Since the initial development and release of the global network that is the internet, we have seen some radical changes. In the early days, web browsing was done only on desktop computers and laptops – smartphones weren’t even invented and the primitive mobile phones we had were only capable of sending SMS and playing retro games such as Snake.
Today, however, the story is completely different. We live in a world dominated by smartphones and the technology has advanced hugely. Mobile phones can do virtually anything, and it is a given that they have internet access and web browsers. Therefore, the web design industry has had to change to accommodate this shift in device usage. But how does that impact your business website? We look at this below to see if you should prioritize a mobile-friendly layout for your company.
What is a mobile-friendly layout?
First, let’s take a quick look at what a mobile-responsive layout is. At its most basic, this means a website layout that adapts to the size of smartphone screens. Obviously, smartphones have a much smaller display area than a desktop monitor or a laptop display.
Therefore, the information on a website cannot be displayed in the same way. A mobile-friendly layout will automatically resize and move items on the screen to fit onto the smaller smartphone display. This typically includes a pop-out navigation, and shrunk content that requires no horizontal scrolling.
It is basically a website layout that gives the optimum viewing experience for people using a mobile phone. This mobile-friendly layout is used for virtually every type of website, including Russian online casinos which can be found on CTO RU version, news websites, online games and business sites. Furthermore, you can find entire online courses relating to this subject as it is incredibly important.
Why is this important in the modern age of the internet?
So why is a mobile-friendly layout important? It’s all about usability and the user experience.
Before responsive layouts were a thing, if people accessed a website on their smartphone via Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge, the experience would be tedious. You would essentially get the full desktop website crammed onto your small screen. This would either result in small text that you couldn’t read, or you would have to continually scroll horizontally just to read the content and navigate the website.
The experience was terrible, and this is why mobile-friendly layouts are a lifesaver. Virtually everyone has a smartphone from Apple or Samsung, therefore, out of necessity, mobile-responsive layouts were developed. They make websites accessible despite the smaller screen size and improve the user experience.
What are the benefits of a mobile-responsive layout?
We have looked at some of the benefits of this layout type above, but to be more specific, the following are the main benefits of a mobile-responsive layout:
- Faster loading times
- Improved primary website navigation
- Easier access to content
- Easier readability and scroll ability
For businesses, accessibility and ease of use are imperative to gain new customers and retain existing ones. If a customer can’t use your website easily, they will simply get bored and frustrated, and go to one of the hundreds of other competitors who have a better-designed website!
Should you even consider desktop websites?
As you can see, having a mobile-responsive website is hugely important. The shift in usage is the main reason for this. Today, most people have a smartphone and there is a decline in the number of people using their desktop computers and laptops for web browsing. Therefore, to appeal to the largest range of potential customers, a business should prioritize a mobile-friendly layout.
However, this shouldn’t be at the detriment of a desktop layout either. Luckily, in most modern web development software and platforms such as Wix, you can easily create a website that has both a mobile-responsive and desktop-responsive layout. Therefore, our ultimate suggestion is to simply use the available tools to make a workable version of your website for all devices!
As you can see, this is not a simple question and there are many things to consider. The most important factor is that you must assess your business first. There is no blanket right or wrong answer – instead, whether a mobile-friendly layout is a priority depends on your company, the industry you work in and the types of people and/or businesses that will regularly use your website.