Why Is Responsive Web Design Important

Responsive web design is an approach to web design aimed at creating a site which should respond to every device and screen size, no matter how large or small, mobile or desktop. Responsive web design is focused around providing an intuitive and enjoying experience for everyone.

Here are six reasons why your website needs to be responsive.

Perhaps the most powerful aspect of responsive web design is providing an optimised user experience for your visitors, no matter how they access your website. Tailoring your design, content, and functionality based on device not only shows that you care about your brand, but that you also care about your customers. You care enough about them to have thought out what their needs and goals are and how you can meet them. The result is a digital brand experience that is effortless and delightful for your customers.

Having a separate desktop and mobile site requires having separate Google Adwords campaigns, SEO campaigns and separate Google Analytics reports. Managing one site is of course, far easier than managing two sites.

There can be an argument made for multiple sites though, such as having a mobile-specific Google Adwords and SEO strategy, such as optimising for keywords that are more likely to be searched when someone is on their smartphone.

Google states that responsive web design is its recommended mobile configuration. This is because responsive designed sites have one URL and the same HTML, regardless of device, which makes it easier and more efficient for Google to crawl, index, and organise content. Contrast this with a separate mobile site which has a different URL and different HTML than its desktop counterpart, requiring Google to crawl and index multiple versions of the same site.

Internet traffic originating from mobile devices is rising each day. As more and more people get used to browsing the web through their smartphones and tablets, it is important for any website publisher not to ignore responsive web design.

The advantages of having a single site that conforms to the needs of all devices are significant when compared to having two separate websites. One website costs less than two, and the savings can be substantial. Sites designed solely for mobile device traffic don’t offer the advanced navigational techniques found in traditional websites, and they also require the user to maintain two separate web addresses for your site. This is inconvenient for most people and can cause them to check out competitors sites. Responsive web design enhances SEO efforts by having all your visitors directed to a single site no matter what they prefer to use as a device.

The benefit of responsive design is that the size of the template is designed based on screen size not device. Obviously, regardless of what size screen someone is viewing your website on, it will display properly for that screen size. Unless there is a change to designing for one particular screen size, responsive design is here to stay.

Why not get in contact with me to explore how a responsive website could be important for you and your business.