Here’s Why Mobile Optimization Is So Critical

As the internet continues to grow and evolve, it’s becoming more and more essential that we optimize our websites for 2020 and beyond. But what all does that mean? Well, the first step is making sure to play catch-up with making your website mobile friendly.

Why does mobile matter?

Over 57% of internet traffic is now mobile traffic. This means that if your brand hasn’t yet optimized your user experience online to primarily work for both desktop and mobile devices, chances are your website is underperforming — and significantly so.

In fact, it’s becoming more and more clear that only focusing on desktop versions of websites can actually cost you visitors, traffic, and conversion rates.

When you design mobile websites, they load much more quickly than their desktop counterparts, they cut out superfluous copy (that usually works well in desktop, but would destroy your mobile site aesthetic), and streamline the process based on the vertical orientation of smartphones and tablets.

You Need Both Versions of Your Site

At the end of the day, you need to be designing your online experience for both types of experiences. You need to prioritize access to your site based on your traffic. For this, Google Analytics can give you a great idea of the balance you need to strike for now.

But as the internet continues to become more and more focused on mobile, keep in mind that, regardless of your traffic now, you need to be thinking about the future.

It Isn’t Just About Mobile App Companies

Some business owners hear this and push back — their resources, products, or services aren’t actually on or for mobile devices. This is an example of missing the forest for the trees.

The fact is that when people are searching for something related to your brand, you basically have a 50/50 chance that they’ll look on mobile first. Do you want to miss out on half of your prospect traffic?

Furthermore, Google Search is continuing to optimize for mobile. You can see this in examples of location searches in Google Maps, Featured Snippets where users often get their answers without a single click, and so many other options.

When it comes down to it, your mobile users might come from social media, Google, YouTube — pretty much anywhere people have previously come from on desktop.

As the world evolves, so too must our tactics.

How Do I Design For Mobile Phones?

First, remember that with mobile, your “canvas” is a small screen. This means that your images have to be very focused and your copy has to be short, sweet, and to the point. You can worry about longer pieces for other contexts, but in terms of getting people to your site, make sure that you have considered this.

It needs to be intuitive. This basically means that best practices are what you should be focused on. Clear calls-to-action, contrasting color schemes, and imagery that will elicit an emotional response that the user can empathize with.

In fact, it’s becoming more and more evident that the ideal strategy is to first optimize your website for mobile, and then expand it for desktop browsers. This way, you have that base covered first, as opposed to taking a more complicated desktop version and trying to optimize that into a more simple user experience.

If you have more questions, or would like to talk to someone about what your business can do with mobile, reach out and we can help!