Creating a mobile website is the first step in developing a mobile strategy. It’s an inexpensive solution to ensuring you can provide an optimal mobile web experience for your customers. Think of your own daily routine. How often do you search for a nearby business, restaurant or shop? Having a strong mobile presence helps you get in front of customers in the moment they are looking for your business.
Here’s ten good reasons you should go mobile today:
1. Incredible Growth
According to Google, Australia has the second-highest smart phone penetration in the world.
Based on current trends, mobile internet use will surpass desktop use in the next few years. You may have a great website already, but if it isn’t mobile-ready, you stand to lose a large audience.
While consumers are readily embracing the mobile revolution, the same can’t be said for businesses. Google estimates 80% of Australian businesses don’t have mobile-friendly websites.
2. The Trend is Mobile
Have a look up from your mobile screen on your next bus or train journey into work and look at what the majority of passengers are doing, yes that’s right the same as you – eyes fixed on the small screen in their hands. Stop by the mall, or go anywhere near a high school and you’ll encounter the most recent evolution of the human race. Mobile devices are now interwoven into the fabric of our daily lives and people are searching for your business, information, products, sharing content and even talking on them!
In case you haven’t been keeping up with the latest stats: mobile is growing like crazy. While analysts have predicted for years that mobile will be “the next big thing,” their prophecies are finally coming true in a very big way.
3. New Opportunities
This isn’t just an opportunity to create a mobile version of your web product; it’s an opportunity to provide an improved overall experience for your customers.
Forget the restrictions of your handset screen size or the software loaded on your tablet. That is thinking about mobile as a medium. Think instead about mobile as providing uniquely personal, always-connected and location-sensitive access to any content and communications, on any format.
Of perhaps the greatest significance are the personalisation opportunities. With mobile, access is customised by time (of day, week or season), by location and by individual. With mobile, we can always recognise existing customers and leverage their history to provide distinctive and personalised content, experiences and offers.
4. Mobile First
Designing for mobile first not only prepares you for the explosive growth and new opportunities on the mobile internet, it forces you to focus and enables you to innovate in ways you previously couldn’t.
Some of the biggest web companies in the world are adopting a mobile first design philosophy as well. Google Chairman Eric Schmidt advises: “The simple guideline is whatever you are doing—do mobile first,”
If your website doesn’t look good on a smartphone users will move on to one that does. A mobile website ensures that you – not your competitors – capture visitor attention while you have it.
5. Customers Take Action
According to mobile research, people have more trust and confidence in buying from a handheld device over their desktop computer, likely due to associating desktops with malware and other threats.
Nine out of ten customers have taken action as a result of a mobile search, with 77% calling or visiting a business. Mobile searches often have more “intent” than desktop searches.
6. Direct Customers to your Business
Location is especially relevant to mobile users, and smart mobile marketing can increase foot traffic to your store or business. If you have a retail storefront, direct prospective customers to your store with directions and a map.
Hyperlocal ads can also show distance information within the ad, alerting customers to how close they are to your business.
7. Reach your Audience On-The-Go
Being there for your customer on every device means being able to help them interact with y our company at all times. If you don’t have a mobile website, your customers can only view your website when they are in front of their desktop.
In our busy lives think how much you are on-the- go? Mobile websites are a great way to provide directions for customers to find you easily, contact information, menus, product listings and more.
8. Twitter, Facebook and other Social Media Tools
Often come pre-installed on some mobile devices. These tools allow users to share content and links with their friends and communities and these links often lead users back to your website.
How does your website look today on a mobile phone? You need to be prepared for users to be navigating to your website via their mobile device.
9. Be Found in Mobile Search
Everyone seems to live a fast-paced life nowadays, depending on their mobile devices to get information. What’s more, they expect it instantly.
Google, Bing and Yahoo each index mobile and mobile-compatible sites separately from non-mobile sites and are investing heavily in developing faster and better tools for mobile search to meet this demand.
After social networking, searching is the second thing mobile internet users do the most with their mobile web browsers. The earlier you adopt new technologies, the more time you have to build high rankings and secure a highly visible position.
10. Mobile Websites are Cost-Effective
Money is usually the obstacle in diving into any web project but your internet presence is the single most important investment you can make in getting yourself noticed. In most cases, mobile websites are inexpensive and much easier to develop than your desktop site.
Paul Coleman is the founder of Fuse Mobile, a full service mobile marketing agency. They help their clients to best understand how to connect and engage with their customers t hrough mobile devices to drive actions, brand awareness and increase revenue. Visit http://www.fusemobile.com.au
