Responsive web design is the term used to describe the usability requirements of a website. A responsive website must be usable on your smartphone or other mobile device without the creation of a dedicated app or separate site, so it must have text which can be read without zooming in, have adequate space to allow a user to tap targets, and not require any horizontal scrolling.
Why does this matter?
With the rise of the smartphone, usage for web browsing has skyrocketed and we are now at a point where most people access the web using their phones instead of a PC. It is not that long ago when doing so was a terrible experience, with the best you could hope for being a clunky, miniature version of the desktop site struggling to run Flash. This was very frustrating and quickly led to customers deserting websites that did not work properly on the small screen.
What is the solution?
Businesses used to tackle this problem by creating two separate sites, but then along came responsive web design to simplify and streamline the process so that the norm became having just one site that could change depending on the device being used to view it. So, we can say responsive design defines how a website has been created to give it this ability to change layout in response to a user’s screen resolution. A web page can be described as fully responsive if it can adjust to be viewed on any screen the user chooses and it has what is known as a fluid, flexible layout, adjusting itself automatically as required. This results in a consistent, enjoyable, optimised browsing experience and will also boost a site’s search engine rankings.
If you wish to seek expert guidance on responsive web design, a quick search online is a good place to start to find companies such as http://www.starwebinnovations.co.uk/. So whether you are looking for web designers in Reading or digital marketing firms in York, there are a big choice of specialist companies who will be able to help you. Alternatively, there are a number of training options which you can find online, such as this course at Oxford University.
A mobile-friendly site ultimately brings in more business and increases customer satisfaction, so they are more likely to return to your site.