It's Real — Google Has "Penalized" Web Designs That Aren't Mobile-Friendly!

Vũ Khôi

Author at Wotech Electronics Blog

Mobile-Friendly Web Design — Vietnamese Businesses' Lukewarm Attitude

Web designs that aren't compatible with every screen will be rated low by Google — even penalized. In fact, up to 50% of web designs in Vietnam are not mobile-friendly. If you doubt it, pick any website belonging to a Vietnamese business and open it on a smartphone: the page load speed and the web interface design won't please you the way they do on a computer screen.

But what is mobile-friendly web design, really? What are the common errors on a website that isn't mobile-friendly? And why do you need a website that's friendly to every screen? Find the answers in today's article from Markdao, a Digital Marketing Agency!

What is mobile friendly in web design?

Mobile-friendly web design — more commonly known as responsive website — refers to websites whose graphics and layout can adapt to different screen formats: smartphones, tablets, and so on. A responsive web interface design gives users a comfortable experience browsing and reading the site on any electronic device.

Since April 2015, Google has been penalizing websites that aren't friendly to different screens — after all, today up to 70% of users browse the web, or even shop, on mobile devices. To optimize user experience, Google released the "Mobilegeddon" algorithm, forcing websites to become mobile-friendly. As a result, website design using responsive technology has become a trend and an essential need for businesses worldwide. But in Vietnam, businesses still haven't recognized the importance of responsive web design. That's exactly why Markdao, a Digital Marketing Agency, wrote this article — hoping to help a few businesses see mobile-friendly website design in a different light.

Common Errors in a Web Design That Isn't Mobile-Friendly

Have you ever wondered why your website is beautiful, with attractive images and constantly updated information customers need, yet the bounce rate is so high? Then what you need to do right now is open your website on a smartphone or tablet and check whether it suffers from the following errors:

SLOW PAGE LOAD

After opening your website, check how long it takes for a page to appear. If the number exceeds 5 seconds, your web design hasn't been built with responsive technology. On the other hand, videos, images, or any widgets on the website can also slow down page loading if you haven't optimized them. So why not review and consider which images to remove — or at least reduce their file sizes?

Why does slow loading have a negative impact? Because slow loading wastes more time, and time is considered a top factor Google uses to evaluate your website SEO, which then determines your website's ranking in search results.

HAVING TO ZOOM IN JUST TO READ THE CONTENT

This is the most common error of non-responsive web designs — users are forced to enlarge the text to read. But think about it: do you have the patience to zoom into every page of a website to read all the information? In reality, no — so if this happens on your website, the bounce rate will be very high, which hurts your website SEO. This is considered the most serious error to eliminate.

A few small tips: for web interface design on desktop or laptop screens, serif fonts are optimal — but they make users uncomfortable on mobile devices. So on those devices, sans-serif fonts are the more common choice. Besides the typeface, pay attention to font size: the minimum text size on mobile-friendly web designs is usually 16pt, though it depends on the font you use.

TOO MUCH INFORMATION, WITH NO ORGANIZATION

When you step into a website that looks like a jungle of information and images, do you still bother to keep scrolling? Today's design trend is grid-based web design, with more white space, minimalist text, and sharp, high-quality images to optimize the user experience. This style is popular but has so far mostly been applied to web interface design on computer screens. In reality, on mobile devices, most websites are simply designed vertically — one long scroll from one piece of information to the next.

Worse still, many websites pack in a lot of information without organizing it. The best approach is to divide content into sensible sections so users aren't overwhelmed when they enter your website, letting them explore what they need from one piece of content to the next — and stay on your site longer. That's great for your website SEO, too.

So how do you define a responsive website?

Summing up the errors Markdao just mentioned: a mobile-friendly website is one that works with every interface, whether the screen is large or small. Font size plays an extremely important role in this type of website, helping visitors read information and view images easily, and the content published on the website especially needs sensible organization. A responsive web design means users don't have to zoom in or out or scroll sideways — they simply scroll up and down the page vertically, just as on a PC. In addition, users shouldn't have to wait too long for each page to load, and finally, a responsive website ensures that call-to-action buttons and links work well when users click them.

So from now on, check whether your web design is mobile-friendly to avoid falling into Google's "crosshairs." If you run into difficulties and need support, don't hesitate to contact Markdao — we'll look after your website as if it were our own.

How can you tell whether a website is mobile friendly?

There are several very simple ways to check whether your current website works on mobile devices or tablets:

• Open your website on a smartphone and tablet: if it appears in full just like on your PC but at a smaller size because the browser has shrunk it to fit the screen width, the website is not responsive.

• Check your website in a regular browser but narrow the window: if a horizontal scrollbar appears, the site isn't mobile friendly. Try the same experiment on our Markdao Digital Marketing Agency website in your browser and watch how the page rearranges itself as the width shrinks.

• Use testing tools such as Google's Mobile Friendly Test, the W3C mobileOK Checker, HubSpot's Marketing Grader...

Why do you need a mobile-friendly web design?

Beyond the fact that more and more people browse the web on mobile devices, what other reasons do marketing experts give for building your web design in a mobile-friendly way?

RESPONSIVE WEBSITES IMPROVE GOOGLE SEO

As mentioned, Google values user experience highly. So if users engage with your website — long visit durations, shared links, and discussions of your content on social media... — Google will surely rate your website SEO quality highly. For Google, user experience in the search algorithm is crucial, and how Internet users react to whether or not you have a mobile-friendly web design has a huge impact on your website's "ranking" in search results.

RESPONSIVE WEBSITES IMPROVE SALES AND INCREASE ENGAGEMENT FROM POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS

Mobile-friendly websites are rated by experts as the leading solution for satisfying visitors to your website and increasing the likelihood they take action — buying or registering and leaving their information. Smartphones and tablets are very well suited to these activities and help people do them faster and more conveniently. It's simple: imagine someone opening your website on mobile intending to research carefully before making a purchase decision, but they hit a snag navigating between pages or reading the content — they will leave your website as quickly as possible to avoid wasting time. Even worse, they'll judge your business as unprofessional and lose trust in your brand!

RESPONSIVE WEBSITES ARE EASIER TO ADMINISTER

In some cases, businesses create two separate websites at once — one dedicated to PCs and one for mobile devices. Just hearing that, you can sense how costly it is in time, money, and effort, right? So why not merge them into one? That saves you precious time to create and manage website content at a higher quality over a long period.

What Does a Responsive Website Design Cost?

Is a mobile-friendly web design expensive? That depends on many factors. If you need a simple website without many features or special services for mobile devices, the cost isn't high. However, if you want to give users the best experience — easily buying products, booking appointments, registering information on mobile, or other functions — the cost will be higher to meet your needs.

It's Time to Revisit Your Business's Web Design!

As analyzed, mobile-friendly web design plays an increasingly pivotal role in today's 4.0 era. In Vietnam, 70% is the share of users who browse the web on their phones, but only 50% of businesses ensure their websites are compatible with all mobile devices — a great pity, because the other 50% of businesses fail to reach more of their potential customers simply through indifference toward responsive web interface design. We can acknowledge that this involves a not-insignificant cost, but a responsive website will make a real difference in site navigation and increase your ability to reach potential customers.

Markdao hopes that through this article, you may not think of Markdao for help building a responsive website, but we do hope you come away with a different thought, a different view of the benefits mobile-friendly web design can bring to your business. Thank you for taking the time to read our article.

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