Call them portable mini-computers or smartphones, these devices have revolutionized the digital space. Smartphones have become one of the most extensively used electronic devices around the world. No matter what we have to do, take a photo, call someone, surf the internet, etc, everything is done through our smartphone.
However, this increase in mobile using the audience has filled the top website designing companies across the globe with requests to develop websites keeping in mind that it can be accessed from a mobile. The mobile and the desktop website are no more the same things. You have to pay attention to the area that’s driving the bulk of traffic. If you are one of those web designers or developers then you know what I am talking about. Taking that discussion a bit deeper here we list the 9 mobile web design strategies which should be always remembered by someone who calls himself/herself a web designer/developer. Read them out
Define Your Needs
In any business, every decision is made based on solid stats, and each of these decisions has a purposeful meaning behind it. So if you are deciding to make a mobile website for your business, then you need to have a specific reason and purpose for it. And Clearly defining your needs is the first step towards a well-planned web design strategy. Well for most of the businesses the requirement for a web design comes due to some common reason including –
- A new website in need of cross-platform development, hence requiring a mobile website design.
- Redesigning an existing website, meanwhile including a new mobile compatible design.
- It’s just an update for a desktop website without any major changes.
Each one of these reasons has different needs and requirements. But identifying your business requirement in such a way will help you formulate an effective web design strategy saving you a lot of time and effort in the future.
Plan Your Design First
Well before you get started with your website development it always recommended getting your website design ready first. In case you are planning on doing both tasks spontaneously then it can go horribly wrong as you have no idea where you are going. So try to keep it professional and follow the standard development process, by creating a wireframe first and then a design for the website before you actually start coding it. This will just make things easier for you and help you create exactly what you want.
However, creating the web design is not that easy and even for a simple design, you would at least have to create 4 to 5 prototypes for it. Also, you will have to test these web designs for various devices screen size to make sure that your design is responsive towards different devices.
Look At the Statistics
Numbers can really create magic by assigning each behavior with points and help you understand what is actually happening with your business. Well if you already have a desktop website it will be really useful to check out the stats that provide you with information related to your user’s activity on your website. This will help you in creating your website design and also in deciding, how to give priority to different pages including on your website. Keep in mind that the mobile screen is a lot smaller than the desktop screen, and so all the elements and components of the website may not work in your mobile version of the website. So it is important that you utilize these stats to determine the best course of action.
Keep It Simple
It has become a golden rule among the development community to always keep a mobile website design as simple as possible. This helps them keep the website clean and a lot more effective especially when converting desktop websites. It is not on a whim as there are many reasons for this such as a simple website tends to be faster than a more complex website as it helps in keeping the file size to the minimum. Also, this makes your website loading time a lot faster, and it is really important that your website loads faster than most of the relevant websites on the web. This can directly impact your website’s search engine optimization in a positive way.
Apart from this, a complex website is not easy to use on a smartphone, so an effective usability design is the one with a more simplified approach towards layout, navigation, and design. You have a small space with a mobile screen and hence you need to choose your component placement carefully. However, simple web design does not mean coming with an unattractive website. You can still create a beautiful website design with amazing features and functionality of smartphones.
Single Column Layout
When it comes to the layout you have more options than you have for chocolates probably. For instance, some of the best-known layouts for mobile web design are –
- Single column,
- A grid of cards.
- Magazine.
- Split-screen.
- Fixed sidebar.
- Featured image.
- Asymmetrical layout.
- Boxes, etc.
However, it is always recommended to go with the single-column layout especially when you are working on a professional website for a business. Not only does this provide your website with an amazing layout, but it also helps you out with space management. Apart from this single-column layout is a lot simpler to customize when it comes to scaling device resolution and changing between landscape and portrait mode. This layout makes this task a lot simpler than it would be with other layouts.
Also if you are using a multi-column layout for your desktop website then you can easily convert it to a single column layout.
Navigation
The navigation needs to be extremely simple and intuitive and you need to carefully plan your navigation system when planning your website design. Make sure to choose a standards navigation system, so that your users can easily follow along.
Website Buttons
Sometimes it gets difficult to click website buttons on the smaller screen. However, this issue can be resolved with automatic zoom in and out feature.
Framework
You need to save time as developing a website from scratch is really difficult and can take months. However, if you utilize a web framework, then the same work can be done in a few days. So make sure to introduce a framework to your workflow. There are many frameworks available and you choose the one you are comfortable with, for instance, Django, Bootstrap, etc.
Feedback
Feedback forms are really important to know about your website from your user’s perspective. This can really help you improve your website as your users can point out different issues with your website.
