10 Business-Critical Reasons to Be Mobile Responsive

As a business, you likely fall into one of four categories:

• You have a mobile responsive website.
• You’re not sure if you have a mobile responsive website.
• You have a mobile website that is separate from your desktop site. (You’re managing two websites.)
• You have a traditional desktop website or no website at all.

If you’re in the first category, this article will confirm that you made the right business decision when you went mobile responsive. If you’re in the other categories, you’ll want to consider these 10 business-critical reasons to be mobile responsive.

However, before we delve into the reasons for a responsive website, let’s clarify what it is.

What Is a “Mobile Responsive” Website?

Key features of responsive websites:

A responsive website template is pre-built with functionality that allows for pages to function across most devices and screen sizes. Usually the website will allow for resizing of images and a custom drop down to navigate to other pages.

• Dynamic content that changes
• Navigation is condensed
• Optimized images
• Correct padding and spacing
• Reliant on mobile operating systems to function

If you’re on a computer, you can tell if a site is responsive by reducing your browser’s window size from full screen down to very small. If the appearance of the text, images and menu change as you get smaller, the site is responsive.

If you’re still not sure if you have a mobile responsive site, feel free to call us. Mobile responsive test on https://jrsmarcom.com/.

Now that you know how it works. Here’s what you need to know about why you need it.

Business-Critical Reason 1 You Need a Mobile Responsive Site: The World Has Gone Mobile

Remember when you used to use your cell phone only to make phone calls? Now 87% of phones in North America use the internet. By next year, there will be an estimated 270 million smart phones in the United States.

What’s more, people aren’t just using their smart phones to check email or play games. They are using them to search the internet. In fact, since 2015 more searches in the United States are conducted on mobile device instead of computers. Today, about 57% of U.S. organic search traffic is mobile.

In sum, if you have not gone mobile, you are not keeping up with the times (link to oogie boogie article). More important, you are losing potential customers. Broaden your reach with a mobile responsive website design. 

Reason 2 Why You Need a Mobile Responsive Site: User Experience Matters

Have you ever gone to a website on your phone and tried to read something that is not mobile friendly? You turn your phone vertically, then horizontally. Text is cut off. You scroll to the right, then back to the left. You try to make the screen bigger to read the tiny text. You finally give up.

Is that the kind of user experience you want your customers and prospects to have? Do you want them fleeing your site?

A mobile responsive site fits nicely within the parameters of the screen. It gives users a great experience and increases engagement with your site (article on seo) (how long they stay on your site).

Reason 3 for a Mobile Responsive Website: Your Competition Built One

Imagine you have a choice to go to one of two websites? One is difficult to read and almost impossible to navigate. The other is mobile responsive. Which would you choose?

As early as 2014, business sections of news outlet began encouraging businesses to be mobile responsive. If your business hasn’t made the move, you’re behind. (link to oogie boogie article)

Check out your competitors. Do they have mobile responsive sites? If so, it’s time for your business to catch up. If not, you could quickly improve your market advantage. As of April of 2015, having a mobile responsive website is a ranking factor on Google.

Reason 4 for Mobile Responsive: Google Recommends It

Google’s job is to provide someone searching for a solution with the most appropriate answer. Important, the behemoth search engine controls nearly 93% of search traffic.

If you want your company to be that most appropriate answer, it’s important to follow Google’s recommendation.

Business Critical Reason 5: You Want All Your Content to Be Found and Be Seen

Google implemented mobile first indexing in 2018. If you have separate URLs for your mobile and desktop sites and/or serve up different content to your mobile users, Google is only indexing (showing to web users) what you have on your mobile site.

If you have one mobile responsive website with all your content in the format that Google prefers, you will have an easier time being found by your prospects and customers.

Reason 6: Easier to Manage One Website

If you have two websites (a desktop and a mobile site), it’s more time-consuming to have to update two sites. Moreover, it can inherently lead to discrepancies between the two sites.

If you have a mobile responsive site, you only need to change content in one place, when you have a change to your website. In addition, all your analytics, tracking and reporting will be in one place with a mobile responsive site.

Managing two websites is a hassle and not cost-effective.

Reason 7: You Want to Be Found and Be Seen

Starting in April of 2015, Google began including a ranking factor for whether a website is “mobile friendly” or not. If you are curious about whether your existing site is mobile friendly or not, go to Google’s mobile friendly test.

Additionally, Google includes speed as a ranking factor. Check the speed of your websites—mobile and desktop.

You’ll want a fast, mobile friendly site to remain competitive.

Reason 8: You Want Your Customers to Know You Care

A mobile website appears more professional. In fact, 48% of users reported that if a site wasn’t working well on mobile, they would become “frustrated and annoyed” and assumed the business “just didn’t care.”

What’s more, 94% of people said they would mistrust or reject a website solely based on its design. That’s huge! If you want someone besides your mother to trust your website, it’s time to consider a responsive mobile design.

Reason 9: You Have a Social Media Strategy

In North America, 70% of the population is on social media. What’s more, social media usage is increasingly mobile. In the United States, the majority (61%) of this social networking is done on a mobile device.  

Imagine being on social media and seeing information about an amazing company. The social media user clicks to the company’s website and…screeching brakes…the website is not mobile responsive.

If you have a social media strategy as part of your marketing plan, you’ll want your website to be mobile responsive.

Business Critical Reason 10: You’re in the Business of Making Money

Compared to a site that is not mobile friendly, Google reports that mobile users are more likely to buy a product or service if the company website is mobile friendly.

Additionally, the buyer’s journey has changed. A whopping 82% of buyers search the internet on a mobile device before making a purchase in the store. What’s more, millennials, a population known for its smart phone use, have an estimated consumer buying power of $200 billion.

The buyer’s journey has also changed for business-to-business sales. Research indicates that buyers have completed 50% to 80% of the journey to a purchase before reaching out to sales. Consider further the millennials. They are not only active on their smart phones, but they also are make up the largest percentage of the workforce.  As they gain increasing responsibility for purchasing decisions in the workplace, mobile is expected to grow.

Questions to ask before going mobile responsive:

• Do you have a mobile strategy?
• Do you have a baseline of how much mobile traffic is visiting your site?
• What is your website strategy?
• Are you engaged in social media to promote your site?

These are just a few questions that need to be addressed to determine how a new mobile responsive site can be used to drive traffic, engage, and capture information of prospective clients.