Is your website still not mobile responsive?

Basically it’s a site that is able to adapt to the screen it is being used on, regardless of what device it is. The website automatically reformats to give the user a better experience that is suited to their device, and it can give your site a number of benefits as well as being in line with Google recommendations. Still unconvinced?

Increase in mobile usage

Ofcom reports that two thirds of people in the UK now own a smartphone, using it for at least two hours every day to browse the internet, scroll through social media, carry out online banking and even online shop. 33% of internet users see their smartphone as the most important device for going online, and we spend twice as long online with our smartphones than laptops or personal computers. This has a direct impact on the way we view websites.

For these reasons alone, it is important that you have a website that works well on a smartphone or other mobile device’s screen, due to the sheer amount of people who could be using your website through a smartphone or tablet.

Google’s recommendations

Google constantly updates its preference and the way it looks at websites, and one of their key recommendations is to have a responsive web design. Google now uses mobile friendliness as a ranking signal in search results. In other words, Google is rewarding sites that are fully optimised for mobile platforms. With responsive web design now deemed best practice for industries, its importance will only increase. But what exactly can a responsive website bring to your business?

Benefits of responsive web design

With a responsive website, the content and pages are automatically flexible, fluid across all screen resolutions and various devices. In other words, no matter what device you are viewing a website on, the user will have optimal viewing experience including ease of navigation with a minimum amount of resizing and scrolling.

A responsive design can improve user experience and accommodate everyone, whether they are on a desktop or a smartphone or tablet. In providing the best possible experience, people will have a positive opinion of your website, meaning they will most probably return.

Through ensuring that your website is responsive, you essentially only have one website instead of two. This is much more cost effective; as opposed to having a separate mobile site to maintain, you only have your main site to look after. Likewise, SEO campaigns are much easier to maintain with only one site; if you were to have a separate mobile site, you then have two SEO campaigns. A responsive website is therefore much easier to manage.