SIERRA MODRO, CSP,
technology futurist, helped
engineer the first Pentium
motherboards, the Kindle
screen technology, and the
streaming music software in
your home. When you want to
know how tomorrow’s tech will
impact business, call Sierra.
She makes tech-savvy simple.
sierramodro.com
Whether you’re designing a
site yourself or working with
a web designer, knowing the
lingo can help you get what
you want. Here are a few
essential terms:
MOBILE When discussing
website design, mobile
encompasses all small
screens, including phones,
smartphones, tablets,
e-readers, and other small
devices—not laptops or
notebooks.
MOBILE-FRIENDLY
A precursor to mobile
responsive, mobile-friendly
sites look the same on mobile
and desktop browsers. They
don’t adjust sizes or layout,
which can affect usability on
small screens.
MOBILE-RESPONSIVE Also
called responsive web design
(RWD), “mobile-responsive”
describes website design that
automatically adjusts to fit the
device you’re using.
MOBILE-FIRST Mobile-first
design approaches websites
with mobile as the primary
target and large screens
secondary. This is the inverse
of historical website design.
This philosophy typically uses
mobile-responsive templates.
MOBILE-OPTIMIZED
A mobile-optimized site provides a rich user experience
with full content access. It also
may include enhancements
for phones, such as clickable
phone numbers.
55% of web access is from mobile devices,
but visitors stay half as long as on desktops.
Information must be easy to find quickly.
TWO TESTING TOOLS
Test your site with bing.com/webmaster/tools/mobile-friendliness or
responsinator.com.
DON’ T START
HERE. When
designing a
new website,
optimize the
mobile design
first and then
scale up to larger
screen sizes.
TOUCHY
SUBJECT.
Consider both
touch-friendly
(for tablet and
mobile) and
desktop buttons
and navigation in
your design.
DESKTOP ISN’T DEAD. While more traffic
comes from mobile, more conversions happen
on desktops, so make sure your site′s desktop
experience is stellar.
