With the development of smart phones and tablets, the mobile web is becoming increasingly popular, and there is tons of data to show just how popular it has become. For any company, regardless of industry or market, mobile websites are crucial to online success.
As persuasive as the statistics may be, for many business owners they are just a bunch of meaningless numbers. There are many great reasons to pay attention to the mobile web, but three reasons in particular stand out.
1. Mobile traffic might have a greater impact than you thought
Most business owners don’t realise just how much of their traffic comes from mobile devices. Many people do still use PCs and laptop frequently, but more and more people use smart phones and other mobile devices to access the internet, especially on the go. As mobile technology becomes more usable, this will only increase.
If you doubt this, go check your statistics for your website. Go ahead, we’ll wait. It’s very likely that you receive more traffic from computers than mobile devices, but it is equally likely that traffic from mobile devices accounts for a significant percentage of your visitors. If your website is difficult to read on a mobile device, you may be alienating that whole section of your audience.
2. It can be critical for customer satisfaction
Customers have certain expectations of companies they do business with. This has been true through all of history and will always be true, for all industries.
As technology improves, customer expectations are changing as well. Today, customers expect to be able to comfortably read and navigate your website, regardless of what kind of technology they are using to access it.
Fail to provide a website that is easy to use on all platforms, and at best you will disappoint your customers, at worst you could drive them away and give them a negative perception of your brand.
3. Ignoring the mobile web and put you behind the competition
Today’s global neighbourhood means that companies are now able to compete with each other from across the globe instead of just across town. As a result, it is vital that you do everything possible to stay on top.
A mobile website alone won’t keep you on top, but not having one can can be devastating. Customers trying to access your non-mobile site on a mobile device will see your company as verging on outdated and could head to your competition. Now imagine the opposite situation, you have a nice sleek mobile website and your main competitor doesn’t, all else being equal, guess who gets the customer?
Regardless of your thoughts on the mobile web, a significant portion of your potential audience is using it. If you are trying to make your online presence as powerful as possible, a mobile website is crucial.
Photo: Image courtesy of Johann Larsson on Flickr