2013 Is the Year of Responsive Web Design - Why So?

In simple terms, a responsive web design uses "media queries" to figure out what resolution of device it's being served on. With explosive growth of handheld devices and madness of screen resolutions and dimensions seeing no end it is imperative that all sites are made responsive.

According to the latest study conducted by the research firm Gartner, global PC sales decline by 1.2% in 2012 despite the much hyped launch of the Windows 8. On the other end of the spectrum, another research by Gartner revealed that smartphones were up by 42.7% and a separate study by International Data Corporation (IDC) showed that the projected total sales for tablet devices in 2013 will breach the 170-million mark and is even predicted to outdo netbooks’ sales performance. Say goodbye to the “one site fits all screen sizes” web development and design paradigm and enter "Responsive Web Design"

the shift to mobile is happening at an extraordinary speed. According to tech media giant Mashable, they expect that mobile visitors will comprise more than 50% of their site’s total traffic by the conclusion of 2013. While this projection can vary from one industry to another, the point is mobile traffic is destined to gain momentum and capturing this on-the-go audience is crucial to success. If one would let these numbers speak for themselves, website design companies should hear loud and clear that the next gen SEO and SMO will be heavily anchored on responsive web designs. For those of us who create websites and services, all this leads to a singular conclusion: A million screens have bloomed, and we need to build for all of them.

Responsive Web Design

In simple terms, a responsive web design uses "media queries" to figure out what resolution of device it's being served on. Flexible images and fluid grids then size correctly to fit the screen. If you're viewing this article on a desktop browser, for example, try making your browser window smaller.

Why Can’t You Ignore Mobile in 2013

Different organizations have their own reason for not using responsive web design tools in their web development initiatives. Smaller businesses might say that they don’t need it because of their small operations while enterprises might say that they don’t see where mobile fits into their overall marketing strategy in general.

According to a presentation by Mary Meeker who is dubbed as the “The Queen of the Net,” 24% of all online shopping that place on Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving and one of the peaks in the US shopping season) was done using a smartphone or a tablet. Whatever your business size is, tapping into website design companies to bring your mobile marketing to the next gen SEO and SMO by using responsive web design tools is a sound business decision.