Patagonia, more ASCII; less stock photo, more glitch art.”

Dragonfly.xyz includes company information and resources to help demonstrate their authenticity and legitimacy. There is a section devoted to their successful investment portfolio, and an opportunity for visitors to learn all about the members of the Dragonfly.xyz team. You can hover over each team member’s animated portrait, including CFO Sylvia Liu and Controller Stephen Li, to show their bio and learn more about them. This look inside the firm and at their investment portfolio can help them convey an image of being a professional and reputable business.

Business websites feature branding and messaging that match the business it represents. They promote the services offered by the business and can help convey authenticity and legitimacy.

Category 4. eCommerce website

An eCommerce website is where users can shop and make purchases online, without leaving the comfort of their home. A well-designed eCommerce website can seamlessly guide customers through the process of making a purchase, and help them feel as if they are seeing the products in person in your shop. You can include product photos, detailed specifications, and interesting details to help your customer feel as informed as possible without being able to see the product in person.

PlantsAnimals.xyz is an example of an eCommerce website that helps its customers understand their featured products. Specializing in local delivery of natural wines, limited-release beers, and specialty coffee beans, PlantsAnimals.xyz helps customers enjoy the same feeling they would have while shopping at their local specialty shop. You can peruse the natural wines by style, region, and distributor, and read product descriptions and suggested food pairings, almost as if you were receiving an in-store personalized overview of the product. PlantsAnimals.xyz describes Meinklang’s Prosa Rosé Frizzante as a lightly sparkling Pinot Noir with a hint of ripeness on the palate that pairs nicely with sushi, while Olympia Coffee’s Big Truck organic coffee features tastes of sweet chocolate and ripe berry flavors, all in a dense heavy body.

eCommerce websites can help increase the revenue of a business by seamlessly guiding customers through the process of making a purchase. This includes providing detailed information and high-quality visuals to help potential customers feel as confident about making a purchase as they would in person.

Category 5. Apps & Tools websites

Apps & Tools websites come in various forms. They can include web applications, project tracking tools, search tools, and more. These websites are typically designed to help individuals accomplish a task, provide a solution to a challenge, or streamline productivity. Apps & tools websites can be a go-to resource or simply a means to connect with other people.

NftyChat.xyz is an example of an Apps & Tools website that offers a unique networking element coupled with a visually appealing design. The innovative platform aims to connect web3 friends in a decentralized manner. NftyChat.xyz allows Ethereum Name Service (ENS) profile holders to connect and chat using their .eth names or .xyz domains claimed in ENS. The service is free and does not require a password. To start chatting, users simply need to connect their MetaMask, Coinbase, or WalletConnect crypto wallet. A unique feature of the chat platform is that there is no need to create a username. You have to be equipped with your own, specifically from ENS. This way, the platform can ensure that your username will always be 100% decentralized.

Once connected, NftyChat.xyz offers a clean and intuitive user experience, complemented by a helpful FAQ section and a bulletin board for important announcements and updates. Users can choose from a variety of channels and chat rooms, including options like "early supporters" and "suggestions," to engage in conversations with new friends. Direct messaging capability is also available through an inbox feature. Additionally, users have the option to attach their Twitter feed to their profile, enabling them to stay updated on social media while chatting. These features combine with a well-designed interface to provide users with a unique social media experience that can help to develop a popular following.

Apps & Tools websites can help individuals accomplish a task or overcome a challenge and can include a useful function, friendly user interface, and visual appeal.

Category 6. Membership website

Membership websites are gated websites that include features available to members only. They can be used by organizations, clubs, and businesses in order to provide additional value. Memberships can be a fixed monthly or annual price, or operate on a tiered system that offers different levels of membership for different values. Some membership websites are free, and only require members to establish an account.

A0k1verse.xyz is an example of a blockchain-based membership website. Created by DJ Steve Aoki, the NFT-driven membership community helps its members, otherwise known as citizens, to gather perks like exclusive access to concerts and limited edition merchandise. As the website states, “CITIZENS OF THE A0K1VERSE GAIN UNRIVALED ACCESS TO BOTH ON-CHAIN AND PHYSICAL EXPERIENCES.” To join, you can use Ethereum-based cryptocurrency known as A0K1 Credits to redeem the A0K1VERSE Passport NFT, which serves as your personal admission ticket to the community. Each Passport NFT can be upgraded using additional A0K1 Credits. As members take part in community events and amass more A0K1 Credits, they will earn stamps in their evolving passport which can unlock access to new perks.

Membership websites can be used by organizations, clubs, and businesses to provide additional value and exclusive perks to help develop a strong community.

Category 7. Landing page

A landing page is a one-page website that makes an impactful first impression and persuades visitors to take a specific action. Concise content and straightforward design can lead the user to one specific CTA (call-to-action). A landing page can serve to reach prospective customers and nurture their interest in your product or service. Some offer customers valuable resources, like an ebook or checklist, in exchange for an email address to keep in touch. Your landing page could serve to educate potential customers about your app and direct the user where to download it and how to use it.

RDY.xyz is an example of an informative and impactful landing page. The website is the online home of the RDY app, a mobile app that helps users order ahead at local independent coffee shops. RDY.xyz uses your phone’s location services and an innovative order queue to time your drink to your arrival. The location-based ordering option alerts the coffee shop when you are within one mile away, so they can start making your order and serve your coffee at the proper temperature.

The landing page website is designed to inform coffee drinkers as well as coffee shops about the app and its usage. Interested coffee shops are directed to a CTA that states “For Cafes” to help them join the RDY network. Coffee drinkers interested in ordering ahead at their local cafe are guided to a pair of CTAs that will take them directly to the mobile app store of choice.

A landing page website can be concise and designed to attract customers and foster their interest in your product or service. The inclusion of an easy-to-understand CTA can help guide your visitors to complete an action and accomplish the goal of your website.

Conclusion

Learning about the various website categories can help you determine which category you are aiming for as you develop your new website. Determining your website category can help you identify the goals of your website. Once you understand your website’s objectives, you can begin designing accordingly.