You've probably heard the term before. "Responsive web design is the web development buzz phrase used in engineering departments, written extensively by tech bloggers and used liberally to woo potential clients into new business. But what is responsive web design and how does it apply to you?
It's important to know that over 50% of all searches on the net, such as Google, are done on mobile devices, whether it's a smartphone or a tablet. Equally important is the fact that over 80% of people who search for a company on Google visit the company's platform on the net with the interest or intention of making a purchase. When a company's platform is inadequate, it risks missing out on this large group of buyers. In contrast, responsive web design prevents this loss, resulting instead in substantial revenue gains.
If that sounds like an exaggeration, consider this: when you're surfing the net on your phone to see a restaurant menu, and the text is so small you can barely read it, or it's so big it becomes stretched and unreadable, what do you normally do? In frustration, you probably hit the back button and think less favourably of that business. Your first impression of this negative browsing experience on the platform goes with you, because in this day and age, experience is everything.
Instead, many companies and organisations are now striving to make mobile net browsing a pleasant and rewarding experience for people visiting their platform by using a solution called responsive-web-design. By using this approach, and from a marketing perspective, these companies are rewarded with increased revenue from a very large base of people searching for their services on a mobile device.
WHAT DOES "WEB RESPONSIVE DESIGN" MEAN?
Web-responsive design means that a platform can be readably adapted to the screen of any mobile device. All text is legible, all images are clear and everything fits the screen as perfectly as on a laptop or desktop.
But why is web-responsive design important? Because it allows a company to do its best and offer the platform visitor an excellent browsing experience. Whether you realise it or not, platform visitors appreciate and even expect a well-designed online storefront when searching for a business on the Internet. For this reason, progressive businesses now recognise the importance of web responsive design.
To provide a better browsing experience for your users, you can turn to professional website design software.
HOW DOES RESPONSIVE WEB DESIGN WORK?
From a technical point of view, responsive web design is based on percentages. A web responsive design company assigns variable percentages to the proportions and dimensions of web page elements, including images, columns and text boxes, using professional platform design tools. Using the percentages they assign to these platform elements, the responsive website layout automatically adjusts and scales everything on the original platform to fit the screen of a mobile user's device.
For example, when viewed on a desktop or laptop computer, a platform may display three columns of information on a given page. When the viewer looks at the same page on a mobile device, which typically has less screen space, they can instead see only two columns, allowing them to comfortably and clearly view the content on that page.
There are some very important key responsive web design features that a responsive web design agency adheres to when designing a mobile-friendly platform. These include
- A flexible grid system: this is an intuitive and responsive CSS grid system with 24 columns that supports the browser.
- Flexible images: These are also known as adaptive images. Sizing considerations that would not be necessary for images to display properly on a fixed display size become necessary for mobile platforms.
- Multimedia queries: this is a module that allows content to adjust according to the screen resolution.
Using these features, a responsive web development company can use responsive web design tests to ensure users have the best possible browsing experience.
WHO NEEDS WEB-RESPONSIVE DESIGN?
First impressions are now made on the net, and in 2020 you need to know how users access your platform. You wouldn't wear sweatpants on a first date, would you? Do you want your first interaction with a potential customer to be marked by a bad user experience?
It is possible today for a user to use all their mobile devices at once to work in a short period of time! Very often, users use one device to another to achieve a goal. If you are planning to update your platform design or have been looking for ways to increase engagement and conversion, responsive is the way to go.
WHY ARE RESPONSIVE WEB PLATFORMS IMPORTANT?
Responsive design is about building a platform that will be easily usable regardless of the device used to access it.
A responsively built platform will take into account all aspects of the screen regardless of the device. The size of images, videos and fonts will adapt accordingly to offer users optimal navigation. The way the navigation and menus behave will change, with a view to focusing on essential content.
WHAT ARE THE BEST WEB-RESPONSIVE DESIGN TESTING TOOLS?
It is possible that your website will become a mobile-friendly platform, even if it was not initially designed to automatically adapt to a wide range of screen sizes. There are a number of web-responsive design testing tools available to allow you to investigate the status of your platform as mobile-friendly.
The first is Google's "mobile-friendly test". "Simply enter your website URL in the box, and Google will analyse your platform to see how it loads on a mobile device. It will even show you what your homepage looks like on a smartphone.
Google's Page Speed Insights is another great mobile-friendly checker. On this page, you'll enter your site's URL again, and Google will analyse its content, such as text and graphics, and check how fast your page loads on a mobile device. It will then give you suggestions on what adjustments you can make to speed up your site's loading time.
Ultimately, the loading speed of your platform can have a significant effect on your platform's ranking in Google search results.
Finally, if you want to know if your platform is mobile-friendly or not, Google Search Console is a must in your redesign strategy. It gives you information on how to improve your SEO and what mistakes and issues to fix.