Your mobile phone is likely the last thing you see before you go to sleep and the first thing when you wake the next day. Perhaps you check your e-mail on the way to work or read the latest news on the bus or train. You’re not the only one.
On the breakfast table lies the tablet we use to read the newspaper; the Internet is integrated into the new car’s entertainment system; at work we use various devices; and we surf on the telephone at the first opportunity. As consumers, we have become completely spoiled and demanding: we expect net-based services to be accessible, intuitive to use and functionally bug-free, no matter which item we use – PC, tablet, mobile phone, etc.
The mobile phone as browser
According to Gartner, mobile phone traffic will exceed PC traffic on websites already in 2013. But how can we be future-oriented and design net services and websites that work independently of the means of access? One thing is certain, we must think creatively. For several years it has been possible to create a mobile phone adapted version of a website, but it can be a demanding and costly process. There are great differences in screen resolution among the various mobile devices in use, and this can also vary from the landscape to the portrait orientation on a single device.
The solution: Responsive web design
In a majority of cases the smartest, most reasonable and efficient way forward is to create a design adapted to the device in question, known as Responsive Web Design. This is a set of techniques that allow us to adapt the layout and content based on the user’s screen resolution. When we use Responsive Web Design we usually choose three different sizes, optimized for desktop, tablet and mobile phone, for example. Even though the design is adapted to several defined sizes, it will be flexible and function on other devices, in addition to new ones that will show up on the market. In order to get the most out of Responsive Web Design, it should be combined with the Mobile First principle.
What is Mobile First?
The idea behind Mobile First, as the name suggests, is that we start the design process with the smallest screen. This requires a new prioritization of the types of content and services to be offered, as opposed to the traditional process involving deep hierarchies and many levels. With Mobile First, you get a tightly focused website with a clear message and clear purpose instead. For prioritizing content and fine-tuning services, it is a useful exercise that all websites should undertake in order to give users the best possible experience.
There is only one good website
We estimate that by 2014 we will no longer design websites using traditional methods, but rather create responsive solutions. Naturally, apps will continue to play an important role, and individual websites will offer services that will be best in specially adapted versions, but for the vast majority we won’t likely be creating separate mobile versions.
After all, there is only one good version of a website: the one that works optimally on all devices.