We are at a time where websites utilize the most of broadband. Large edge-to-edge images and looped videos are what greets visitors on contemporary sites. We have gargantuan flat panel monitors for our computers and cinema-sized displays for home entertainment. Bigger and even bigger seem to be the way we live our lives, at least visually. The irony is that when we access information, it tends to be the other extreme.
“Mobile to Overtake Fixed Internet Access by 2014” was the huge headline summarizing the bold prediction of Mary Meeker, an analyst at Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers, in 2008. Fast forward to 2016 and mobile is now 65 percent of all digital media time. To the general public, this represents progress and forward movement. For designers and developers, this may represent a sort of “regression” for lack of a better word. The good news is, it doesn’t have to be. It just depends on changing your way of thinking and problem solving.
It seems mobile web design in many ways is an afterthought. We put all this knowledge and time into creating beautiful desktop sites without considering what the limitations of a 3″ x 5″ screen may be. What ends up happening is we design by omission and tacit compliance. “ Oh well, I suppose I can handle losing this…” or “ It won’t be the end of the world if this animation goes away and is replaced by a static, shrunken graphic.” This is what I mean by regression.
The best solution to this problem moving forward would be giving mobile design the first consideration. Start from what’s basic and slowly build to the extravagant. Basic, simple design is the hardest to do. It’s so easy to fill 2000 pixels with engaging imagery, color, and themes. It’s far harder to make 3″ x 5″ look good. Logically this would be the ideal place to start. Start with a smart looking mobile site and see what you can ADD as you go bigger. By giving first consideration to the most time-consuming part of web design, you not only avoid “double designing” but also avoid breaking budgets while giving 65% of your audience your best foot forward.
Aim small, miss small.
If you’re looking for assistance designing a current, mobile-friendly site, give us a call at 701-478-1111 or visit absolutemg.com/contact. We have experience designing beautiful websites for businesses in any industry.