Up until fairly recently, websites were designed with only desktop and laptop viewing in mind. However, the use of mobile devices has skyrocketed over the last few years—so much so that more people access the Internet through the use of their mobile devices than they do through the desktops.
The problem is that websites designed to be viewed on desktops and laptops have a ton of issues being properly displayed on mobile devices. Sometimes the text becomes too small to see or the user will need to scroll left to right in order to read complete sentences. Some of the elements of the website design may not even load properly. When this happens, the visitor is most likely going to leave your website instead of attempting to deal with the poor display. This is where responsive design comes in. Responsive website design allows one website to be properly displayed no matter what the screen size is.
But this isn’t the only reason that you need to make sure you hire a web designer that can implement responsive design into your website. Here are a few other reasons why a professionally designed responsive website is a necessity:
Keeps design elements consistent
A professional web designer should create a responsive website with all of your website’s text and color elements and accommodate any size screen. They should make sure that all elements of your site will download quickly and be convenient for mobile viewing, that the functionality of your website remains optimal, and that the navigational qualities of the website will be enhanced through the use of a user interface suited for the specific screen size your visitor is using. Also, by bringing on a dedicated professional (as opposed to a freelance designer), you have someone to reach out to if things aren’t working over time.
Improves your search engine ranking
Google’s new algorithm heavily rewards mobile optimization, which means that websites that are optimized for mobile use will have their search engine ranking bumped up. Some companies will have two versions of their website: one for mobile use and one for desktop use. This makes it more difficult for Google to rank and index their website, which will hurt their ranking. Responsive design allows for just one website that works on any device and which will make it much easier for Google to rank and index.
Promotes social engagement
Other traits that Google’s algorithm rewards Visitors are going to get confused if you have more than one website for each specific platform, which in turn will hurt social engagement. With a responsive website, visitors can engage with your content on the go, which will lead to more shares and likes. Also, another big part of Google’s algorithm is that it rewards good content, which it judges in part through social signals.
Prevents link dilution
If link building is part of your SEO strategy (and it should be), then responsive design will help strengthen your efforts by preventing link dilution. Link dilution occurs when you use low-quality links that direct visitors to different pages on your website. While internal linking is fine, the links are going to be of low quality on mobile devices if you aren’t using responsive design, which will result in your website taking a hit on its search engine ranking.
There is a laundry list of reasons why you should hire a professional web designer to create your company’s website instead of attempting to do it on your own. When it comes down to it, using a professional web design service will help you save time and money, not to mention result in a much higher quality website.
