chronicleseo

:confused:I get mixed info on the blogs. I figured some experts could shoot it straight with me...
I have been testing out clients with a single mobile responsive website vs other clients with two versions of their site (one main non responsive and one mobile version).

I do not see the advantages to having separate sites. I like that you can change content once and it changes through all platforms with a responsive site. It seems though there is a lot of advertising for using two versions of a site.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of either? :confused:

Jimmy Chronicle
Spike Promotions
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Atlanta Reputation Management and SEO

Aaron Doud

A mobile site often needs to be simpler.

I think the best choice is actually both. A simple mobile site with the basic a customer wants along with a link to the main site which itself is responsive.

The simple mobile site will load fast and get the quick info like phone number and hours that the customer wants while still being able to access all the other content in a mobile friendly way if they want to.

Steve Solem

Aaron summed up exactly how I feel in this situation!

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MoBuzz

I am actually dealing with this issue rite now with one of my own sites as somewhat of a test . I am using the best html5 css3 responsive site i could find. The problem is that I want the desktop site to be dynamic but it just does not "respond" correctly with all that content. So what did I do? I started removing content from the main site in order to get a better responsive result. By the time I got the site to look half way decent on a mobile device my main site looked extremely boring. This option may work with a very basic site but I still do not think it compares to a true mobile version that you can build to fit mobile users.

Bottom line if you want a great desktop site as well as a great experience for mobile users they need to be separate in my opinion.

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AlisonM

If someone already has a comprehensive desktop site which they like but doesn't work well on mobile - probably created before mobile was important or even invented - then having a separate mobile site seems the obvious answer.

For someone without a web presence who is just starting now they would have more options.

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Mike Sparkes

I agree with the above a mobile site often needs to become a lot simpler. However there are many sites out there that have used a responsive design and cut down on clutter. I have another spanner to throw into the works. Do you put the mobile site on a sub folder or a sub domain? Is there any fall out from seo by putting it on a sub domain?

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Mr Bill

This has been discussed many many times on this forum Jimmy. Spend a night reading nothing but this mobile section of the forum and you'll see all the arguments for and against.

Nail Yener

Every website should be considered separately. If it makes sense to use two separate sites, then you should go for it. If it makes sense to use a responsive layout, then you should go for it.

That is not necessarily true. This is not about a site having a responsive layout. You can create two separate sites one for desktop and one for mobile, yet you can code them in such a way that they will be updated simultaneously when you update your content. Look at Amazon's desktop site and mobile site, you will know what I mean. I have yet to come a large-scale site that uses a responsive layout to handle their mobile version. If your desktop and mobile sites are built on the same database then you don't need to worry about updating content twice.

For me, the reason I go for a separate mobile site (it doesn't always have to be hosted on a separate URL) is that it allows me to optimize the content, images, coding and other files as much as possible so that I can give the fastest possible browsing experience to my visitors.

Having said that, if one day I can find or design a great responsive layout that is as fast as a separate mobile site on mobile devices, I will definitely use it.

BIG DEALS

This makes absolutely no sense.

Why would you make a separate mobile site and then have a link to the main site that is responsive that tries to squeeze the main site into a mobile version if you already have a mobile site?

The whole point of a responsive site is that you do not need a separate mobile site because it will automatically switch based on what device you are using whether a desktop, tablet or mobile phone.

The point of having a linking your mobile site to the main site is that if the user wants to have access to main site with all of the bells and whistles they can.

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bizadpros

The key thing is to determine exactly what the client is really looking for from the regular website.

Responsive sites create a quick mobile version of the desktop site...but notice I did not say "Optimized" version of the desktop site!

If the end user is not really concerned with SEO and "duplicate material" issues with Google and other search engines, a responsive site is ok, again, it will not load as fast as a true optimized mobile website.

A separate mobile site should offer a quick summary of the main website's focus, and not be a full fledged version and copy of that desktop site. People using mobile sites are - for the sack of simple words - mobile and need quick results, not a lot of links, images, flash, etc.

BIG DEALS

I agree with this

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ppc4profit

Agreed.

The start point is the client - the individual that could be creating value for you if you can meet their needs.

As has been pointed out many times in this forum the needs of mobile users and those of a desktop user are different. (It may be the same person but at different points in their day and location).

Starting with the technology platform is wrong and will lead to bad decisions. When we do this we end up in a technology discussion and the customer does not get mentioned.

Once you have focused on the customers needs and decided what you need to deliver then consider which technology is best.

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Aaron Doud

It takes into account the two groups who will be likely to visit the site from their phone.

Group 1 just wants quick info. This is often hours and or phone number. While they can likely get it from google why not offer a quick load mobile site with just the must haves for this customer.

Group 2 wants the full experience but in a mobile friendly way. They don't care if it takes longer to load because they have been to the site multiple times.

Now there are websites and businesses where only one or the other would make sense but for the vast majority it makes the most sense to do both to target both groups.

In essense the "mobile site" becomes a gateway with the quick info that many if not the majority of mobile users of the site want.

The point of a mobile site is to be fast both in loading and in finding the infomation they want. Most desktop websites even when responsive do not do either as well as a mobile site could.

BIG DEALS

Ok, I see what you are getting at...

Let me ask you this. What if the user wants to switch from the responsive mobile version to the desktop version altogether? Would the responsive theme not allow this?

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Njenyus

If the client doesn't need a revamp, then having a separate mobile site isn't terribly bad. If you are starting from scratch, you should build a responsive site. There would be no need to create two separate sites.

WillR

Not entirely true. I know when I create mobile websites for clients it's more often the norm that the content on the mobile website is quite different to the content on the regular website. It's not just about spacing and layout, it's also about the content. A mobile website should prioritize content based on the needs of a typical mobile user... those needs often being very different to the average desktop user.

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chronicleseo

Hey MoBuzz,
What is the link to the site you are referring to? I have a lot of content on my site including imagery and I haven't had any issues. What platform are you using to build the site?

Jimmy Chronicle
Spike Promotions
ADD + SEO
Atlanta Reputation Management and SEO

chronicleseo

My current site which I linked to in my original post seems to be liked by everyone I have shown it to. It is also fast both on desktop and mobile. I have tested it across iOS phones and iPads and also the full android lineup. I used Drupal for the site. Perhaps a similar layout could work for you? I will give you the information if you are interested.

Jimmy Chronicle
Spike Promotions
ADD + SEO
Atlanta Reputation Management and SEO

sbrettoncm

If you ask me, there are basically two groups of online customers.

1) Who prefers to use the main site on their mobile phones. This helps them to navigate through the different pages very easily since they are used to the main site.

2) Who are open to use a separate mobile version of the main site.

I think, since the rapid growth of smart-phones all across the globe, people have become more open to using a separate mobile version of the main site. Both mobile version of a site and the main site on a mobile has its advantages and disadvantages for online users. My personal opinion would be to go for a separate mobile version, since it loads up much faster on a mobile than the main site.

shoopt

Hey chronicleseo
Having single website with responsive design will make your work easier to manage and make changes with the content but since smart phones screen are smaller comparatively users may not be able to access all the services. Better have a mobile version of your website with informative pages. Mobile websites are good as they also loads up in lesser time.

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chronicleseo

Hey Shoopt,
Thanks for the response. I have had issues with some mobile responsive sites loading slower however not with the new platform I use. Maybe it's because I use a Droid Razr Maxx HD when I am checking it? (Very fast Verizon speeds) I guess maybe I need to get the opinions of users with iPhones or other slower mobile devices?

Jimmy Chronicle
Spike Promotions
ADD + SEO
Atlanta Reputation Management and SEO

7eclair

You should redirect to a responsive design.

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Jay Moreno

Nope there isn't, but a responsive approach isn't the answer either!

Responsive can be considered mobile ready but it is far from being mobile optimized and certainly not the silver bullet for mobile that a lot of people make it out to be.

For me using an adaptive approach is the way to go especially using WordPress
- You handle all your content in one place
- You serve a responsive theme to desktop and tablet visitors
- You serve a mobile optimized theme to mobile phone users
- You choose to serve the same content or not to both types of visitors

This is actually Google's second recommended practice over responsive design for SEO.

However Google's How To GoMo Mobile Initiative also recommends a mobile optimized site for the best end user experience and performance ie page load speeds.

For me SEO is just as important as the end user experience, you can be at the top of Google with your site but that doesn't mean that you will convert your traffic..

With an adpative approach you get both your SEO value and your mobile end user experience - this is what i have been harping on about for the longest time now

Adaptive brings together the plus points of responsive and the plus points of standalone mobile optimized sites under one solution, and eliminates the negative of both.

The only problem is there are not many readily available solutions that truly do this... WPTouch uses an adaptive approach but out of the box it falls disappointingly short. Find the right solution and its an absolute no brainer.

And WP not being suitable for mobile is nonsense providing the developer of the theme knows what they are doing. Unfortunately they are not many people or solutions out there that understand this.

End of the day use what you think is best but at least know the pros and cons of each approach. And don't be blinkered to alternative approaches you might not know what you are missing.

When everyone gets 4G LTE connections some of the mobile limitations and restrictions will obviously lift, but regardless which way you look at it a truly mobile optimized sites will always load faster and give you the best mobile end user experience over anything else. At a guess am thinking 4G LTE being the norm is a good 18 months away for most people.

HAdrian1239

I agree to some extend that responsive designs are the future... but not the near future by any stretch of the imagination.

Due to some issues with my laptop computer, which seem to be taking forever in a day to fix... for the last 3 weeks I've been using internet almost exclusively through my mobile phone...

and I would estimate still that 98 percent of web sites are not mobile optimized... 1 percent are properly optimized... and the other 1 percent have some kind of responsive design...

A responsive design that...was obviously put there with good intentions... but which quite frankly sucks, and degrades my experience.


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MiniBay

I think you need to create a seperate mobile website, Whilst the responsive websites sounds like the best way to go, all it really does is respond to the screen size of the mobile, like squeezing all the content into the small area. The only difference is the user doesnt have to scroll, up and down or left and right. But the content is still pretty hard to read. So I think you could use something like jquerymobile.com

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4webmaster

A good reason is if like me you have eyes problem that need eye glasses, I hate responsive websites, it displays smaller font sizes and pictures and awful navigation experiences.
Yes it have a kind of mobile navigation but it's not real mobile design in mind.

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Kevin Z

Responsive websites don't always convert well for the mobile experience. Time and time again we keep seeing that actual business owners prefer stand alone sites so the messaging is targeted to the user on the go.

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