An update to Google’s algorithm in 2015 meant websites that displayed well on smartphones and mobile devices would be given priority over those that didn’t; it was nicknamed ‘Mobilegeddon’ by the SEO industry. With this update, it became essential that sites looked as good and functioned as well on mobile as they did on desktop. For e-commerce websites, a mobile responsive site is even more essential because site visits mean sales; and this ensures you stay in business.
In this article, we’ll look at why everyone needs a mobile responsive site, some of the key stats around mobile usage vs. desktop, how a non-mobile responsive can undermine your business, and crucially, how you can get a mobile responsive site.
What Is Mobile Responsive Website Design?
Responsive design has been the major trend in web design ever since Google’s algorithm update, but non-designers may struggle with why they need it if they don’t understand the concept.
Mobile responsive design can solve a lot of your website’s issues, the main one being that with a mobile responsive design, it will ensure your site scales to whatever screen size is accessing the site. Responsive design is the way in which the website is put together to ensure it automatically scales everything on the screen to match the screen it is being viewed on, primarily smartphones and tablets.
However, a mobile responsive site design does more than just improve how your site looks on devices.
What Are the Advantages of a Mobile Responsive Site Design?
Along with ensuring your site is accessible on every type of mobile device, from tablets to phones, a mobile responsive site also improves your site’s search engine rankings. Google prefers sites that are mobile responsive and will give them preference over those that aren’t optimized for mobile devices. Google, like all your customers, love to see a site that scales to their device. They even offer a mobile responsive test so you can check how usable your site is when viewed on a mobile device.
Responsive design eliminates the need for unnecessary scrolling or zooming to see everything on the webpage. No matter what device you access a site from, each element on the desktop version of your site should be represented on smaller screens. If they aren’t, you won’t be providing an optimum experience for your site customers.
Why Responsive Design Is Key for E-commerce?
Converting website traffic into buying customers is the main goal of any e-commerce website. When your customer accesses your site and is restricted from certain views or elements aren’t visible without screen manipulation, then you might have already lost a sale.
The fact is that your biggest competitors have a mobile responsive website. If you want to keep up, you need to invest in a mobile responsive site.
Mobile currently accounts for almost half of the worldwide web traffic. In 2021, mobile devices accounted for 58% of all online visits. You wouldn’t close your store’s doors to half of your customers, but by not having a mobile responsive site, this is effectively what is happening.
How Do I Get a Mobile Responsive Site?
The best way for WebSell merchants to get a mobile responsive site is to upgrade their e-commerce site to a Next Gen site design. Next Gen is the biggest upgrade to site speed and user experience we’ve ever made. Next Gen webstores deliver a hyper-fast experience across every device, resulting in websites loading in just 1 second — on average, 1.2 seconds faster than current WebSell stores.
Check out some live Next Gen stores we’ve redesigned:
To upgrade your site to Next Gen, discuss your upgrade with your account manager today.
Conclusion
In today’s always-on world, your website needs to look awesome on every single device. Responsive design is how you make this a reality.
If you’re selling online, responsive website design will allow you to:
- Increase sales
- Deliver an omnichannel experience
- Increase brand affinity
- Improve customer satisfaction
WebSell is not only an integrated e-commerce provider, but also a creative design studio offering services to help design, build, and promote your online store. Contact us today to get a free consultation about the design of your store.
