Are You Visible on the (Mobile) Web?
The primary ways of accessing the Internet are changing. Now that large, wide-screen, flat panel, high resolution monitors are affordable and easily available, they’re being abandoned for tiny screens on mobile phones. Exactly why so many of us would choose to access a website on a screen the size of a playing card (while attempting to walk down a sidewalk at the same time, no less) can be bewildering, but there is no denying the “mobile revolution” has gained critical mass.
The stronger your online presence, the more people there are looking at your website or newsletter or blog on a mobile device. Do you have any idea how it looks?
If not, go ahead and try it out. It’s usually not very pretty.
The bad news is that all of the attention, effort and resources you’ve poured into your website, newsletter, blog, e-commerce site, etc. amounts to almost nothing on a mobile device. Load times are so long and screen sizes are so strange that only the most determined mobile browser will be able to find the information they’re looking for.
The solution? Start providing mobile alternatives.
Making websites mobile friendly isn’t nearly as intimidating as it seems. Mobile screens demand a minimalist approach, meaning only the most critical information on your site(s) should come into the mobile site(s). Anything critical for a browser in the moment or on the go should be prioritized: location and directions, contact information, hours, what you offer.
Websites can be easily configured to recognize that a visitor is using a mobile device and deliver the mobile site instead of the normal one. Visit a site like cnn.com or espn.com on a PC and then on a mobile phone to see how this works.
A small amount of effort and a little time with a designer/developer can produce a highly functional site that will pleasantly surprise your mobile browsers.
After your website is ready, consider “mobilizing” some of your other online assets.
1. What does your newsletter look like when opened on a mobile phone?
2. Does your blog have an easy mobile format? (For some good examples of design, the gawker.com network does a great job of mobile blogs.)
3. Can your e-commerce site deliver a streamlined mobile buying experience?
4. Are your employees’ company web applications accessible on mobile phones (webmail, CRM, intranet, etc.)? Can this experience be improved?
There probably isn’t a near-term ROI for all of these projects. There’s a need to understand your customer base and target market and what opportunities are being missed. But mobile access is a growing trend, and more and more web browsing will be occurring on those tiny mobile screens. It’s better to be ahead of the curve than to be caught way behind it.
Have you had good or bad experiences “mobilizing” a website or online asset? Do you have ideas on a where mobile sites are particularly effective or ineffective? Share your thoughts below.
