RSSWhy do I need a Responsive website?
It is clear that we Americans are obsessed with our smartphones. Whether its looking up the nearest restaurant, or trying to figure out how to change a tire, the majority of Americans now turn to their smartphones for answers rather than hunting down a desktop computer. Even online shopping and eCommerce is moving to mobile-devices. Sometimes if feels like the only thing we can’t do on our smartphone is make a phone call without it dropping.
Consider these facts about mobile internet usage:
- Mobile-internet consumption in the United States now averages 180 minutes per day per user, while desktop has fallen to under 50 minutes.
- In 2015, research showed that 56 percent of web traffic is now from mobile devices.
- In 2016, over 65% of digital media is now consumed on a smartphone or mobile device. With millennials, that number is 97%!
Even if you have loyal customers, your website could turn them off. In a recent study by Google, they discovered these findings:
- 75% of users say they’re more likely to return to a website if it is mobile-friendly.
- 67% of users said they’re more likely to purchase from a responsive website.
- 50% of users said that, even if they are a faithful customer, they won’t visit that business’s website if it isn’t mobile-friendly.
- Another 50% of users said they get upset or annoyed by websites that aren’t mobile-friendly.
As you can see, whether you are a business, school, charity, or run a part-time blog, chances are the majority of your users are viewing your website using a mobile-device. And, they want a good experience! You need to have that website display its content and images in a way that satisfies the user. There are three options, including mobile-friendly websites, mobile-websites, and responsive websites. However, Responsive websites are clearly the best choice…
Mobile-Friendly vs. Mobile-Websites vs. Responsive
Mobile-Friendly websites are carbon-copies of your existing website, but served in a size that adjusts to the user’s device. This means the user has to zoom, scroll and swipe, just to be able to read the content. It most cases it is so frustrating for a user, that they click away and go to the next website.
A Mobile-Site is a secondary website, that serves your content and images in a way that adjusts to the user’s device. This is a separate website with its own domain, own hosting, and requires its own content management and development. While it is good for a user experience, it hinders you as a website owner since you have two silos of content to manage, as well as the additional costs. Also, with advancements in mobile-technology and devices, these mobile-sites are not forward-compatible and typically need to be redesigned often.
A responsive site is the best solution. These are websites that have all the traditional look, feel and functionality of a desktop website, and then adjusts in size and function to a user’s device. This is important to note, it does not just “shrink” in size like a mobile-friendly website, the actual menus change, the elements adjust, and content and images are served in an easy-to-view manner. Responsive websites look great, and work great, on any device currently on the market. They also are forward-compatible, which means they will adjust to the size of devices that will hit the market in the future.
Most importantly, Responsive websites rank better. All of the major search engines, including Google, Bing and Yahoo now rank responsive websites higher than they do desktop websites, and also give more weight to sites that are responsive versus simply being mobile-friendly.
For Responsive Web development, contact 855-Webmaster today. We will custom-develop a website that meets your needs, has integrated SEO, and is forward-compatible.
Over 50 years of combined expertise