Responsive web design is a method of designing websites that adapt how they are displayed to suit the screen they are being viewed on. This means the very same website will look different on the small screen of a Blackberry to how it will look on the larger screen of a Galaxy Note, and different again on your laptop’s widescreen. This technology has been around for a few years now, and is becoming the norm rather than an emergent way of doing things.
It also means that you only have one single domain, ”www.yourbusiness.com,” and when you edit it once, it updates and adjusts to appear optimally on every device. Responsive sites are the best bet for most small businesses. A responsive site allows you to reach the most active Web audience.
Why responsive web design was important.
For the past few years, it was possible to get a competitive advantage and give your customers a better experience by implementing responsive design on your site. It also meant there was no need to operate a separate mobile version of your site, making things easier on your side too. With the amount of web traffic coming from mobile devices growing hugely in recent years and still on an upward trend, it was important to offer your customers the best possible experience when they came to your site from smartphones and tablets. If you didn’t have responsive web design, or at the very least a good mobile site, you could potentially be alienating a massive share of your target demographic as they abandoned your site because it looked weird or was tricky to navigate on their phone.
Why responsive web design is now critical.
Back in April, Google launched their ‘mobile friendly’ algorithm update. Known in the search engine industry as ‘mobilegeddon‘ or ‘mobilocalypse’, the implementation of this update changed the game in terms of getting good Google rankings on mobile platforms. The point of it, from Google’s perspective, was to make sure the things people found in searches on their mobiles were suitable content to read on those devices.
From a website owner’s perspective, it effectively meant that if your site wasn’t responsive or mobile friendly, mobile users simply wouldn’t find it in their search results, no matter how good your search engine rankings were before the update. In short, you now need your site to be mobile friendly – it is no longer a ‘nice to have’ you can put off.
HubSpot noted that 20% of all google searches are conducted from a mobile site. Without a website that is specifically optimized for a mobile device, you will be losing customers. If you thought you were not getting enough customers from mobile search, it’s about to get worse if your business site is not optimised.
Getting a responsive site.
Mobilegeddon can actually have a positive effect on your business if you embrace responsive design now, and some of your competitors are a little slower! If your site isn’t currently responsive then one of the best things to do is to get in touch with a good web design company like web design Worcester agency, and discuss overhauling your site to make it responsive. If you are considering any other changes to structure or branding, it makes sense to plan these in for the same update and improve your site even more!
Responsive web design and a mobile friendly attitude when it comes to your online presence is no longer something with benefits – it is now something your business absolutely needs. Make sure you don’t lose out because of mobilegeddon!
‘Responsive web design is the future. We’ve tested it.’ – Google
As the largest search engine on the planet, Google is the most prominent player in the online sector. Get your business site optimised for mobile right now! Your online business success depends on it.
