Whether your website is responsive and adapts to any screen size or whether it redirects to a mobile subdomain, you need to have this setup.
2013 is drawing to a close and 2014 is almost upon us. We’re up to the iPhone 5S and the iPad Air.
More and more people are getting their hands on tablets or even phablets (phone-tablet hybrids) and we’re seeing even more mobile providers up their bandwidth privisions with 4G becomin more common.
What this means is that we’re accessing more websites, more often on more devices, in particular, devices that don’t fit conventional laptop and PC screens. It also means 2 major things for website owners:
1. your website needs to display appropriately for just about any device.
2. your content needs to be readily accessible based on user behaviour.
Point 1 is a given. Sometimes it’s easier to just create a subdomain and a small mobile website to satisfy the criteria but I firmly believe responsive design is the way forward. It future-proofs your website and means accessibility!
Point 2 is something not everyone thinks about when it comes to content for mobile users. think about your end user and the sort of information they would need if they were mobile. Now, bear in mind not everyone is always on the go when they’re using their mobile devices. But still, if you’re a restaurant, there are usually 2 key things people look for when on the go: your location and your opening hours.
I see so many restaurant websites with broken links to PDF maps, no google Maps listings and also very vague information about opening hours.
Although the data from google is slowly vanishing, it doesn’t mean you’ll know any less about your users behaviour – think about what you look for when you’re out and about!
if you’re a business like a plumber or locksmith, having your contact number prominently displayed in the page title and meta description is vital. If I need a plumber in a hurry, I need one quick. Seeing your number in the meta description clearly means I can call you quicker than if I were to click through and hunt for your number on a poorly designed website that does not render well on my phone.
It’s common sense stuff but it’s also not hard to fix. Invest in mobile, invest in your users. You will be thankful that you did. After all, it’s 2013, not 2003! (sounds weird sayin that!)
