5 Reasons Your Website Must Be Mobile Ready In 2019 & Beyond

Responsive Websites Just Look Good, Don't They?

Don't you hate websites that are hard to read on your new iPhone?

I sure do. Nothing worse than trying to read text that runs off my screen or it is so small I have to try zoom in to read it.

Thankfully cellphones don't look like this 1983 concept touchscreen smartphone did back.

Responsive websites have been a hot topic since 2015 or so, yet many website owners, bloggers, and companies have been slow to make the transition due to the changes necessary to adopt a responsive design.

What is a Responsive Website?

“Responsive Design” refers to websites that are developed in a way that allows each element to resize and reorganize on a webpage, based on the screen size of the device it is being viewed on. This means a website will look great on any iPhone screen or Mac desktop/laptop screen.

Bad Example

Here is a good example of a website that is non-responsive:


You definitely don't want that happening on your website. Thanks dequeuniversity.com

Good Example

Here is an example of a website that uses a working responsive design:


Yup, that is this site using a free responsive html theme that is responds to change for any screen size :)

How to Make a Website Responsive

Responsive design is handled through your website’s CSS file and specific sets of rules you specify for each element and each screen size.

Whether you run a baby blog or an eCommerce website, adapting your website to a structure that will provide the best possible user experience for your visitors can pay big dividends in the long run.

Top tip: Check to see if your site looks great on any popular cellphone or mac screen size using this free tool from responsivedesignchecker.com

5 Reasons Mobile First Website Design Is Vital

Did you know the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) have mobile web guidelines?

This is the group who dictate the standards for website functionality, code and design for the entire internet! If they say it has to be, then it has to be done.

We’ve gone out and interviewed several of experts in the field of web design standards to bring you the top 5 reasons your website MUST be mobile-ready and, of course, primarily iPhone friendly now more than ever.

1. Easier Navigation Plus Perfectly Displayed Content

You had to work hard to earn every visitor that came to your site. Why not give them the best user experience possible when visiting your website?

Whether you are driving traffic through social media, search engine optimization, or pay-per-click marketing, you worked hard to generate that traffic and probably can’t afford to throw it away.

A responsively optimized website can mean lower bounce rates (the number of people that exit from the first page they landed on) and longer time on site. More importantly, it means less headaches and more clarity for the visitor when navigating through your tirelessly created content.

2. Display or Hide Certain Elements Based on Screen Size

Want to show a phone number at the top of the mobile version of a page, but not on desktop?

You can do exactly that with a responsive layout.

How about a “Call Now” call to action on mobile versus a “Fill Out This Form” call to action on desktop? This kind of versatility is the magic behind a responsive layout.

The feature set of a responsively coded website allows a webmaster to make decisions that make their content more digestible and relevant. You can cut down and remove lengthy paragraphs or eliminate and even add buttons or images.

The possibilities for creative optimization are endless with responsive html code.

3. Better Conversion Rates for eCommerce & Lead Generation

Great usability comes with business benefits.

You should think of your website as a business. The better you treat your customers (visitors), the more they’ll want to return and do more business with you.

That was a quote from Geoff Gurevich, Director of Digital Strategy at AgencyPPC.com a top Chicago PPC management company. He knows as he looks at client sites & stats all day and to get better ROI conversions on PPC ads you need them to display well on a target page.

The simpler and more relevant you can make your website’s navigation and content, the more likely you’ll be able to flow your user down an intended path.

The result is improved conversion (the ultimate goal you want your users to complete).
For an eCommerce site (product sales), this means more products get purchased. For lead generation sites (contact collectors), it means more contact forms completed and phone calls to your business.

4. Better Search Engine Rankings

Responsive websites are the preferred search engine website layout according to Google’s Mobile Webmaster Guidelines which can mean better search engine rankings for your website if your site is mobile friendly.

Unlike the days of a separate mobile website, responsive websites do not require to multiple sets of HTML. Each HTML webpage will work for all viewing devices, with different layout/styling changes handled through your website’s CSS file.
Google even provided this handy tool to check your website’s mobile-friendliness.

5. Mobile Browsing is Now the Golden Standard

Mobile browsing overtook desktop viewing several years back and is growing every single year.

As these “primary browsing devices” continue to grow even more, webmasters need to consider the experience they are delivering to a large chunk of their visitors.

If your site isn’t up to snuff, the user will just keep moving to the next website.
When deciding which screen sizes are optimized first, our experts overwhelmingly recommended iPhone devices get the most attention, as they make up approximately 40% of the mobile phone market.

Putting it All Together

Updating an existing website to a mobile responsive website may mean redeveloping the whole site, but it if you’re on wordpress, joomla, drupal, blogger or a similar theme-based content management system, you may be able to simply change themes and start making some adjustments.

Even if your website is a bit more involved, the time has come to consider whether the loss is greater than the cost of taking on this update of one of your valued assets.

Just like a car or a house, there comes a time to make those necessary changes and if you find yourself starting 2017 without a stellar mobile website experience, that time has most certainly come.