The Benefits of Responsive Websites, and Why Should You Switch To One If You Haven’t Already

In the last few years, the use of mobile phones and tablets for internet use has skyrocketed, so much so that in the last 12 months mobile overtook desktop as the first choice device of internet users. This boom of mobile use has been an area of stress for many companies with an online presence as many believed they had to invest in two versions of their websites – one for desktop and another for mobile.

Thankfully, those days are now over thanks to responsive websites which can allow your company to have a single site that functions for both desktop and mobile users. Responsive websites are different from mobile-friendly websites as mobile-friendly sites will look good on mobile devices but still have glitches and be harder to navigate on some devices. Responsive websites on the other hand allows your single site to adapt to any screen size it is being viewed on.

Aside from the obvious cost savings of having to build and/or maintain one website rather than two, responsive websites offer many more benefits that you may not already be aware of. Continue reading for some reasons you may want to consider a responsive website if you don’t already have one.

Improved Usability

In making your site easier to navigate and read, responsive websites improve the overall user experience and typically lead to a greater amount of time on your site – a fundamental indicator of a website’s value to Google and one of the many reasons Google recommends and favours responsive websites. Better usability and greater user experience often leads to repeat visitors and increased conversions, and what business doesn’t like the sound of that?!

Lower Bounce Rates

Going hand-in-hand with usability, bounce rates are another important aspect that can be improved by having a responsive website. A website’s bounce rate relates to the time a visitor spends on the site, and how quickly visitors backtrack or leave the website. Google watches the bounce rate for websites as it can signal that the website content or design isn’t relevant or user friendly. The consequence of having high bounce rates is a negative adjustment in Google search rankings, which nobody wants for their website.

Faster Page Loading Times

A known ranking factor, page loading times can be the difference between a customer giving your website a chance or ditching their wait with a sour taste in their mouth. Thanks to responsive websites, page loading times are usually much quicker, especially on mobile and smart devices.

Every website should be optimized to load as quickly as possible, not only for user experience in the hopes of lowering bounce rates, but also to get another thumbs up from Google as fast-loading sites are favoured in search results.

No More Duplicate Content Problems

Those with two websites, one for desktop and another for mobile, quickly learn the troubles they face as a result of duplicate content on both sites. This issue occurs as having two websites means having two URLS with the same content on both but Google recognizes as being two separate websites. This duplicate content can seriously harm your rankings with most mobile specific sites ranking lower than their desktop counterparts. Having a single site will make Google happier, and allows you to focus your SEO efforts on a single site instead of two competing sites trying to serve the same purpose.

As you can see, there are many benefits to choosing a responsive website for your business and ABORG is proud to offer our clients easy-to-use and easy-to-customize responsive WordPress websites that enhance user experience. If you haven’t made the change to responsive and have questions or would like to discuss a new responsive website for your business, contact us today at www.aborg.com or by phone at 613-829-2229.