Some aspects of web design are a luxury.
The kind that, if deployed correctly, enhance a website’s feel, look, and user experience.
Others are a must-have.
Put simply, in 2024, your website needs to be responsive on all devices.
This, of course, includes mobile phones.
More than half of all internet usage comes from mobile.
Optimizing your site so that it can be properly accessed via iPhone, Galaxy, Xiaomi, and any other type of cellular device, allows you to engage with your audience in a way that fits their modern browsing habits.
But that’s only one of a long line of benefits that come with a fully-optimized online store.
Let’s break down the benefits you can expect from a responsive ecommerce website:
A significant increase in traffic
Over half of global website traffic now originates from mobile devices, highlighting a clear shift from traditional desktop browsing. This trend is especially felt in regards to ecommerce websites, as more than 60% of online shoppers access stores via mobile.
Optimized websites, as a whole, see significantly lower bounce rates, with mobile-optimized sites experiencing an average drop in bounce rate by 30%(!) compared to non-optimized sites.
Higher conversion and purchase rates
Mobile devices account for 72.9% of ecommerce sales.
Simply put, when it’s optimized for mobile, your online store generates significantly more business.
You know how cash registered in major retail stores always display goods to encourage impulse purchasing? Well, consumers are 40% more likely to make impulse purchases like those when engaging with their favorite online stores via mobile.
On the flip side, you leave a lot of money on the table when your online store isn’t properly optimized for mobile devices. Cart abandonment rates (which are high in general) are especially high on mobile devices. According to a study conducted by Namogoo, 3 out of 4 mobile shoppers will abandon their carts before performing a purchase. When your site isn’t optimized for mobile consumption, this negative trend will likely apply to you.
Higher rankings on search engines
Google’s mobile-first indexing prioritizes mobile-optimized sites, significantly impacting search rankings. Websites optimized for mobile are more likely to secure higher positions in search results, as mobile usability is a confirmed ranking factor. Faster page speeds, a hallmark of well-optimized mobile sites, also contribute to improved search engine rankings, with studies showing that even a 1-second delay in load time can reduce conversions by up to 20%.
Wider customer reach
As we touched upon earlier, a huge segment of your potential consumer base will be accessing your site via mobile. While the majority of online consumers prefer to engage with ecommerce websites via mobile, there is a significant number of people who must rely on their cellphones to browse your site. 15% of the world’s population (including more than a quarter of adult Americans) live with some form of disability. Within this group, there are millions of users (specifically those with certain motor impairments) who cannot use a desktop computer to browse websites.
When you optimize your online store for mobile, you allow members of the various disabilities to spend their hard-earned cash on your goods and services. It is worth noting that Shopify accessibility is a broader topic, and requires other measures and design tweaks. However, mobile optimization is a core tenet of web accessibility, that, if achieved, will allow you to tap into a market size measured at $13 trillion.
Closing thoughts
Mobile responsiveness may have been a cool feature you could have looked into developing 5-7 years ago without any real urgency. Today, however, your online store simply has to be responsive when engaged with via mobile devices. Besides providing your audience with an optimal user experience (on the medium they are most likely to be approaching you with), mobile responsiveness offers a number of additional benefits and advantages. These include higher rankings on search engines, a significant increase in traffic, and, perhaps most importantly, a wider and more diverse audience base.
Author’s bio:
Yoni Yampolsky is a Content Manager for accessiBe, one of the world leaders in web accessibility solutions for all CMSs and site builders, including Shopify.
