Over the last few years, mobile internet usage has skyrocketed and this year it has exceeded desktop usage - yet, the majority of organisations still don’t have websites that are mobile friendly.
Since the term was coined in 2010, Responsive web design has surged forward as the go-to approach to cater for mobile traffic in a cost-effective way. A responsive web site adapts its layout and theme depending on the screen size of the device you’re viewing it on, serving the same content to all users.
It’s a great option for lots of organisations because, unlike a mobile-specific site (a separate site designed to display your content on mobile devices); responsive design doesn’t require that you create a completely separate website and user experience just to serve mobile traffic. It isn’t the best option for everyone though.
There’s a reason why companies like Amazon and Apple are choosing not to roll out a responsive website and instead have opted for separate mobile sites – it’s because they’ve deemed that a responsive solution isn’t right for their needs.
Using the right tools for the job and your organisational goals is key and user experience should always be at the heart of design decisions made on your website. This may mean going responsive, having a separate mobile site, or in some cases both.
If it’s important to protect the good job your desktop site is currently doing converting leads or hitting targets, re-designing using responsive probably isn’t the best option and, instead, focusing specifically on designing a separate mobile site that achieves the same great performance while not compromising the effectiveness of the desktop solution might be the best option. Equally, if it’s been identified that mobile users have a different agenda or user journey to desktop users it makes sense to design a separate mobile solution.
On the other hand, if the user journey on your site remains largely the same whether accessing from mobile, desktop or tablet, then responsive might be the right approach for you. If you’re uncertain what the future holds, are just starting out or just looking for the best “catch-all” solution, responsive provides a cost-effective way of giving your users a good experience no matter what device they’re viewing on.
By Ed Wilkinson, IE Design Consultancy.
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