You’ve probably seen or heard the term “responsive web design” frequently before. But what does it really mean?

Mobile has replaced desktop as the preferred device for Internet usage. The number of people using smaller screens for browsing the Internet is growing by the day. Clearly, a website designed solely for the desktop is no longer enough. Instead, businesses need to make sure their websites are compatible with mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. This is where Responsive Web Design (RWD) comes in. (To learn more about our approach to RWD, read our blog and watch our video.)

A responsive website automatically adapts to the screen size of the device you are viewing it on. This not only takes care of mobile optimization issues but also weeds out the need for building and maintaining different websites for different devices - which is impractical and very inefficient. But that’s not all - Here are 8 reasons why you can’t afford to not have a responsive website.

1. Mobile Usage is On the Rise (And It Isn’t Slowing Down)

Nearly 1.2 billion people use mobile devices to access the web today and 80% of all internet users use a smartphone. In other words, it’s evident that people are spending most of their online time on their mobile devices. This is why ignoring user experience on mobile devices while designing your website could easily drive traffic (and potential clients) away.

2. Google (and Bing) Love Responsive Sites

Google favors mobile friendliness in its SERP rankings. With its algorithm update released in April 2015 - nicknamed “mobilegeddon” - the search giant is now officially penalizing websites failing to meet its standards for mobile friendliness.  Bing also shows which sites are mobile friendly directly in its search results.

3. Social Media Action Takes Place On Mobile

More than 55% of social media activities are done through mobile devices. So if you want your site to benefit from click-throughs and link sharing via social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube, it better be responsive.

4. A Responsive Site Supports Your Marketing Strategies

Since a responsive site allows you to leverage the benefits of social sharing of content, it can positively impact your content marketing and paid advertising efforts, and of course your SEO rankings.

5. Responsive Sites Load Faster

A website that doesn’t load fast enough is a common trigger for people to abandon it, never to return. Load times are better when it comes to responsive websites.

6. Responsive Websites Decrease Bounce Rates

90% of modern consumers tend to transition from desktop to smartphone to tablet and they want these experiences to be as seamless as possible. Responsive design adapts to multiple device sizes, supporting the user behavior of utilizing multiple devices.

7. One Site Is Better, and Easier To Manage, Than Two

With a responsive site, you have a single URL for visitors on any device. This not only pares down your digital marketing efforts, saving your marketing dollars and time, but also eliminates the need to build online reputation for different website versions.

8. Performance Tracking is Easier with Responsive Sites

Having a single, responsive website allows you to track visitors and traffic based on the clicks received without having to collect the data divided among two separate sites. This will give you a better and more accurate data for your desired metrics.

Have you seen a difference in website engagement using responsive design?

To learn more about our approach to RWD, read our blog and watch our video below:

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