The importance of Responsive web design

Responsive websites

In the last ten years we have seen a lot of new technology emerge from smartphones to tablets to faster computers.

Who knows what the next ten years will bring. Since the technology is constantly changing, the methods used in designing your website will need to change also. This change has led to what is called “responsive web design” and will make a big difference to your website.

To explain responsive web design we must go back a few years. Before the age of the smartphone, and when they were just coming out, there was a noticeable difference between desktop web browsers and mobile web browsers. Web designers would have had two different designs- one for computers and one for mobile.

Technology has improved rapidly since that time. We now have a wide range of smartphones, tablets, notebooks and everything in between. As a result mobile web browsing has improved dramatically and a high standard has been set for mobile web browsing. Since there is such a wide range of devices on which a website can be viewed it is not optimal or efficient to design a different website for each one. This is where responsive web design comes in.

With responsive web design, only one great web site is required. This one website will fit perfectly into all mobile devices regardless of resolution. This is obviously the superior choice over having a variety of different designs for different platforms.

The benefits are not limited to mobile web browsing. Your desktop web browser will also have a much more natural flowing design. To see it in action, try changing the size of this screen on this page. Notice how the screen will change so that the content always fits the screen. A classier and more natural look.

Why does this matter

Mobile traffic now accounts for 12% of all website traffic. This number is increasing fast as smartphones are becoming more popular in South America, Asia and Africa as well as the fact that smartphones are evolving fast. Some designers actually build their websites for mobiles first! When more than 50% of phones are smartphones you can see why.

If you are on social media, the links being shared will most likely be viewed from a mobile device. If this represents a large chunk of your traffic or you would like it to, it is important to optimise it.

It is absolutely unnecessary to need to pay to support your site on such a wide range of platforms.  With responsive web design you can avoid these costs at the same time as giving your users a better experience.

More mobile is what the customers want and how they could come to your website. Responsive web design will give your viewers a fantastic experience, save you the money from paying for different designs and allow you to take advantage of this booming market. Responsive web design is an easy choice.

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