What’s Responsive Web Design Got to do With It?

Responsive design—did you know that responsive web design is incredibly fashionable these days? In case you are not sure what responsive web design is—check this.

“Responsive web design (often abbreviated to RWD) is a web design approach aimed at crafting sites to provide an optimal viewing experience—easy reading and navigation with a minimum of resizing, panning, and scrolling—across a wide range of devices (from desktop computer monitors to mobile phones)” – Source

Smaller Format

With everything being so “webified” these days it’s all about the viewing experience. This is especially true since mobile phones are used more and more each year. When a viewer visits your site, they want to have a pleasant experience on the web and on their other Internet devices.

If you’ve taken the time to notice, Cheeky Monkey Media has simplified not only our design but also made the website easier to get around. Even Facebook and Twitter are simplifying their programs to make life a little easier and less complicated for all users.

The mobile format can be frustrating for users because they try to complete regular tasks on their phones that they normally do on their personal computers. That’s where responsive web design comes in. Make the website more functional for these smaller tasks.

Larger Format

Some think that responsive web design only comes down to the regular web and mobile devices. However, how many of us have our large-screen televisions broadcasting our Internet favorites?

Websites have to answer the call to these larger format demands. If you ask me, it can be hard for a website to meet all of these demands, but if they want to keep growing as a business, they don’t have a choice.

Ideas to Keep in Mind for Responsive Web Design

Just because a website is going with responsive web design it does not mean the website needs to skimp. Here’s what we mean…

The content on the website should still be top-notch. You are still talking to the same audience and working to impress the same people. Content is still important, even if you are making the actual website easier to navigate. Give your users the same functionality on their mobile phones that they would get on their PC—this includes reading content.

You still want to use good tools like SEO and proper URL structure. The way your website gets shared on the web will reflect in your URL structure and SEO still helps get your site noticed on Google. Also, keep in mind that you don’t want load time to take forever. How many times do we get frustrated with an S-L-O-W website?

Bottom Line

Responsive web design is an awesome tool that is totally being utilized in 2013. But, you don’t want to skimp on the small things that make your website the total package. Content, images, links, and SEO are all important. If you are missing one element, then you might as well trash the entire idea of having a functional website.

Question: Has your business been able to keep up with the demand for all these technical devices?