Why “Mobile Friendly” is Important in 2015

No matter how many predictions about the trending web designs in 2015 I read, I kept running into the emphasis on the importance of responsive design. Everyone, from designers to developers, from marketers to visitors consider “mobile friendly” as being one of the most important things to implement in 2015 – and now Google is preparing to uprank all sites with mobile friendly designs in its mobile search. What is the reason behind it?

According to a prediction made by marketing guru Steve Jobs in 2010, tablet computers – you know, the ones that are larger than a smartphone but don’t have a physical keyboard and usually run mobile operating systems – would eventually overtake PCs in annual sales. This might happen this year – technology research company Gartner predicts that the number of tablet computers sold in 2015 will surpass 320,000 units, more than the predicted number of desktop PCs for the same year. “Tablet” usually means “mobile” from a web designer’s point of view. Also, mobile games are best enjoyed at Platinum Play online and other similar portals on tablets and phablets… This is one of the reasons why “mobile friendly” is important in 2015.

Another reason why being mobile friendly is 2015 is very important is that the shopping habits of the age group with the most buying power have shifted toward mobile devices. According to a study published by Instart Logic, a company specializing in Cloud Application Delivery Service, millennials (those born after 2000) prefer to use their mobile devices when shopping, and about 57% of them shop from a mobile browser rather than download and install an app for every retail outlet. An online shop that is not mobile friendly will prompt the potential buyer to move on rather than keep the address in mind and buy the item from a desktop computer (which he or she might not even have, see the above paragraph). Here, you have another reason why “mobile friendly” is important in 2015.

The third (and final) reason I will mention to demonstrate the importance of mobile friendliness this year is the rising penetration of smartphones in the so-called “emerging markets”. Although the US and the rest of the so-called “developed economies” were considered for long the places where the money is for long, things have changed a lot lately. Countries like China, India and others are now targeted more and more by manufacturers and service providers – their population is younger, it is growing, and their revenues are growing as well. Microsoft released its first Microsoft-branded Lumia phone in India first, an affordable model offering all modern features at a more than decent price – and other smartphone makers do the same. Not to mention that China has some of the largest smartphone manufacturers in the world. Any business that tries to target these countries should better be ready to offer its potential buyers a mobile friendly interface to use.