Is your website responding to the mobile revolution?
Why do I need a mobile-friendly website?
Having a website is pretty much essential for any business these days. Not only does it allow customers to find out more about your products and services and easily get in touch, it also provides a sense of trust and reliability.
However, it’s not enough to simply build a website and then ignore it. You need to regularly update your site to ensure that it functions correctly to give your visitors the best possible user experience.
If you’ve had your website for a long time, or you’re just setting one up now for a new business, there’s one thing in particular that you need to pay attention to: Is your website mobile friendly?
What is a mobile-friendly website?
A mobile-friendly website is exactly what it sounds like: a website that displays well and is easy to use on mobile devices. Over 50% of all web traffic now comes from mobile devices, so it’s absolutely crucial that your website caters to these visitors.
You might not realise it, but a mobile user’s browsing experience is quite different from that of a desktop user. Factoring in smaller screens, touchscreen functionality and the on-the-go nature of the browsing session, the needs of a mobile user are subtly different.
Catering to the needs of your mobile visitors is a great way to maximise the potential of this significant portion of your website traffic.
What happened to mobile sites?
While separate mobile sites were the solution for a while, they were often clunky, stripped-down versions that weren’t particularly appealing.
It’s now standard practice to create a responsive website where a single design is able to adapt to the device it is being viewed on. This is a much quicker and more cost-effective solution than creating two different versions.
It also means that you only need to update a single site with new information, saving you time and potentially costly mistakes.
What makes a website mobile friendly?
So what does being mobile friendly actually look like? Here are some of the key considerations:
- Quick page load times
- Minimal use of pop-ups, pop-overs and adverts
- Placing the most important information at the top of the page
- Full-width design to avoid scrolling left and right
- Text that can be easily read on a small screen
- Large buttons for touchscreen use
These are some general pointers, but there are near endless ways to optimise your website for mobiles.
With the continual development of smartphone technology, it’s important to keep on top of your website to ensure that you always offer a smooth user experience for mobile visitors.
Ketchup’s web team has been designing mobile-friendly sites for years, and we ensure that each one looks great and functions seamlessly on mobile devices.
Just in case we haven’t convinced you yet, here are 10 reasons why a mobile-friendly website is absolutely crucial for your business.
1. People have short attention spans
When people have immediate needs, they don’t open a laptop or switch on a desktop computer; they grab their phone from their pocket to fulfil the need as quickly as possible.
Have you ever clicked on a website, found that it took ages to load and then simply clicked back, only to never visit that website again? We’ve all done it—and your customers are no exception.
Websites that aren’t mobile friendly often take longer to load. They may contain large images, animations, or complex designs that can be too much for devices that are often using mobile data.
53% of visits are abandoned if a website takes longer than 3 seconds to load on a mobile device. Think about that for a moment. 3 seconds. If your site takes longer than that to load, you could be missing out on more than half of your mobile traffic.
Our attention span is about 8 seconds, so people won’t stick around and wait—especially if a visitor has just found your company on Google and has no knowledge of, or attachment to, it. There is always another website they can visit.
2. Cater to your key demographic
As a business owner, you’ll likely have some insight into your key demographics.
You might know the age, income and even hobbies of your average customer, all of which can help you to tailor your services accordingly and increase your revenue. Mobile or desktop browsing preference is another defining factor of your demographic that should be taken into account.
100% of those aged 16–24 and 97% of those aged 25–34 accessed the internet via a mobile phone in Great Britain in 2019. If your ideal customer falls within this age range, a great mobile experience is essential.
Furthermore, if the majority of your website’s internet traffic comes from mobile devices, regardless of demographic, you should focus on providing an exceptional mobile browsing experience.
Mobile traffic has increased 222% in the last 7 years and, with 5G internet on the horizon, this statistic is almost certain to increase.
3. Build trust with visitors
Your website might be the first point of contact for your business, so it’s important to make a good impression straight away. If it isn't suited for mobile browsing, this can make your business look unprofessional and outdated.
This immediately impacts the level of trust. If your website performs badly and is hard to use, a user may presume that your customer service mirrors this. People often view multiple websites when deciding where to purchase from, and it’s extremely likely that your competitors will have mobile-compatible websites. A site that isn’t mobile friendly could be sending customers directly to your competitors.
Even those who predominantly use your website on a desktop or laptop computer are likely to view it on mobile at some point. While they may have had a positive experience previously, a negative mobile experience may cloud their overall judgement.
4. More cost effective than developing an app
Creating an app for your business may seem like the most modern and user-friendly way to cater to mobile users, but app production is not cheap.
The cost of making a simple app can be anywhere from £10,000 to £40,000, while a complex app with multiple functions can cost well over £100,000.
On the other hand, a responsive website that is tailored to mobile devices is not expensive at all, especially as it means that you only need to create, maintain and update a single design. At Ketchup, we always opt for mobile-first production as part of our standard web design procedure.
5. Mobile shopping has taken over
There’s a common misconception that customers browse on mobiles but only commit to spending money on a laptop or desktop computer. However, this is not the case. Last year in the UK, 43% of people made purchases on mobile devices.
With the rise of digital wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, making a purchase on your phone is extremely convenient. These platforms offer secure, instantaneous purchasing without the need to hunt down a debit card and type in a series of long numbers.
Coupled with the on-the-go nature of mobile browsing and the improved strength and availability of mobile data and wireless internet, this makes impulse purchases much easier.
Once a customer is on your site, you should make it as easy as possible for them to make a purchase. If your website is selling any kind of product, it needs to be mobile friendly to avoid alienating potential customers.
6. Mobile friendliness is a major Google ranking factor
Google’s 2015 update, affectionately referred to as Mobilegeddon, made mobile friendliness a major ranking factor within their search engine.
This was more than a simple algorithm update; it was a major cultural shift. Since mobile web browsing had become commonplace, Google chose to make mobile usability a significant factor in how a website ranks to improve user experience.
In short, you probably won’t appear at the top of a Google search on a mobile device if your website is not mobile friendly. Competitors with websites that are highly optimised for mobile traffic will likely take those top spots instead and appear above you in search results.
If you’ve invested any time and money into your SEO (search engine optimisation), it’s vital not to waste these efforts by neglecting your mobile traffic. Websites that aren’t mobile friendly may even be tagged as such in Google search results, which can put off potential visitors.
7. Customers can contact you instantly
When browsing a site on a desktop or laptop computer, a customer has to pick up (or even find!) their phone and type in your number before they can call you.
That short attention span comes into play again here. It’s easy for people to get distracted by a notification when they pick up their smartphone and forget to make the call, or to mis-type the number and get frustrated. Once a customer’s interest has been piqued enough that they want to get in touch, you shouldn’t let anything get in the way.
Customers visiting your site on a mobile can easily copy and paste a phone number into their keypad, or use a tap-to-call number to contact you with a single touch. By making the browsing experience as smooth as possible on mobile devices, you can take advantage of these instantaneous interactions.
8. Gain repeat visitors
Intuitive and aesthetically pleasing websites are more likely to receive repeat visitors, and the mobile browsing experience is key to the usability of your site. A person is far more likely to return to a website that they enjoyed using.
It’s no secret that people are addicted to their phones. They spark a little release of the feel-good chemical dopamine when we receive a new notification or get a high score on our favourite game, or view a cute animal video.
A pleasant browsing and purchasing experience makes a person feel good. If it’s easy and convenient for them to find and purchase what they want from your website, it’s highly likely that they'll come back the next time they need to make a similar purchase.
9. Potential international reach
Different countries have different mobile browsing habits, so if you want your website to have a large international reach, it’s important to be mobile friendly.
In developing countries, many people only have access to the internet through mobile phones. This is often because desktop and laptop computers are too expensive, or the infrastructure is lacking to provide wired internet.
Countries in Asia and Africa lead the pack for being mobile first, so if you’re looking to target markets in these areas, a mobile-friendly site is a must.
10. Customers can view your site on the go
Allowing customers to view your site no matter where they are allows you to leverage their search intent and provide them with an answer.
Where a user’s search includes phrases like “buy”, “near me” or “best”, it’s clear that their intent to make a purchase or visit a location is high. By providing them with a helpful website that is easy to use in the instant that they are seeking an answer, it’s much more likely that they will spend their money with you.
Even if a customer primarily views your website on desktop or laptop, they may still need to access your website on the go. It’s important to maintain the functionality that existing customers have come to expect across all platforms.
Let Ketchup build your mobile-friendly website
These are just some of the reasons that a mobile-friendly website is an essential part of your marketing strategy. Depending on what type of business and website you have, there could be many more industry-specific reasons to make the most of your mobile visitors.
At Ketchup, we build websites not only with mobile in mind, but with mobile at the core of the browsing experience. No matter how big or small your business, there’s no denying the huge impact that a great mobile experience has on your bottom line.
Book a free web audit with one of our knowledgeable marketing experts to see how your site stacks up, or get in touch to find out more about how we can turn your mobile traffic into profit.