If you visit a website on your mobile device that is not optimized for mobile users, you will notice quickly that something is awry. You may find the page slow to load (if it loads at all), or you may get frustrated by the page shift as it loads, and you try to click the menu before it jumps over. Then, you might inadvertently click on an advertisement you have no interest in and must return to the previous page and wait again for it to load. By this point, you’ve probably had enough. You realize hundreds of other sites offer the same service, all of which probably have better interfaces than the outdated site you’re now leaving.
Deliver a Websites That Is Usable
It is crucial to have a mobile-friendly website because navigating a non-mobile site is frustrating, not to mention unattractive and inconvenient. This is just one reason why a mobile-friendly website is an important part of any company’s digital marketing plan.
Allow for Brand Engagement Across Multiple Devices
Every day, more internet users access the web from their mobile devices. While laptops and desktop computer users account for significant online traffic, not everyone has a computer. But most everyone has a mobile device. Therefore, it would make sense for any website to be optimized for mobile use to accommodate more users. Plus, engagement with a brand across multiple devices is ideal for user interaction. Users can visit a site from their PC at the office and seamlessly check the same site on their mobile device from home later that night, so they never even notice the difference.
Build Brand Loyalty and Increase Customer Retention
When a company becomes the go-to brand for a customer, trust has been established. When a consumer believes in a product, they start selling it to their friends and family in everyday conversation. The bottom line is that users will go to sites that are easier to use and take less time to navigate and return to them. This helps garner long-term client relationships and increases customer retention by building brand loyalty, a valuable commodity in today’s market. Consumers see websites that adjust to meet their needs as adaptable and current. It signals that a company is paying attention to the customer’s needs and delivering what they want.
Boost Sales and Conversions
The most important reason to have a mobile-friendly website is the fundamental reason why most websites exist: money. When users go online, they take their business with them. Quite simply, the easier it is for a consumer to access a product, the more likely they are to buy it. Thus, accessibility boosts sales and conversions.
Meet Google’s Standards
If the previous reasons didn’t convince you that mobile-friendliness is an important attribute for a company’s web presence, it might help to know that Google prioritizes mobile-friendly websites in search engine results. Google is all about appealing to and making the user comfortable, so it makes sense that they aren’t going to list outdated content and websites. Google not only promotes sites that provide the most relevant information but ones that also represent the best use of the user’s time and efforts.
Below are a few digital marketing solutions and tips for easy mobile optimization of your website that anyone can implement. Even if your site is already mobile-friendly, keep reading. You may find a way to enhance the customer experience of your website even more.
- Most sites can be easily optimized for use on mobile devices by simply installing a free plug-in that adjusts the website for mobile use. Just download, install, and enable the plug-in via your site’s hosting platform.
- Once enabled, do a few launch tests on both Android and iOS devices to ensure the mobile experience is, in fact, user-friendly and everything on your site works as it is intended to.
- Use Google’s free tool to evaluate your site for mobile optimization. This service will also provide tips and suggestions to improve areas where your site’s usability is lacking for mobile users.
- Periodically check your site for functionality by launching it from different devices and browsers. If it’s slow to respond, you may have unnecessarily large image files that take too long to load. Install a file minimizer plug-in on your site that will automatically reduce the file size of all your site’s images, allowing for a much faster load time. This will also reduce the amount of storage and memory your site needs to run.
- Uninstall plug-ins and themes you are not using on your website. Anything you can minimize will ultimately improve site load time.
- Use HTML5 instead of Flash.
- Allow caching by permitting browsers to cache your site’s content, including text, images, HTML, JavaScript, CSS, etc. When users visit your site multiple times, they won’t have to wait for your site to communicate all this information to their device repeatedly each time they log on.
By following the fundamental basics of mobile-friendly web design, you can boost sales, improve search rankings, enhance user experience, and establish brand loyalty. With your website’s best interests in mind, there is no reason not to optimize your website to be mobile-friendly.
