Responsive web design: What is it and why’s it important? 

We love a good throwback but, when it comes to web design, staying current is the way to go.

Enter: responsive website design.

If you don’t have a responsive website, you’re doing your business a disservice that can cost you traffic, blow a hole in the user experience and, ultimately, discourage people from reaching out to you. No bueno.

Wondering how exactly that works?

In this post, we’re breaking down what responsive design means and why it matters to your business. 

What is a responsive website?

Responsive web design allows your web pages to resize themselves depending on the type of device visitors are using. So, whether someone is using a mobile phone, a tablet, a compact laptop, or a huge monitor, they won’t notice any structural differences on the website and all of the features will work as they should. 

While businesses used to create two versions of one website (one for mobile and one for desktop), that practice is out-of-date now. Some businesses still do this but, with the increase in mobile users and changes to Google’s preferences, it is not recommended. It’s much better to have one responsive website that works seamlessly on all devices. 

Responsive design provides a consistent, seamless user experience across devices 

Just imagine you were trying to buy something online but you could barely read the text or elements were cut off in wonky areas. It might turn you off, right?

The primary goal of responsive web design is to ensure a smooth user experience across devices. It’s all about removing any unnecessary hurdles between a user landing on your website and them taking action. You want to make things easy-peezy. 

That means: 

• Text is readable without users having to pinch and zoom
• Text isn’t cut off in random places
• Viewers don’t have to scroll horizontally to see a full page
• There are no issues trying to close pop-ups
• Buttons all work properly
• Images and graphics are in the right place and not cut off

Mobile users are at an all-time high

Consistency across devices is so important because of how many people use phones and tablets to visit websites. In fact, almost 60% of website traffic currently comes from mobile devices. 

People use their phones to shop and research business while they’re commuting, waiting in line, lying in bed, or multi-tasking (you know, like when you’re half-watching Netflix). They see ads, blogs, and links in bios while scrolling social media on their phones, which direct them to brands’ websites. They even use cell phones in the bathroom! Sorry, but it’s true. 

According to Google, 40% of users go to a competitor’s website after a poor mobile experience. And 61% of users are unlikely to return to a mobile site if they had trouble accessing it the first time. 

Needless to say, your website needs to meet consumers where they’re at. That means offering a great mobile experience on your website. 

Responsive design boosts SEO

If your website isn’t responsive, search engines are much less likely to favor it. This is because responsiveness is part of Google’s recommended approach. Google knows users prefer responsive sites and Google wants to provide the highest quality results to searchers so they keep trusting the platform. Thus, a responsive website will almost always rank much higher than a non-responsive one. 

Google also likes websites with a single URL better than those with different URLs for separate versions. If your business is still using separate URLs for mobile and desktop versions of your website, Google is not going to favor either in search results. 

So, if you care at all about SEO, you’ll want to make sure you have a responsive website design. 

You know where you wanna go, we’ll help you get there

Now that you (hopefully) know you want a responsive website, you might need a hand making it a reality. We help make your brand the obvious choice through strategic and creative websites. Our responsive website packages include domain transfer/connection, mobile optimization, application of your branding throughout, and full website strategy.

Learn more about our web design services.