According to Google, 61% of users are unlikely to return to a mobile site they had trouble viewing and 40% will go on and visit a competitor’s site instead (MicKinsey & Company, 2014). It’s important to your business to make sure your potential or existing customers have the best experience while viewing your website on a mobile devices. Not only is a smaller screen size a factor, but so is easy navigation and fast loading times. While both a mobile site and a responsive website address these factors, there are notable differences.
A mobile site is basically a copy of a website that has its own URL and is completely independent from the full site. The advantages of having a separate mobile website is the control you have over the content displayed and the user can choose between the mobile or full desktop version. Also, you can SEO the mobile site separately and target solely mobile users. However, this does add the overhead of maintaining two separate websites.
Responsive web design uses one website and fluidly adjusts the elements on a webpage to fit different screen sizes. Manageability is going to be much easier, not only in terms of content, but with respect to broad SEO as well. But if not properly built and managed, responsive designs can lead to increased page sizes and load times. Also, layouts won't be as flexible and adaptable as your site grows.
Not sure which option is right for your website? Don’t worry. We’ll help you make the best decision for your unique situation and budget.
See examples of our mobile sites and responsive designs.