Responsive web design is the hot new trend that promises to revolutionize UX for the better. It has become so popular that you have likely heard of it by now. In what ways can responsive design improve your website?
What Is Responsive Web Design?
As more and more users access sites and information through mobile gadgets, it only makes sense that search engines like Google and websites have taken steps to accommodate the needs of users everywhere.
Responsive website design has become the industry standard for user experience and user interface (UI) on the web. It is no longer a matter of what happens if a portable gadget is used to connect to your website. You are required to make sure your site is responsive and allows all users to access all content easily.
Basically, this means making sure your websites can be viewed across all devices smoothly no matter the screen size.
How Do I Make My Website Responsive?
If you already have a downscaled version of your website, that’s fantastic. However, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t work towards a responsive design. This is an ongoing process that will require constant iteration and refinement.
CSS Media Queries
These are a way of making website pages display to specific display sizes. There are many different variables and attributes you can use, but let’s take a look at the most popular.
These allow you to specifically target device screen measurement, orientation, resolution, pixel density, and much more. In this example we used min-width: 600px; which says the website must be viewed in a width at or below 600 pixels (Internet Explorer not included). It is very important you test each aspect before you use media queries in every browser and device to ensure the proper layout. Many responsive web designs use a combination of browsers to make sure the website content meets all needs even on the mobile version and mobile browsers.
Designing For Mobile First
Designing for this has become a common practice when dealing with mobile devices because we can presume that more people will be viewing our website through portable gadgets rather than desktop computers. Web designers are taught to design their web pages in this manner, and the reason goes beyond “testing” your page.
How Mobile-First Works
With this, you start with a desktop version of your web page that is designed for people who either use a desktop computer or have access to it 24/7. This layout is then scaled down to fit on smaller gadgets like tablets and smartphones. That means you need to ensure content is easy to read at any device width or size and that functionality does not become an issue.
Designing with this approach forces you to think about how your web front will look on smaller screens, resulting in a better UI. As a bonus, this also ensures that the PC version is pixel perfect and the smaller version looks good as well – instead of there being two separate versions of the web page that use different layouts across screens.
This is where it becomes challenging to incorporate a two-column layout that is more complex. This usually means you need to make use of:
- flexible images
- proper device-width initial scale for mobile device
- CSS media queries
- meta tag
- responsive images
- flexible grids
- HTML CSS and JavaScript coding
Remember that different devices will have varying width property requirements. For example, depending on your screen width, you may want to test your fluid layouts and style on browsers with different screen sizes and browser widths. It’s important to make sure each of these aspects translates well on your browser window at max-width:
- image resolution
- font size
- media screen
What Is Website Responsive Design And Why Is It Important?
Website responsive design is a technique that allows you to design your website once and build it in such a way that it will look good on any screen size. If you’ve visited a website recently you may have noticed how that site has different layouts depending on the device – perhaps the width of the platform changes, there’s a new navigation system, image distortion, etc.
Why is this? Well, this is because when websites were first designed they were meant to be displayed on computers. Over the years though, it has become more popular to design websites for users to access through mobile phones, tablets, etc.
A good example of this is Fluid Grid Layouts (FGL). I can’t stress this point enough: fluid grids mean that you don’t have to change your entire design process when creating a responsive site. In fact, you can start with a standard grid layout and build your site out of the blocks with several different sizes.
Direct Allied Agency: Helping Your Website Perform Better
With years of experience in the industry of building and designing websites for our clients, we know exactly what to do to meet your needs. Creating a truly responsive website is beneficial not only for your business but for your potential clients and customers as well.
It is our mission to help you reach your full digital potential with a completely responsive web front that you’ll be proud of. Get started by reaching out to us through email, call, or visiting our website to book a free consultation today!
