With more people using their smartphones and tablets for tasks that only used to be possible on desktops, it has become increasingly important to create a website that works across multiple platforms and caters to the needs and requirements of customers.
In basic terms, having a responsive design means a website’s pages reformat themselves depending on which device they are being displayed on, ensuring that whether the content is viewed on a phone, tablet, or desktop computer, the website will remain user-friendly and respond to the changing environment.
Rather than having separate desktop and mobile versions of a site, the solution is a single design that can handle both types of users; this is a responsive website design.
Exactly what is responsive website design?
Responsive Web Design is a method of designing and coding a website such that the website provides a prime viewing experience across a wide range of devices, from mobile phones to desktop computers. The sites are designed with the aim to increase ease of reading and navigation with a minimum of scrolling, resizing, and panning.
Responsive websites are developed using intelligent coding which helps the website determine what device it is being viewed on, it can then alter itself to fit the screen size without any distortion. The fact that responsive websites are adaptable means they can offer the same fantastic user experience, no matter what device they are being viewed on.
Having explained what Responsive Web Design is, let us detail some of the reasons why you need a responsive website.
Mobile/tablet usage will continue to rise
Take a step outside; can you see somebody using a mobile phone? The chances are you can and whether you like it or not this tendency for people to be joined at the hip with their mobile device is here to stay.
In spite of this, there are still many businesses that have not yet picked up on this trend of ever-increasing percentages of mobile and tablet Internet users.
The increasing use of the Internet and the proliferation of web applications on tablet and mobile devices has been the driving force behind the development of responsive websites. Previous to this, users would either have to browse the standard desktop site or be re-directed to a device-specific site (e.g. mobile), having a responsive design means one site can be implemented across multiple devices.
One website, one Url
One of the most appealing aspects of responsive web design is that a responsive website can provide a great user experience across many devices and screen sizes. This is an important characteristic since it is impossible to anticipate all the devices and screen sizes searchers will use to access your site.
Let’s take the following scenario as an example. A user searches for a product on his or her mobile phone during a break at work. They find a site that has the product they’re looking for; they then decide to continue researching this product on the same site when they get home later that evening. Unfortunately, when they get home, they will use their desktop instead of their smartphone.
If the site in this example is responsive, this person will have a positive user experience when transitioning from mobile to desktop because they will view the same site on their desktop as they did on their smartphone. On the other hand, if the site is a dedicated mobile site, this user will become annoyed and frustrated with the fact that they have to locate the desktop version of the site and search for the product again.
Improved local search rankings
Google suggests that mobile-optimized, responsive sites are featuring prominently in localized search results. This is obviously of huge significance to high-street retailers and local businesses.
The enhanced offline browsing experience
Having a responsive design allows site owners to deliver quality content to audiences across varying devices, the offline browsing capabilities of HTML5 mean that sites can be easily accessed on the go.
As the number of HTML5-enabled tablets and smartphones increases, this will become increasingly important. It is estimated that Email newsletters and content contained in hybrid HTML5 web applications will increasingly be accessed on the move and in the absence of an Internet connection.
Conclusion
Responsive design allows you to stay ahead of the trend. As the demand for media-rich mobile Internet and apps continues to increase, several important implications must be addressed; development and maintenance costs, visibility in search engines, better conversion rates, and most important of all to offer your visitors an optimal user experience…
