Ready or not, the mobile web will surpass desktop in less than three years. As users flock to new devices and capabilities, businesses are racing to meet a whole new set of needs and expectations. And mobile is proving to be a boon to businesses that are quick on the uptake.
Leveraging the platform
It may well be the Year of Mobile, but it’s also the Year of Budget. Fortunately, mobile is shaping up to be an extremely cost-effective channel for expanding the reach of your brand and driving some serious sales.
For starters, consider the inherent characteristics of the mobile platform:
- Sophistication. Mobile phones are getting better operating systems and longer battery life. Other devices—the iPad, for example—will follow suit in their race to center stage. Whatever the latest device, people are ready and eager to adopt.
- Applications. Sleek, user-friendly apps are giving users familiar interface cues. No more clunky WAP-based sites.
- Instant access. High-speed networks are bringing online interaction to life everywhere. Not to mention that, these days, you can find a Wi-Fi hotspot pretty much anywhere you go.
- Location. Location-awareness is becoming the gold standard for mobile devices, and users are embracing its capabilities at breakneck speed.
As rapid-fire innovations and sweeping user adoption continue, the mobile space will bring you closer than ever to your customers. You’ll soon be able to reach your customers wherever they are, and—perhaps most importantly—you’ll be reaching them through their preferred channels.
Entering the arena
You’re ready to go mobile, and there’s certainly no shortage of solutions and opportunities at your disposal. So where do you start? Your website. It’s the first touch point most people have with your business. Here are three smart things to think about as you enter the mobile space:
- Optimize your website.
Does your business card have a website address on it that isn’t optimized for a mobile phone? 68% of mobile-phone subscribers have used their phones to locate a business. An optimized site will make it easy for these people to find you.
- Pare it down.
Mobile internet is a whole different animal than conventional wireless internet. Literally translating your conventional website for the mobile world won’t gain you any significant usage and conversions. You may have to rethink the whole design, content, and user experience.For instance, think about the resolution on a typical computer. It’s usually somewhere around 1280×1024 pixels, and your website probably looks great on these monitors. But most mobile users are viewing your website at 320×480 pixels. Try squeezing your conventional website onto a screen that small—and still successfully communicating the most important aspects of your business while you’re at it.
- Meet the right needs.
Let’s elaborate a bit on content. Mobile users have different needs than conventional internet users—they are on the go, are short on time, and have even shorter attention spans. Make sure your content caters to them. Give them the exact information they’re looking for, quickly and efficiently.
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