In today’s digital world, the consumer has become savvy as well as busy. They spend less and less time going through detailed websites. They are using their cell phones to access the content. The world is coming up with more and more brands, and more and more content. We all reach for our cell phones, waiting for the bus to arrive, or for food to finish warming up in the microwave. Mobile-friendly, responsive websites are key to building a brand and giving relevant content to the audience.
People don’t like to wait for information. Easier domain names, quicker content blocks that are easy to read, and fast-loading websites on cell phones, all help. Studies indicate that 32% consumers would abandon a website if it is slow. Studies also indicate that bounce rate can be improved by 30% if the page size is reduced, and site speed is improved.
Case for Building a Responsive Website
A mobile-friendly, responsive website helps your audience to check your website on various platforms and screens, from laptops and phones to tablets. The delivery of content changes but the purpose of the content does not. Do you know that there are more than four billion people on this planet with cell phones? This means that a lot of your target audience lies in the realm of accessing your website through a cell phone.
Responsive websites mean that the structure of the website can change and adapt to the size of the screen. The user can have a better user experience in accessing your website than if it did not adapt to the type and size of the screen. The website can look good on different screens like cell phones, a tablet, or a laptop as well. Some key elements to take care of include avoiding Flash, and your text to resize instantly based on the type of screen accessing the website. To improve this user experience and to make the website responsive, all your content should be easily accessible on any device.
Google’s search algorithms target websites that are mobile-friendly and responsive. The algorithms that came into place in 2015, give a higher ranking to websites that are responsive and mobile-friendly. For good SEO, mobile-friendly websites are preferable.
As a brand, having a mobile-friendly, responsive website means that you capture more users in your target niche. Any user who is not accessing your website on their computer or laptop can easily access your website on their cell phone. This means that the net of your user base can be broadened. Cutting-edge design based on modern design principles make the website appealing to the users. With strong mobile-friendliness, your website has a better brand image as well.
How to Get Your Website To Be Mobile Friendly
The easiest and quickest way to get a website that is mobile-friendly would be to pick up a predesigned theme from a developer or a theme foundry. You should always double-check the different versions on screens to ensure that the website shows perfectly well. If you or your developer decide on modifying the CSS, then you should ensure that responsiveness is not impacted.
Responsive websites need to have a few key elements that you should take care of. Responsive websites usually have a singular column, with the menu becoming more condensed for easier navigation. Colors remain the same but images are reduced to improve the speed and navigation of the website. Websites generally also have links and URLs displayed in a manner that is easy to navigate.
If you are not interested in a predesigned theme, you could also work on the CSS yourself, or hire a developer who has expertise in building mobile-friendly websites. Always check samples to see if the developer has experience in building websites that display well on mobile as well.
Mobile Optimization Best Practices
Page speed is key to mobile usage of your website. The brand-building includes several things in today’s world, and one key is having a high-speed website that is quick to load on a mobile device. Some key areas to take care of include cache, image sizes, and redirects. The cache can help load the website faster, while smaller, more optimized images and lower redirects can also boost page speed.
Avoid elements on your website that can impact user experience. These include Flash, pop-ups, and intricate design. If you need to show special effects, try HTML5 instead. Popups do not display well on mobile sites and are difficult to close. Complicated designs can be difficult to navigate for people with smaller screen-sized phones or fat fingers. Use CSS to develop site display options and themes so that the website can adapt itself to different screens.
