As you will likely be aware, more and more of us use our smartphones to browse the internet than ever before. In fact, the percentage of mobile device website traffic has been steadily climbing for the last decade.
Data shows that from the start of 2015 to the start of 2025, the percentage of global mobile website traffic increased from just over 31 per cent to just over 62 per cent. That means approximately two-thirds of your customers are likely finding your site on their phones.
Therefore pharmacies that don’t consider the mobile experience when designing their websites could be missing out on drawing new customers in.
What is mobile-first web design?
As the name suggests, mobile-first web design means that a website is designed with the smaller screen of a phone in mind.
You might wonder how necessary that is if your site is already responsive. However, the difference with mobile-first design protocols is that you start with the small screen of a mobile device and scale up to a desktop rather than working the other way around.
The outcome is typically a more streamlined site that is easier to navigate regardless of the device you access it on.
From a user’s perspective, mobile-first designs ensure that the graphics all appear as intended and that menus are easily accessible via a smaller screen. Page load times are also optimised for mobile devices, which means people wait less time for your site to appear.
You might wonder why load times are important, but research conducted by Google found that if your website page takes longer than three seconds to load, over half (53 per cent) of visitors will give up.
Think about who will be searching for your pharmacy
If you’re wondering whether mobile-first web design is the right choice for your pharmacy, consider how you use your own devices. How often do you search for a store or restaurant when you’re out of your house?
When it comes to businesses that have physical premises – like pharmacies – there is a reasonable chance people will search for “pharmacy near me” when they’re out and about.
That means they’ll be using a mobile device rather than a desktop. You need your pharmacy’s web design to show these searchers, quickly and easily, where they can find you.
Similarly if people have medical questions, they will often search for answers using their mobile device, again giving your pharmacy a chance of being surfaced to your ideal audience.
However, as we’ve seen, if your site isn’t optimised for mobile browsing, there’s a good chance they’ll click away before they see what services you offer and how you can support them.
Another reason why mobile-first web design is important – and has been for a number of years – is that Google’s algorithm factors in how mobile-friendly a website is when determining what order to place them in.
This will impact where you appear on search engine results pages both on mobile devices and desktops, so it’s well worth speaking to a specialist web design firm to ensure your site is optimised for mobile use to make sure you’re not missing out on online traffic.