Smartphones have made our lives much easier. We can now access anything and everything from our phones, instead of rushing to a computer. This means that most people would rather use their smartphones for browsing. This resulted in the development of a mobile-first approach. This design allows companies to stay relevant and become flexible. As such, users who heavily rely on their phones will also be benefitted from a mobile-first approach. Look ahead as we list down all the reasons why you should adopt a mobile-first approach too!
What Does a Mobile-First Approach Mean?
As the name suggests, a mobile-first approach means that when building a website, mobile app users are kept in mind first in order to improve their experience on the site. This design was developed as a solution for users who wanted to get the same tasks done on their smartphones as they are able to on their computers. To accomplish a mobile-first approach, web designers will first need to create a mobile version of their site. This means building the site for a mobile platform first so that its content or functionality is not being compromised. Once the mobile version has been developed, it is adapted to larger screens contrary to the traditional desktop-first approach.
A mobile-first design utilizes features only available to mobile users like a built-in camera and GPS. As a result, interaction with consumers becomes more meaningful fostering greeting engagement among the visitors. If providing a better user experience does not convenience you, here are some reasons why you should adopt a mobile-first approach.
6 Reasons Why You Should Adopt a Mobile-First Approach
Offers Better User Experience
When developing your website, the user experience (UX) should be given importance. As consumers in today’s time are accustomed to a seamless mobile experience, their expectations from other company websites are also high. Adopting a mobile-first approach means that you will think about the mobile users’ experience first. As such, if their expectations are being met then you will gain their loyalty. Customers are more likely to revisit your website for the same exhilarating user experience.
To improve the user experience, the design should be such that the content is not difficult to view and read. This includes using high-quality pictures that align with the content of the website. The navigation is easily done, and the UI is intuitive. This means that the content must fit the size of smaller screens. Plus, the loading speed should be higher than desktop versions.
Higher Search Engine Optimization Ratings
SEO or Search Engine Optimization refers to the process of making your website and its contents rank higher on search engines like Google. The higher your SEO rank is, the more visible your website is to users. This means that your website will be on page 1 or 2 on Google as opposed to page 4 or higher. As such, whenever a user searches for content available on your website, they will find it sooner. As such, you can expect more visitors to your page who can be turned into leads. The increase in traffic also improves your chances of converting customers into leads.
Mobile-first Indexing is Default on Google
Google is considered the search engine giant. On the 1st of July 2019, Google announced that mobile-first indexing will become the default for website ranking. This means that the Google smartphones bot will analyze the content of the web pages and index them according to their mobile-friendliness. If you want to be ranked higher on Google, priority must be put into SEO as well. As mentioned above, a higher SEO rating will allow your website to be more visible to users. Pair that with adopting a mobile-first approach, and you can expect your website to rank higher on Google’s web page index.
More Mobile Users
It is no surprise that there are more mobile users than desktop users. There are plenty of statistics available to support that statement. As such, it is safe to say that smartphones can be used for things a desktop is used for and more. As phones are a convenient and efficient way for searching things online, many people prefer using them more. Adopting a mobile-first approach means that your website is appealing better to mobile users. Otherwise, there is a risk of losing traffic to your competitors. When you get a mobile website design, your content becomes more accessible and you can definitely make more money.
Increased Rate of Conversion
Increasing your conversion rate is one of the top marketing strategies. Your goal is to convert your leads into customers instead of them just being aware of your brand. As we have already established, there are more mobile users than desktop users, if you want to increase your rate of conversion, a mobile-first approach needs to be applied as soon as possible. Once you have adopted a mobile-first approach, make sure to place all the CTAs in thumb-friendly locations.
Compatible with All Platforms
One of the biggest perks of adopting a mobile-first approach is that your website is not compatible with all kinds of platforms. With a desktop-first approach, when your website is opened from a smartphone, the navigation is much more difficult. Users have to zoom in to view the content, and accessing other aspects is not an easy task either. This results in losing customers as they would rather visit websites that are easy to view and navigate. With a mobile-first approach, the website is designed in such a way that both desktop and mobile users will be comfortable using the site. This means that the website is suited for small screens and large screens.
Conclusion
If you are building or redesigning your website, adopting a mobile-first approach is almost necessary if you want to remain competitive.