Mobile usage has exploded over the past decade. Today, more than half of all website traffic comes from mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. This massive shift towards mobile has huge implications for how websites are designed and built. Responsive web design, which enables websites to dynamically adapt to different screen sizes, has become absolutely essential for providing good user experiences on mobile. In this article, we’ll examine how modern website builders handle mobile responsiveness and identify key considerations for choosing a platform to build a responsive mobile-friendly site.
The Importance of Mobile Responsiveness
Mobile responsiveness refers to the ability of a website to automatically adjust its layout and elements to look good and function well on any screen size – from small smartphone displays to large desktop monitors. A responsive site works seamlessly across devices, providing an optimal viewing and using experience regardless of how visitors access the site.
Mobile responsiveness is critical for a few key reasons:
- Mobile usage continues to grow rapidly. Over half of site traffic is now from mobile devices. Building a site that isn’t mobile-optimized means losing lots of potential visitors and customers.
- Google prioritizes mobile-friendly sites in search rankings. Sites that aren’t responsive run the risk of lower search visibility and traffic.
- Responsive sites provide better user experiences. Visitors get frustrated with sites that are difficult to navigate or read on their phones. A seamless experience keeps them engaged.
- Responsive design is accessible by nature. By eliminating the need to zoom and scroll, responsive sites accommodate users with disabilities.
Clearly, mobile responsiveness is no longer an option but a necessity for modern websites. All popular website building platforms provide ways to make sites mobile-friendly. But the options and ease-of-use vary significantly.
Responsive Design Methods Used by Website Builders
There are a few common technical approaches used by website builders to make sites responsive:
- Fluid layouts using percentage-based widths – Site elements use percentages rather than fixed pixel widths, allowing them to flexibly resize.
- Flexbox layout module – Flexbox provides an efficient way to arrange and distribute space among elements.
- CSS media queries – Media queries allow CSS styles to be conditioned on device characteristics like screen width.
- Responsive frameworks – Frameworks like Bootstrap provide pre-designed mobile-first responsive components.
- Adaptive images – Automatically serve properly-sized images for each device, avoiding slow load times.
- Mobile navigation menus – Hamburger menus or off-canvas sidebars prevent crowded navigation on small screens.
The availability and implementation of these features varies across website builders. When evaluating options, look for builders that make responsive design easy and intuitive rather than overly complex and rigid.
Key Considerations for Choosing a Responsive Website Builder
Here are some key criteria to assess when choosing a website builder for mobile responsiveness:
- Mobile-first design – The platform should take a mobile-first approach with components and templates built for mobile as the default. Desktop experiences should be an extension of mobile designs.
- Drag-and-drop interface – Look for a simple drag-and-drop editor rather than rigid templates or lots of manual coding. This makes responsive changes quick and painless.
- Pre-built responsive elements – The included elements like menus, grids, buttons and forms should dynamically size and reflow. You shouldn’t have to customize each element.
- Media query controls – The ability to easily customize responsive behaviors like rearranging or hiding elements per device. Setting individual media queries should not be required.
- Mobile previews – A live mobile preview or mobile emulator is essential to test responsive changes on the fly. Previews that sync in real-time are best.
- SEO and speed optimization– The platform should auto-optimize for search engine visibility and performance on mobile networks. No need to manually configure for mobile SEO and speed.
- Customization options – Choose a builder with design flexibility in case the default mobile experience needs tweaking. Cascading style sheets provide the most control.
Prioritizing these key criteria will help identify the website builders that offer the best responsive design experience for creating fast, mobile-friendly sites.
Examining Responsive Features in Popular Website Builders
Now we’ll examine some of the most popular website building platforms and evaluate how they stack up regarding mobile responsiveness. Comparing the experiences across different builders highlights what to look for.
Wix
- Fully drag and drop builder – Easily customize mobile layouts visually
- Mobile editor view for responsive changes on the fly
- Extensive mobile-optimized template library
- Mobile versions created automatically
- Media queries can be added but not required
- Good customization but uses pixel units rather than percentages
Ease of use: High – Excellent responsive capabilities with minimal effort. Mobile editing view provides responsive WYSIWYG experience.
Squarespace
- Drag and drop or code editing available
- Very limited responsive settings in visual editor
- Majority of changes require code editing in developer mode
- Percentage-based fluid grids for flexible resizing
- Quality mobile templates with Bootstrap framework
- Mobile stylesheets can override desktop
Ease of use: Medium – Responsive capabilities available but harder to accomplish without coding know-how.
Weebly
- Drag and drop editor focused on mobile experience
- Easy to create responsive columns/rows that reflow
- Mobile preview button within editor
- Very limited individual element resize options
- Primarily pixel-based sizing lacks fluid flexibility
- QR code to view mobile while editing
Ease of use: Medium – Design for mobile first but lack of fluid grids reduces flexibility.
WordPress
- Requires plug-in (ie. Elementor) for drag and drop builder
- Plug-ins provide mobile-first designs, responsive elements
- Live mobile edit mode available in some plug-ins
- CSS Flexbox and media queries offer fine-grained control
- Manual setup required for mobile menus, responsive images, etc.
- Coding expertise recommended for customization
Ease of use: Medium/Low – Powerful responsive features possible but require technical know-how.
This analysis shows that Wix stands out for offering the most intuitive and comprehensive responsive design capabilities completely within its visual drag and drop editor. For non-developers prioritizing simplicity and customization, Wix is an excellent choice.
Creating a Responsive Site – Step-by-Step Process
Now that we’ve covered the importance of mobile responsiveness and key platform considerations, let’s walk through the process for creating a responsive site using the Wix editor as an example:
1. Select a mobile-optimized template
Wix has a collection of professionally designed templates built with responsive principles. Pick one that reflects your site’s aesthetics and content structure.
2. Use the mobile editor preview
While building pages, toggle the mobile preview to see changes instantly on a mobile view. Adjust content formatting, layout, images etc. until satisfied.
3. Reflow sections with columns
Add content blocks in a logical order from top to bottom. Use Wix’s responsive column system to automatically reflow sections.
4. Style elements responsively
For buttons, images, videos and other elements, use percentage-based widths and auto-heights so they resize flexibly.
5. Customize the mobile menu
Use Wix’s dedicated mobile menu settings to optimize menu content and layout for mobile screens or devices.
6. Hide/show elements by device
If certain elements don’t work on mobile, go to the responsive settings to easily hide them on mobile views.
7. Preview on actual mobile devices
Use the QR code or mobile preview links to check the site on physical smartphones and tablets. Tweak as needed.
8. Set up Google mobile-friendly test
Run the site through Google’s mobile-friendly test to catch any optimizations needed for mobile SEO.
9. Publish and monitor data
After publishing, use Google Analytics data to see engagement across device types. Continue refining the experience.
Following this streamlined process will result in a website that works beautifully on any device. Wix makes achieving mobile responsiveness easy and intuitive.
Conclusion
Responsive design is mandatory for modern websites. Mobile optimization not only provides a better user experience, but helps sites rank higher and convert more visitors into customers.
Modern website builders provide a range of responsive features, though Wix stands out for its intuitive drag and drop approach. With its mobile-first editor, device previews and flexible grids, anyone can build a mobile-ready site without having to code.
Focus your website builder search on platforms that prioritize responsive design with easy to use visual interfaces. Your effort in maximizing mobile friendliness will pay dividends in the form of greater user engagement, sales, and search visibility.