Mobile Websites

More and more people are using smartphones to access websites these days!
Increased mobile use brings challenges & opportunities for businesses.
Is your business accessible to mobile users?

What do mobile users do online?

A a lot of people access the internet from their mobiles for social activities
(installing applications, uploading images, watching videos etc, interacting with friends on Facebook etc) but a significant proportion also use mobiles when looking for information - and that includes looking for information about products and services, business locations etc.

From a cross section of our client stats sampled in August 2011, the number of website visits made on a mobile ranged from 4% to a whopping 15% - that's right, 15 out of every 100 users of a business website, used a mobile phone to do it!

Do your website visitors use mobile devices?

It’s worth finding out what % of your site visitors use mobiles. Your website statistics should help - for example if you have Google Analytics installed, go to:
visitors/mobile/mobile devices
and you'll be able to see what % of your website visitors use mobiles and whether this is increasing or not.

Usability hurdles for mobile users

The most obvious problem are that mobile screen sizes are much smaller than the desktop screen which your website was probably designed for, so your text may appear very small.
Also because connection speeds are slower, your images can take a long time to load - and most mobile users want to do thing quickly.
Navigation can be difficult too - if you have a smartphone yourself, you'll know how difficult it can be to activate links by tapping on a very small area of the screen. And if the website has a lot of pages in a complex structure, it can be hard to find your way around
You may have functionality on your website (e.g. flash images) which will not display on mobiles at all.

So potential customers using mobiles may not be able to use your website.

Do you need a mobile friendly website?

If your website is small and simple you may not need to do anything.

However, when people view your website on a mobile device, it's because they are looking for information or want to do something, so a modified version of your website which enables them to do that (and doesn't present information which is unlikely to be used by a mobile user) makes sense doesn't it?

We recommend a simplified version of your website, with browser detection script, which identifies which type of device a visitor is using and automatically display the appropriate version of the site to them.

Mobile websites and mobile marketing from WSI

Before creating a mobile website for you, we will assess:

• whether you really need one at the moment
• what information should be included
• what are the most important aspects (these should be the easiest to find)

Then we'll build a mobile website based on a clear set of guidelines, e.g.

• Simple navigation, with links and other clickable elements which are big enough to tap with a fingertip.
• Simple page layouts which scroll up and down only - no need to scroll from side to side (hard to do on a mobile)
• Images optimised for faster loading times
• No pop-ups or new windows, which can confuse a mobile user
• Clear calls to action and easy ways to make contact with you

Does your business need a mobile friendly website? We can help you to decide. 
Ask for a free mobile website consultation - and talk to us about the opportunities for mobile marketing for your business, too! 

>> According to a recent report by the Office for National Statistics, more than 70 percent of people aged between 16 and 24 used their mobile phones to go online.

>> Google’s research on smartphone users said that:
59% use the mobile Internet while waiting (e.g. for a bus)
48% use while eating
44% report use when shopping

>> 45 % of UK internet users (17.6 million people) use a handset for access

>> 70% of 16-24 year olds use a mobile phone to go online