What is Responsive Web Design?
Originally published at coupleofcreatives.com on April 2, 2017.
Time and time again we are asked: “What is responsive web design?”. This very important feature impacts nearly every aspect of your time spent on the web. Are you prepared?
Responsive Web Design
Responsive Web Design (RWD) is a way for desktop webpages to be viewed in response to the size of the screen the website is being viewed on. This pattern allows designers to accurately accommodate all the devices out there to display the website in an accurate manner.
Why is it important?
Having a website that is displayed accurately across all screen sizes allows anyone from anywhere to view and use your website with ease. A desktop design is geared towards a larger screen. If it were not to be responsive, people who view your website would have a hard time reading the content you have to share not to mention navigating your website.
Emphasize with the user
You have to put yourself in the mindset of your users. The experience of your website needs to be highly tuned. Make it easier for your users to read the content and navigate and always remember that when devices come into play, their mouse cursor quickly becomes a touch screen. Tap-able areas need to be larger and easy to identify.
If your users are frustrated with your experience they will likely bounce from your site. This means they simply visit, don’t like what they see, and navigate elsewhere with very little chance of returning. A good design invites a user in, states what the purpose is immediately, and delivers rich content. Then and only then will a user decide to commit to purchasing something or contacting you directly.
I could go on and on but just remember responsive design is not longer considered a feature these days but rather a requirement. Websites need to be usable no matter what device they are viewed on. Don’t ignore this.
Technical considerations
Google and other popular search engines are actually promoting websites that are responsive when a user performs a search. If your site isn’t responsive it’s highly likely the search results for your website won’t appear very high.
