The digital landscape is constantly changing.
Businesses must learn to quickly adapt or else risk losing market share. Examples include implementing the latest SEO best practices and driving engagement on social media. These two areas will continue to see drastic changes as algorithms become more sophisticated and as competition heats up.
But one area that has become critically important is mobile.
Having a mobile-friendly site is a crucial component of building a strong brand online. And it all starts with responsive design. A site that is responsive simply means that the layout dynamically adapts to fit the screen size.
So whether the user is on a desktop, tablet or smartphone, they have an optimised browsing experience. If your site is not yet optimised for mobile, you could be losing sales to competing sites. Here is how a responsive design can drive more online sales to your business.
- Better User Experience
Nothing is more frustrating than tapping on a search result only to be taken to a page where the text is barely readable and you have to zoom in. This is exactly the kind of browsing experience that drives users away. Consumers increasingly have little patience for such sites.
And research indicates that 61% of visitors are more likely to leave if they are unable to find what they are looking for on a mobile site right away. The findings shouldn’t be surprising as consumers get increasingly frustrated with a poor user experience.
Here is additional data to consider:
The bottom line is that a mobile-friendly experience is essential. Otherwise you can expect user engagement on mobile devices to suffer as a result. Responsive design helps to address this problem by optimising the layout that is best suited for the user.
- Higher Rankings for Local Search
Always remember that search engines aim to deliver the best user experience.
Google relies on complex algorithms to deliver the most relevant results for each search query. Factors from content quality to domain authority all carry weight to assess where a page should rank. Mobile-friendly sites are more likely to rank higher than their non-mobile counterparts for mobile users.
A new change that Google has recently implemented is the addition of a “mobile-friendly” label for mobile search which looks like the following:
Users immediately know which sites are mobile-friendly which can help improve click through rates. Your site is eligible to receive this label if it meets the following criteria as determined by the Googlebot:
- Avoids software not commonly found on mobile devices such as Flash
- Uses text that is readable without having to zoom
- Content automatically sizes to fit the screen
- Links are spread apart enough so users can tap the right one
Find out if your site meets the criteria by using the Mobile-Friendly Test. The tool even shows you how the Googlebot sees the page.
Conclusion
As more consumers connect online through mobile devices, having a mobile-friendly site is incredibly important. Rather than create a completely separate mobile site, responsive design serves the same URL to all devices and automatically changes the content to fit the device.
The result is a far superior user experience for visitors on mobile devices which translates to more sales.
If your site isn’t mobile-friendly, it needs to be a top priority this year. PWD Digital Agency has extensive experience with designing and building sites that work across all devices. Contact us today to set up a consultation with our team to see how we can help your business drive more sales online.
