Sandra was visiting Tulsa Ohio with a friend and they were out shopping till lunchtime. Her friend was a strict vegetarian and they wanted to find a nearby vegetarian restaurant where they could have lunch. She took out her mobile phone and using MapQuest's mobile web site she clicked the 'find places' link, typed 'vegetarian restaurants' along with local zip code and clicked Go. Voila! Within seconds, she got a list of 'vegetarian restaurants' sorted by distance. They could choose one, view a map and get directions to get there. They could even call up the place and ask what was on the menu before they set out! That's the magic of mobile search, something that was unthinkable a few years ago.
Mobile usage and mobile web browsing is advancing by leaps and bounds. An IDC (International Data Corporation) research report indicates that mobile internet usage will surpass PC web browsing by 2015. Mobile searches usually happen on the go, at home, or at work. According to new research reports from Google and Nielsen, 55% of the conversions (in the form of a store visit, phone call, or purchase) happen within an hour. All this explains why it is so important for a business to see seen on mobile search. The solution, as everybody knows, lies in mobile
website design.
If your site doesn't look as great on a mobile device as it looks on a desktop computer, it means that you are missing out on leads, traffic and sales opportunities. Having the right kind of mobile web design can help in improving customer response and giving you a competitive edge.
Tips for Successful Design of Mobile Website
Here are some important features of good mobile website design:
Design from User's Point of View: - The design would be useful from the user's point of view. Variables such as speed, content, page layout, and size are identified and a simple and user friendly design is created.
Defining Content Stacking Strategy: - Displaying proper content with changing screen sizes (of smart phones) is essential. Prioritizing important content in the most visible areas will help in developing an appealing website.
Less Navigation Time: - Every webpage visitor, would like to locate the required information within seconds. Making navigation as swift as possible is one of the determining factors of a quality mobile webpage design.
Less Loading Time: - Website performances can directly affect shopping behavior. Studies reveal that 47% of the customers expect a website to be loaded between 2-3 seconds. Forty percentage customers abandoned a website that took more than 3 seconds to load. Also, one second delay in page response can result in 7% reduction of conversions and every 100ms increase in load time decreases sales by 1%. These facts explain why page loading time is an important factor in design.
Technical Factors to Consider
- Designing should be with fluid layout and minimum width of 320px
- High resolution images should be included for iPhone 4 retina display
- Auto-scaling should be turned off
- Usage of CSS3 in place of images, for shadows, rounded corners and gradients, can help reduce load time
- Create icons for your site
Clickable Elements Should be Big Enough to be Used by Fingertip
Mobile visitors often make use of their fingertips on their touch screens. Avoid making them feel the need of having sharp fingertips just for the sake of clicking on your website buttons.
Simplified design that streamlines navigation and layout is users they expect. It's best rely on professional website design services. The expert web designers in a reliable firm can help you create a mobile-friendly,
smart phone compatible version of your website. With the right mobile friendly website design, you are guaranteed an increase in targeted traffic and more conversions.
