Responsive Web Design vs. HTML5

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When discussing the different options when it comes to building a mobile website, two different things usually come up; responsive web design and HTML5. Both of these methods help to optimize your existing website so that it is easily viewable on mobile devices without the hassle of pinching, sliding, scrolling, and zooming in and out. They are both viable options depending on what it is that you want to accomplish. However, if you are not yet familiar with mobile marketing and all that it has to offer, you can easily confuse the two. Here, we will give you a basic rundown of what each type of technology offers and let you decide which method in the responsive web design vs. HTML5 debate is best for you and your company.

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What is HTML5?

HTML is a coding language that most people use to build websites. In fact, if you already have a website, you have probably already dabbled in HTML coding a bit. If you didn’t personally, then you probably hired a developer to do it for you. As time has passed, HTML has been modified and has experienced a lot of new developments, features, and elements. HTML5 is the 5th revision of HTML and has simplified a lot of things while also bringing several new features onboard such as the ability to handle media files straight out of the code.

What is Responsive Web Design?

HTML has been around since 2007, but responsive web design surfaced more recently in 2010 when it became apparent that there was a need to display websites across multiple different sizes of devices. Since the number of screen sizes started to quickly expand with the arrival of smartphones, tablets, and other mobile screens, web developers realized that they would not be able to keep up with this ever expanding pool of screens, so they developed a set of design principles that allowed any website to be displayed perfectly on any size screen. These design principles are known as responsive web design.

Responsive Web Design vs. HTML5

HTML5 is a specific technology, or a set of technologies that you use to make your mobile website function. On the other hand, responsive web design is a general approach, or set of principles, that determine how a particular website should be in order to be fully functional across all screen sizes. Their similarities lie in the fact that both are completely independent from any type of platform and both require development that is directed towards the browser. You can use any operating system, platform, or device for either. The only thing that is required is that you have a working compatible browser.

Things become confusing because this is not necessarily a “one or the other” type of thing. If you are building an all out website design, you will need to use HTML5. If you already have a website but are trying to simplify it for mobile, responsive web design will probably be your best choice. These two things are not interchangeable either. It is possible to use HTML5 with app development. This means you can use HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to create a mobile app. However, you can still create a responsive website using xHTML or HTML4.

html5-web-applications-by-ewaycorp

It’s also important to keep in mind that responsive web design is generally directed towards smartphone users. It’s great for making all elements flexible such as pages, layout, and imagery load perfectly on all screens including Android phones, iPhones, Windows phones, Apple and Android tablets, and other mobile devices that have the ability to access the internet. However, mobile broadband can be a bit slower than WiFi, so the load times for responsive design could be a bit slower than normal when out in public as opposed to being at home.

HTML5 on the other hand is a much lighter type of coding, especially when you pair it with CSS3 and other similar technologies. The simpler code allows for faster loading times even on slower internet connections. HTML5 can also make it much easier to add forms on your mobile website without having to use clunky and complicated coding. All you need to do is add the appropriate input elements. Along with this, HTML5 also gives you the ability to easily add videos, audio, and other forms of media to your mobile site. Smartphones have evolved to the point where they can now handle Flash, but HTML5 now allows you to simply embed the media right into the code without any need for plugins or additional software.

Verdict

When it comes down to it, there really isn’t necessarily a better option when it comes to responsive web design vs. HTML5. It really all depends on what you want to accomplish with your mobile website and how your end users tend to behave when browsing your website on their mobile devices. Both methods have their benefits and both methods have aspects that could be improved, but the decision ultimately comes down to what type of experience you want to deliver to your end users.

Mobile Marketing Trends & Ideas for Small Business

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Mobile Marketing on the Rise

A recent report shows that Mobile Marketing is increasingly being adopted by small business. It is for this reason that our company is experiencing incredible growth as marketing companies and consultants are seeking to quickly become Mobile Marketing Experts. They want to provide strategy, software and campaign support to the small businesses that rely on them for marketing and advertising guidance.

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There are many ways a small business can increase traffic and sales using the mobile channel. These include SMS Marketing, QR Codes, Mobile Web Sites, Mobile Coupons, Apps and more. Each one brings it’s own unique benefits and challenges but together they create a mobile strategy that if tied to Social Media strategy is a very, very lucrative endevour.

“SMS Mobile Marketing” began trending in only February 2007 and has has seen a sharp increase in demand since then!

Saying that SMS is the workhorse of mobile marketing, a title from a recent blog post, is entirely true.  At the core of every small business mobile strategy should be SMS.  A mobile strategy without text message marketing is like a social media campaign without a “LIKE” or “FOLLOW” button – Pretty useless!

Consumer mobile coupon use is also on the rise.  People WANT to use their phones as coupons.  People WANT to scan QR CODES and see ‘what’s on the other side”, and those same people EXPECT your website to be mobile friendly when they visit it on their smartphone. For these reasons, it is no surprise that Mobile Couponing and Developing Mobile Web Sites are on the top of the “to-do” list at most small businesses. People love convenience and most smartphone users would prefer coupons and offers at their fingertips, on a device that is constantly on their persons, rather than in a binder or an envelope that commonly gets forgotten on the kitchen counter.

Today, the buyer has the power.

It is the power of selective consumption and the power of data driven decision.  This power comes through the convergence of Social Media, Search Engines and Mobile Technology.  Small businesses need to get found and convert mobile customers.  Once they are customers, good customer service will make them “fans” of the business.  You know, that old 80/20 rule, where 80% of your business comes from 20% of your customers.  Those customers in the 20% are your “fans”.  They are the ones that will like you on Facebook, follow you on Twitter or subscribe to your SMS Keyword by texting it to a short code. These fans are loyalist and they love to be rewarded for their loyalty. And along with loyalty, they also offer word-of-mouth references to others who are looking for services or products like the ones your company offers. Once you prove yourself to one customer, you’re opening the door for them to pass your name along to their friends and family. How many times have you found an app you really like and when you hear someone else mention needing something like it, you give your personal testimony about the app and then they download it for themselves?

Not only do you want to GET followers, likes and fans, but you want to GIVE them something as well. Having mobile rewards programs, mobile coupons, SMS vouchers for FREE gifts, and other CRMs are all great ways to keep your top customers engaged and in love with your marketing.

So by opening your company up to Mobile Marketing, you are able to draw in more customers, who then use your products and services, spread the positive feedback and attract more customers. You’re giving customers what they want – easy access to your companies website, rewards and convenience at their fingertips! What are you waiting for? Join the movement and get started with mobile marketing today!

What is the difference between Adaptive, Reactive and HTML5 Mobile Sites?

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When you finally decide to take your company website mobile, there are three types of mobile websites to choose from. There are adaptive mobile sites, reactive mobile sites, and HTML5 mobile sites. All of these are responsive web designs which are built to provide the most favorable viewing experience possible for the end user. They provide the user with easy reading and navigation of the site on mobile devices while reducing the need to resize, pan, slide, and scroll while visiting you site.

The first type of mobile site is the responsive design. Responsive design is the use of media queries to serve different Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), allowing the site to change its appearance when viewed on different size screens. This can be accomplished with just plain HTML5 and CSS.

The second type of mobile site is the adaptive design. Adaptive design includes the CSS media queries of responsive design, but it adds Javascript based enhancements to change the site’s HTML markup based off the capabilities of the device. This is also called “progressive enhancement.”

An HTML5 mobile site, or HTML5 web app, is essentially a mobile website created in HTML5 using Jquery. The end result is a mobile site that looks like a native app, functions like a native app, and can even be saved to a smart phone with a Favicon on the home screen just like a native app, much like Facebook or Twitter.

Some say the HTML5 mobile web app could be the death of native apps. This is in large part due to the availability of 3G, 4G, and Wifi networks with high bandwidth and fast smart phone processors.

All these different types of sites are basically the same when seeing them from the point of view of the end user. The differences lie in the way they are set up and how they adapt or respond to each particular mobile device. With so many people today using smart phones, tablets, and mobile devices in general, it has become imperative for companies to go mobile, and these sites are the three best ways to do it.

For more information regarding adaptive, responsive, and HTML5 mobile sites, visit anchormobile.net.

Mobile Browser Detection: How Does It Work?

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Mobile browser detection and redirect is a way to allow people to visit your website via mobile, without having to suffer through the usual hassle of blowing up the screen, pinching it, sliding it up, down, or side to side. Oftentimes when people visit a mobile site, they get frustrated because the ease of getting around the site is basically non-existent. This results in people leaving your site before actually getting into the meat and potatoes of it. If you install mobile browser detection and redirect, a service offered by yours truly, AnchorMobile, you will start to keep customers on your site, for longer periods of time, and ultimately increase sales through better customer experience.

In its simplest terms, mobile browser detection is a type of software you install on your website that recognizes when mobile devices are trying to access it. Once the device is recognized, the software will then redirect the end user to a dedicated mobile site, or adjust the format of the website to fit the end user’s device. Note the fact that it doesn’t matter what type of mobile device it is; it can be a smart phone, a tablet, portable digital assistant, or a portable media player. The software can recognize all these devices and make it significantly easier for users and potential customers to navigate your site via mobile.

Along with the software mentioned above, browser sniffing is a technique used in this
software that determines the type of browser the visitor is using. This determination
allows the software to send browser-appropriate content to the user. The purpose of this
is to avoid incongruity between different browsers such as the interpretation of HTML,
Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), and Document Object Model (DOM).

This software is important for a number of reasons. The first, and probably most
shocking, fact about websites is that only 10 percent of them are mobile friendly. That
means 90 percent of the websites you visit via your mobile device is going to be difficult
to navigate. That’s a lot of lost business due to a simple problem that can simply be fixed
using this software. Everyone today owns some sort of a mobile device. Making your website mobile friendly should be your top marketing priority followed by creating a complete mobile strategy that fits in with your other marketing and advertising methods.

How To Price Mobile Web Sites for Maximum Profits

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It’s up to you whether you’re using an Enterprise Mobile Site tool to crank out sites, or you’re coding them by hand.

If you are using a tool like ours that has no activation fee, and just a low monthly fee of $8 per HTML5 mobile site, then you will want to price a low activation fee of $200-$400 up front and a monthly fee for the HOSTING and CMS that is more than the $8 you will pay each month.

So a good example is $299 for design and coding, followed by $19.95 per month for CMS and hosting. Using this model, your first 12-month cost for this package is $96 and your gross sales for this same time period is $538.40.

That means you have earned a profit margin of over 560%! Talk about maximum profits!

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If you are coding them by hand using a template that you have previously created, it should take no longer than 6-8 hours to create the HTML5 Mobile Site. It also takes NO SKILL! If you are using a template, a lower-level, $9/hr employee or intern can do the heavy lifting with just a little training, Dreamweaver, and an FTP Client.

In this case, you can choose to sell the source code of the site as a one-time venture, starting at $500 (Duda Mobile backed by Google charges $499, so they set the market).

However, if you can upsell to the client with more bells and whistles that help achieve the goal of the mobile strategy that you help them create, you can charge MUCH MORE. Let’s say you get $800 for the project, your intern does the work at $9/hr and the project takes 6 hours. Your total cost is $54, and your profit margin is over 1400%!

Think you can live with that?