There are several things one has to consider as a website owner. From the type of branding that will be displayed to the color scheme of your shopping cart, there’s a lot of thought that goes into even the smallest details. But perhaps one of the most important decisions that can be made is whether or not you would like a responsive web design.
What is responsive web design?
Responsive designs feature a special brand of coding which allows your website to visually adjust to whatever device it is being displayed on. No matter where your site is viewed, whether it be on a mobile phone, smart TV or tablet, the proportions always remain the same. Though basic HTML is still used within the code, one can make a few adjustments to the CSS in order to create different dimensions for different devices.
The Pros
There are several advantages to using responsive web design. It saves you time in that all of your coding can be done on one platform and you don’t have to create an entirely different website for mobile phones. Mobile designs keep the user focused on your message instead of the hassle of having to manually zoom in and out of an unfriendly design. Your website looks more modern and up to date. And most importantly, your SEO strategies will be more effective because the search engines won’t have to crawl more than one website in order to collect your information.
The Cons
Though this type of design has a variety of benefits, its hard not to notice a few instances in which it falls short. For instance, in some cases, your web components will be scaled down and make it impossible for your users to access certain pages. Responsive websites can also take more time to load; this is especially true when it’s being viewed on a mobile network that has no Wi-Fi. Also, long scrolling can cause users to overlook certain important information on your site because of the vertically stacked display.
As you can see, responsive web design can easily improve your website by making it appear more modern and functional. However, there are a few hiccups that should not be overlooked. Ultimately the perfect choice comes down to your specific needs and what best suits you.
