5 Reasons Why You Need A Responsive Website
The days when business owners built a website just “to have something out there” are long gone. Today’s websites, along with a company’s entire online presence, are at the core of any marketing strategy. Why? Because when done right, websites can bring you a lot of revenue, irrespective of the field you are in. And “doing it right” means offering a great user experience to all your visitors, including those who get to your website from a mobile device.
If you’re still not convinced that your business could benefit from having a responsive website, check out our list of reasons below:
Mobile use is on the rise
According to a recent study, 80% of Internet users have a smartphone and 47% own a tablet. Mobile devices are used in both apps and Internet searches. Furthermore, people spend approximately 30 hours per month surfing the web from a mobile device.
If your website isn’t responsive yet, you are literally losing clients. Even if prices for mobile Internet are getting lower and lower, people aren’t going to waste their time trying to figure out an unfriendly interface or making click after click in places where they should be able to scroll. And this doesn’t just go for e-commerce shop owners; you may not sell anything online, but your (potential) customers should be able to access information about your business online on their own terms.
Responsive design is adaptable
The beauty of having a responsive website is that you can reach anyone, anywhere. Unlike mobile websites, which are typically built for a single screen length and width, mobile responsive ones automatically adapt to the user’s screen size. A responsive website design means a one-time investment and better ROI than a mobile website.
With millions of different types of phones and tablets out there, you can’t really afford to put all your eggs in a single basket. Even more, what we used to call emerging gadgets (smart TVs, smartwatches and smart wristbands) are also gaining popularity, so it’s ideal to have everything covered.
Having a responsive website helps you improve your SEO rankings
SEO is highly important for any small or medium business. After all, you want people to see your website in the first results of searching when they’re in need for a product or service that you’re selling, don’t you?
During the last major update, Google announced that non-responsive websites will be penalized. Briefly put, this penalty means that, if your website is not responsive, it will not be shown in searches, no matter how relevant your content is. This only applies to mobile searches (your website would continue to appear in desktop ones), but if you’ve read the first point of this article, you already know that you can’t afford to ignore this.
As per Google’s latest update, mobile devices now have a separate search algorithm in order to help people get the best user experience. In other words: Google won’t show your non-responsive website because it offers a poor user experience. And, if Google thinks so much of this, it’s high time you did, too!
Responsive websites offer a better user experience
Following up on the point above, responsive websites keep people engaged in your content and not leaving your website in a split second. A non-responsive website is a hassle: you need to pinch, zoom, click and use side scrolling in order to view the website.
Marketers all over the world emphasize the importance of offering a clean and coherent user experience to anyone who visits any of your online platforms. A website that offers such a user experience has a lower bounce rate and an increased conversion rate, which translate into a better brand awareness and, of course, more clients and increased revenue.
You can stay ahead of the competition
The stats you’ve read above are probably the same ones that already have your competition concerned. With Internet mobile use growing at a steady pace year after year, you simply can’t afford to be behind your competitors on this.
If people are already prone to leaving a website with an unsatisfactory user experience, think about what will happen in a couple of years when Millennials, the generation that has a smartphone glued to their hands, will become the dominant market segment for almost any business. Are you prepared to lose all that revenue?
If you’re thinking about having a mobile responsive website, congratulations – it will make a world of difference for your business! And, don’t worry, we’re here to help: our team of skilled web designers and web developers has a vast background in helping small and medium businesses get the most out of their online presence.
Get in touch now! The sooner your responsive website is online, the sooner your revenue starts to increase!
