Mobile web design

Mobile responsive websites have been a requirement since 2015, and since this time mobile web design trends have taken off.

Are you a website designer? Do you feel like there's too many trends? Don't know where to start?

We've got you covered! 

This site will set out to introduce you to the world of Mobile web design, and is mainly aimed at Mobile Web Designers looking at building their brand and business online through various mobile devices. It can also appeal to anyone wanting to update or improve current or outdated mobile websites.

To help you, the blog will include a range of curated content in the form of images, newspaper articles, online magazine and print text. You'll also be provided with up to date knowledge about the best mobile web trends in 2016, and get some inspiration for implementation.

Why your business needs a responsive mobile website

Since 2015, Google have been encouraging web designers to switch to mobile responsive website design. If you're not sure where to start, don't worry! I've sourced the best trends and the most up to date information to get you started. 


But first, what is mobile responsive design?

A responsive website makes it easier to browse and navigate, and the user does not have to pinch or zoom into their screen. These days, its less of a trend, and more of a practice. You can see below how the screen adapts to the displayed content on a web page. 

Image: Digital Prominence, 2015

Why does your business need a mobile responsive website?

Watch this video to see why it's important for your business to have a responsive website. It is short and concise, with major points emphasised. Key terms are highlighted to make sure that you understand the terminology involved. Although a little old, the content in this video is still relevant. 

Video sourced from 360 Online Sales Solutions, 2013

The best compatible mobile devices for your website 

Images: 3rd Sense Australia Pty Ltd, 2014

These images give a good representation of the kinds of devices the Australian population is using, and how long they are spending on the internet. This will give you a good idea of just how much a mobile responsive website will benefit your targeted user groups. Also, the great thing about responsive design is that you don't have to maintain or update more than one item of content per device. 

Mobile web trends 2016

It's important to keep up with the most recent and most successful design trends. The infographic and video below shows all the "must- know" trends for 2016, and will help you get up to speed on what kind of trends you might want to incorporate in your website.

Image sourced from Pinterest, 2016

Video sourced from Company Website Design, 2016 


Card layout

According to this article featured in MonsterPost, Carding is where the content is displayed in a card format, which allows the user to browse which chunk of content to explore. Pinterest is a leader in this trend, with over 75% of it's traffic coming from mobile users. Google has just released an app called Google Now, which is proving to be innovative and popular.

Image sourced from Pinterest, 2016

Long or infinite scroll 


Image sourced from Riverbend Digital, 2016



There's lots of debate about this trend. There are several blogs and articles that weigh up the advantages and disadvantages and it is well worth a read. I think that this trend is useful when looking at user needs in this era of technology. 


Created your mobile responsive web page?

When you've created your mobile website, use Google's Mobile Friendly Test to see if your website is compatible with popular devices.



Want more?
Here are some extra resources that will help you to get started.


The Mobile Web Designer's Idea Book: The Ultimate Guide to Trends, Themes, and Styles in Mobile Web Design (Patrick Mcneil, 2013)

Image sourced from My Design Shop, 2016

This book has many benefits which are re-iterated in the summary of what the book contains. The book provides real life examples of responsive design trends such as the Flat Design and Carding trends. There are actually 7 books in the series. If you want to know more, explore here. 

Smashing Magazine (Online)

An online magazine which covers a range of useful web design trends. This article demonstrates the strength of the site. For example, you can see that the article describes and discusses the elements of responsive design and supports statements with pictures and examples. These analytics demonstrate the popularity of the magazine through social media platforms and general website searches. Also discusses new trends such as the Thumb Zone.

Specky Boy Magazine (Online)

Specky Boy Magazine presents a great range of ideas and templates for mobile web design.



Who to follow

Facebook: 
Specky Boy Facebook
 Koncepta

Twitter:
@SmashingMag
@RWD (Responsive Web Design)

You're a pro!

Well there you have it! You've encountered a whole bunch of trends and how they're useful.  I hope that you have enjoyed navigating your way through the content, and have learned a thing or two about the importance of mobile web design, particularly in a society where mobile technology is currently exploding. It is important to implement these trends into your business, in order to keep up with user needs. 

There's lots of trends out there, and I encourage you to keep learning about the different kinds of trends that you can implement into your website design.

Happy designing!

References

Literature 

360 Online Sales Solutions. (2013). Why you should make your website mobile friendly. [Youtube video] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3u5yYTN7qwI

Anderson, E. (2015, May 11). Teenagers spend 27 hours a week online: how internet use has ballooned in the last decade. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/digital-media/11597743/Teenagers-spend-27-hours-a-week-online-how-internet-use-has-ballooned-in-the-last-decade.html

Beese, 2015. 8 Pinterest statistics that marketers can't ignore. Retrieved from http://sproutsocial.com/insights/pinterest-statistics/

Company Website Design. 2016. Web design trends to watch in 2016. [Youtube video] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yA9qEO7IZDo

Digital Prominence. (2015). The importance of responsive websites to small businesses. Retrieved from http://digitalprominence.com/website/importance-of-responsive-websites-to-small-businesses/

Google. (2016). Mobile friendly test. Retrieved from https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/mobile-friendly

Google Design. (2016). Material Design Awards 2016. Retrieved from https://design.google.com/ 

Hill, S. (2016).  How to get the most out of Google Now. Retrieved from http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/how-to-use-google-now/

Ingram, S. (2016, September 19). The thumb zone: designing for mobile users. Smashing Magazine. Retrieved https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2016/09/the-thumb-zone-designing-for-mobile-users/ 

Kim, B. (2013). Responsive web design, discoverability, and mobile challenge. Library Technology Reports, 49(6), 29-39, 2. Retrieved from https://journals.ala.org/ltr/article/viewFile/4507/5286

Knight, K. (2011, January 12). Responsive web design: what it is and how to use it. Smashing Magazine. Retrieved from https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2011/01/guidelines-for-responsive-web-design/#more-75660

Langdon, S. (2015). Is infinite scrolling right for your website? Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/241481

Lisnyak, A. (2016) Flat design vs material design: how are they different? [Web blog post]. Retrieved from http://designmodo.com/flat-vs-material/

Mcneil, P. (2015). The mobile web designers idea book. Retrieved from http://thewebdesignersideabook.com/mobile/

My Design Shop. (2016). The mobile web designers idea book. Retrieved from http://www.mydesignshop.com/mobile-web-designers-idea-book

Moreno, H. (2016). 2016 Web design trends digest [Web blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.templatemonster.com/blog/2016-web-design-trends-digest/

Sadauskas, A. (2015, March 12). Major SEO Google update: websites that aren't mobile friendly set to be penalised. Smart Company. Retrieved from http://www.smartcompany.com.au/technology/seo/46053-major-google-seo-update-websites-that-aren-t-mobile-friendly-set-to-be-penalised/

SimilarWebLtd. (2016). Smashingmagazine. com. Retrieved from https://www.similarweb.com/website/smashingmagazine.com

Speckyboy Design Magazine. (2016). Exploring the long scrolling web design trend. Speckyboy Design Magazine. Retrieved from https://speckyboy.com/long-scrolling-web-design-trend/

Smith, Alex. (2015). Mobile Mania: Australians spend on average more than an hour a day on their smartphones. Retrieved from  http://www.nielsen.com/au/en/insights/news/2015/mobile-mania-australians-spend-on-average-more-than-an-hour-a-day-on-their-smartphones.html

Woodward, J. (2016). Design trend 2016: flat design vs material design. Retrieved from http://www.ellodave.co.uk/design-trend-2016-flat-design-material-design/

Young, N. (2015). 20 flat mobile designs for your inspiration (Web blog post). Retrieved from http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/flat-mobile-ui/

Images

3rd Sense Australia Priority Ltd. (2014). Australian Digital Statistics 2014. [image] retrieved from http://3rdsense.com/blog/2015/9/2/australian-digital-statistics-2014

Bardet, P. (2015). Material design vs flat design. Retrieved from http://www.wow-digital.ch/web-design/material-design-vs-flat-design/

My Design Shop. (2016). The mobile web designers idea book. Retrieved from http://www.mydesignshop.com/mobile-web-designers-idea-book

Pinterest. (2016). Infographic. Retrieved from https://au.pinterest.com/pin/445012006913945215/

Pinterest. (2016). Mobile Web Design Trends.  Retrieved from https://au.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=mobile%20web%20design%20trends%202016&rs=typed&term_meta[]=mobile%7Ctyped&term_meta[]=web%7Ctyped&term_meta[]=design%7Ctyped&term_meta[]=trends%7Ctyped&term_meta[]=2016%7Ctyped

Riverbend Digital. (2016). Start your web journey here. Retrieved from https://riverbend.digital/