What’s the Difference Between Mobile Sites and Responsive Designed Sites?

My good friend who happens to be a great customer as well, Dino Iannuzzi of MobiGorilla.mobi just published a great article on the differences between mobile websites and responsive designed websites. He also talks about which ones you should use.

I know that many of my customers are confused by this. And since he already wrote a great article explaining the details I thought I should pass it on to you.

This is really something every marketing consultant needs to know.  In the end it doesn’t matter whether you chose to use our WP Local Mobile plugin that creates mobile sites or if you use a responsive theme. But after reading Dino’s article you’ll know which one is the best to use for each unique situation.

Take a few minutes and read Dino’s article now:

Difference Between a Mobile Website and Responsive Design

The way websites work has changed dramatically in recent years to include different platforms and browsers. For example, a mobile phone user doesn’t view websites the same way as someone using a laptop.

Mobile websites are optimized to load faster by including limited content, fewer graphics. Basically, a mobile website acts as a skimmed down version of a company’s main website.

However, some business owners opt for responsive design, which acts as a standalone website for their company regardless of what type of device the site is accessed on.

Responsive web design focuses on the actual device used to access the website, and in turn, the website is optimized to fit the dimensions of the device. For instance, an 8-inch portable tablet will have different website dimensions when compared to a 3.5-inch smartphone.

More and more people are using tablets and smartphones to access the Internet. In fact, by the end of 2013, it’s estimated that tablet sales will equal more than $100 million.

So being able to provide customers with a site that’s responsive to whatever device they choose to access the Internet from will help businesses tremendously.

However, with a mobile website, an entirely separate site is built to make mobile viewing even faster and more convenient.  Designs, graphics, and videos are usually kept to a minimum in order to ensure users can access only the information they need – and do it quickly.

When a mobile website is created, a subdomain typically hosts a set of files that that are similar to the traditional site. When entering your domain, visitors will be taken to the site based upon the type of operating system they are using.
For example, if they use a mobile device to visit your website, then they’ll be taken to the mobile version of your site. If they’re using a desktop computer to access the site, they’ll be taken to your main website.

Which Should You Choose?

Well, both are good. But if your mobile audience does not need to access every bit of information on your traditional website, a mobile website is the better option so you can scale things down to what they need to access.

Mobile websites allow businesses to specifically accommodate mobile users who are on the go by providing only the information they need; making it convenient and useful for the end-users.

Which one do you use for your sites and your client sites? Share below…