As smartphones and tablets has taken the world by a storm, a staggering growth of mobile usage has proven that a no-mobile strategy is a lost cause in terms of business opportunity. Mobile Internet and shopping via devices other than desktop computers is becoming more common now than ever.
This means having a mobile friendly website is more important now than it ever was. For doing that there are two options that work well: Either go for a mobile design or a responsive design. Branex and all other top-notch design agencies recommends a responsive design, every time. But what is really the difference between mobile and responsive design?
Difference in the major methods of creating mobile websites. Here’s what’s different amongst the two:
Responsive Website
A responsive website is just one website, coded to adapt to any screen size regardless of the device in use. The experience is seamless with all the elements aligned. It is considered as a lot more hassle-free method for there’s just one website that needs to be maintained and updated and it will appear with consistency on all the devices.
Mobile Templates
A mobile template, on the other hand, is more of a separate entity of your website. It is rather a sub-domain or perhaps a second mobile only website version of your website. They are built in accordance with particular screen sizes which means they may or may not be able to fit perfectly to each screen size. Also, when there is a need to update, this version of your website has to be updated separately, unlike a responsive website. This has led to a greater preference of responsive websites over mobile templates.
Regardless of its popularity, a lot many businesses are still a bit skeptical about having a responsive website, since it is an expensive method. But they need to understand that it is a one-time investment. If you have a website, or are about to get yourself one, here’s a list of top reasons why your website needs to be responsive.
1. An explosive mobile usage
Today, everybody owns and uses at least one mobile device. This is a real head-turner for marketers. With more and more searches performed over mobile devices to reach out to a particular brand, company or organization, not having a responsive website can prove to be disastrous for your business. For example, in app like Discord we can add custom playing status messages. So, for this we need perfect mobile website which is then linked to the application.
Given the short attention spans and impatient audience, loyalty is hard to come by. So if you give your visitors the information they need without having to tweak the screen to make it readable (non-responsive website), they will stick around longer. But if you don’t, bounce rates are to rise. So give your visitors a treat by going responsive.
2. Online shopping via mobile is on the rise
We look for shortcuts in all that we do, a lot! Therefore, online shopping has become the go-to shopping method no matter what we are buying. From clothes to shoes, accessories to movie tickets, you name it and you can get it online. So why would anyone want to hop in the car and drive all the way to the store? That will surely take time and effort while online shopping simply involves pulling out your smartphone from the pocket, look for the source and click click click away…
If that isn’t enough to persuade you, take a look at this statistic: With over 80% of consumers using their mobile devices to shop online, it is something that you just can’t ignore. So not having a responsive website is once again an opportunity missed.
3. Major improvement in SEO rankings
If Google recommends using a mobile web design, then perhaps there is absolutely nothing to argue about. It is because they perform better in the search rankings alongside a better user experience when compared to websites that aren’t mobile friendly. If you use a responsive website, a major advantage is that of a single URL that is easier to maintain, as compared to mobile versions that have separate URLs.
Not to forget the fact that mobile phones use a separate Google search algorithm. So if your desktop site performs better in the search results, it may not rank the same when looked up via mobile search. At the end of the day, what do all businesses want? To be found! Since everyone looks up to search engines for answers today, you have got to be there and to be able to do so, you need a responsive design.
4. Social activities grab more mobile visitors
Social media consumption over mobile phones has increased to a manifold. Take Facebook for example, the endless scroll keeps a user busy for hours! So another source of being found online is via social sharing.
That social sharing leads to your website and if that does not support a mobile-friendly version, you are going to experience serious bounce rates, low conversion rates as well as a frustrated audience. In order to keep it together, it is of utmost importance to go responsive and provide them with a proper beginning as well as a smooth ending.
5. Seamless user experience
There could be a gazillion reasons to adopt a responsive web design approach but at the end of the day, we all want to provide a better user experience for our audience. If a website is not responsive, it will have the user pinching and zooming a lot, all of that in an effort to get hold of the content. High bounce rate occurs because today’s user is quite an impatient one.
Give your audience a responsive website for a user experience that is not only seamless to grasp but also has consistency in terms of branding. This also means having a logo that adapts to the various screen sizes. Prefer designing logos for responsive websites to create consistency and a better brand image by having a greater recognition.
6. Go-to method to adapt to future devices
Perhaps one of the best reasons why responsive design is the most preferred method of mobile-friendly websites is that it is designed for screen sizes and not devices. So regardless of the device in use, regardless of its screen size, a responsive website will be displayed properly.
There are so many smart devices today, and there are more to come, including TVs, glasses, watches, etc., that having a responsive website is a must. It is because it will look beautiful and provide the same user experience as beautifully as it did over a desktop or any other device. Having said that, it won’t be wrong to say that it is the future of web design.
7. Bonus: Speedy responsive website is a winner
Time is of the essence. Google PageSpeed Developers standards ensure that a user’s time is to be taken as a serious business. To support the claim, it recommends that any content above the fold, when viewed on a mobile device, should load within 1 second. The entire page may take up to 2 seconds, but not more. Don’t let your user wait too long as the page loads or they will leave your site, frustrated.
So what are you waiting for?
Go Responsive, now.