responsive design Archives | Catalyst Studio, Inc
2018 – The Year of Mobile-First
On 29, Mar 2018 | In Leverage | By Adrian Arroyos
On Monday, Google announced that after a year of testing, it’s now rolling out mobile-first indexing for websites. Traditionally, Google’s index has used desktop versions of site pages to evaluate content. However, with the majority of Google searches now taking place on mobile devices, this move seeks to better align the index (and search engine results) with the mobile content.
This move doesn’t come with ranking advantages at this time; instead, it is meant to improve one aspect of how Google approaches its overall index in a world increasingly ruled by mobile. However, it’s an important development for any site owner interested in staying up-to-date with Google’s algorithm, while improving user experience, search performance, and mobile reach.
Here’s a brief historical recap:
- Before the iPhone’s launch in 2007, we all accessed websites using desktop or laptop computers. True story.
- Once smartphones took off, we were OK with pinching and zooming the viewport to read tiny website text for awhile. There was no alternative.
- Some developers started rolling out mobile-only versions of websites, but that meant additional development cost and double the upkeep for the life of the websites. Needless to say, the mobile experience was just “good enough.”
- In 2010, Ethan Marcotte coined the term Responsive Design and introduced us to the “media queries” that power this new approach. This enabled site owners to maintain a single desktop-driven website that automatically adapted to smaller, mobile devices using an approach of “graceful degradation.” In other words, mobile was a second-class citizen, and it was acceptable for mobile users to have a less polished, or even a stripped down experience.
- Mobile traffic has exploded in recent years, overtaking traffic from desktop computers. This has ushered in the need to shift focus on a mobile-first approach. Mobile-first is about favoring mobile devices, and making sure everything ANY user requires is accounted for on small screens. This approach uses an approach of “progressive enhancement” for larger screens.
Reminder to Speed Up
Don’t ignore page load speed! Another core consideration of mobile-first web design is page loading speed. Google announced earlier this year that by July 2018, slow site speed will have a negative effect on ranking for mobile and desktop searches.
If it’s time to fix a problem or redesign your website for “mobile-first,” call us at (281) 980-4900 for a free consultation and estimate.
Responsive Website for Accredo Packaging
On 23, May 2013 | In Announcements | By Adrian Arroyos
We’re proud to announce that our website redesign for Accredo Packaging, Inc, a sustainable flexible packaging manufacturer, is now online.
Responsive Design
Accredo Packaging made a huge splash in the packaging industry by building the first LEED® Silver Certified production facility of its kind in the United States. They also stuck to their vision of developing innovative technology at every step of the way in bringing their plant online… From a never-before-seen color management system to new ways of creating film structures, including compostable films and films made of renewable resins sourced from sugar cane.
Our redesign takes those qualities of innovation as a core concept. We started by creating a responsive website design framework. This means the website uses CSS media queries to display beautifully on large computer displays, as well as tablets and smartphones (no need to pinch and squeeze the mobile screen to zoom in or out). This is a design method we’ve employed consistently since early 2012 to deliver website designs that work on any device. Since then, we’ve seen that responsive design helps clients achieve higher page view counts and conversions from mobile customers.
We took that further by enhancing the homepage with a slider animation that builds elegantly and provide deep links…no Flash tricks, just standards-based HTML5, CSS and jQuery.
Photography Showcase
We also photographed the product packaging samples in order to give visitors a sense of the color rendition and detail across brands. If you want to know why certain products “jump off the shelves” when you stroll down an aisle, it usually comes down to package design. Accredo’s customers get this, and they get the added bonus of being able to work with a manufacturer that can provide solutions that meet WalMart’s strict standards for sustainable packaging.
You can learn more about Accredo Packaging’s offerings at: AccredoPackaging.com.
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