When a Web site is designed so that it can be correctly and effectively displayed on small mobile devices as well as desktop devices it is said to be?

With responsive design the layout of your page grows or shrinks based on the resolution of the screen the user has.  Images will grow and shrink to fit the space and text and other elements will flow to fit as the space either grows or shrinks.

Advantages

• Faster development times: You only need to develop one site that will fit multiple devices, this cuts down on development time.
• Less maintenance: By their nature responsive sites are less complex than adaptive.  If you need to make a change to the site, you only need to make one change.  In adaptive you might need to make changes in more than one spot to make sure they design changes carries over to mobile.
• Google currently recommends a responsive design pattern.
• Future proof: Okay, nothing is really future proof, but by their nature, the flexibility of responsive sites will fit more screen resolutions.  Most adaptive sites are designed to fit a desktop device and a mobile device, many leave out tablets serving a tablet either a mobile version of the site or a desktop version.  With responsive web design the site will look good in a tablet such as an iPad.

Disdvantages

• Responsive redesigns are more expensive than Adaptive because they require additional work. But once complete, Responsive requires less maintenance than an Adaptive site, producing a long term overall savings in web development fees.
• When you choose to make your site Responsive, you will need to redesign your entire site and not just add a mobile template. This is usually a benefit, as your mobile and desktop sites will both match and look great, creating a consistent user experience.

Adaptive web design is like having two completely different web sites, one designed to fit on your phone the other designed to fit on your desktop.  Using JavaScript and other elements different version of you site are served to the user depending on what type of device they are on.

Advantages

• Since you are basically building a separate site from your desktop site images, logos, and other bandwidth and resource intensive processes can be left out of the mobile version of your site or better optimized for mobile, leaving you with a faster and leaner site.  You only need to use the assets you think are most important to your user.
• No need to redesign your current desktop site. If you are happy with your current desktop site, you can leave it as is and develop a second mobile version.
• You can provide a link to the desktop version of the site to let the user choose what version of the site they will see.
• The design can be specifically tailored to mobile devices.  With responsive design, one design needs to work with all devices, with adaptive design you can design specifically for mobile phones.

Disadvantages

• Longer development times: You have to develop for both the desktop and mobile. In some cases, depending on the platform, they may have completely separate templates for the desktop and mobile, so in essence you are developing two different sites.
• More maintenance: If you want to update the desktop site you may also need to make changes to mobile site as well.  Adaptive sites are generally more complex than responsive sites.
• Many adaptive designs are desktop or mobile only, leaving out the users on tablets, who usually will either see the mobile site or the desktop version.

Mobile first web design is a concept that website designers will think about and design for users on iPhones and other smart phones as their primary user base. This approach is unique because the first devices used to access the Internet were desktop and laptop computers. As smart phone usage became ubiquitous, starting as far back as the year 2014, web designers took notice of this trend and began rethinking how they designed websites.

Advantages

• The design looks cleaner and is much easier to read.
• Sites are put together in a more linear, top to bottom format. This makes it easier for your web design and marketing team to tell the story in a logical and comprehendible way.
• Websites built for mobile first can be designed with fewer images and other rich media that sometimes slow down the website experience.

Disadvantages

• Your website team may ignore the desktop design altogether, or not put as much effort into it as they should when building out this side of your website.
• The linear layout of the site makes it more difficult for those users who prefer to skim a website, rather than read it thoroughly.

Should I use mobile first design on my new website?

Mobile first means that when strategizing about the end user experience on your website, we think about that user’s mobile experience primarily.  Meaning, we design the mobile version of your website first, rather than designing the desktop version first.

In this model, we assume that the majority of your users will visit your website from a mobile or smart device, instead of a laptop or desktop computer. With the pervasiveness of smart phones, it’s more important than ever to evaluate who your audience is and how they’ll most likely be finding you.

Ventura Web Design CEO, Kevin Richards, says that mobile first web design is a piece of the larger marketing puzzle. 

“As you’re putting together your new website, it is important to spend time on your strategy.  Who will use your site?  Why will they choose you over others?  If we answer these questions during the strategy phase of your project, we can ensure a much higher likelihood of success.”

If you believe, or the data shows, that your customers will primarily access your website from a mobile device, then you should absolutely invest in a mobile first web design and strategy session with your web design company.  While you’re here, why not contact us and see if we’re the right fit to help with your web project.

With so many people using mobile devices to browse the web and Google’s algorithm changes, not having a mobile friendly site will hurt your business. Want a free consultation to discuss your website and discuss how to make it more mobile friendly?