There’s no denying it – having a mobile presence is a necessity in today’s world. In fact, time spent web browsing on mobile devices is nearly twice that of desktops. However, simply having a mobile presence is only part of the story. For example, 29% of people will switch to another website or app if they can’t find what they’re looking for or if the site loads too slowly. A poorly designed mobile app or website very well may be just as bad as having no mobile presence at all.
Why Mobile-Friendly Sites are Essential
We’ve all visited those dreadful websites designed solely with desktop users in mind. Luckily, our voices have been heard to some degree. Google now places mobile-friendly sites higher in search results in order to encourage companies to develop a more satisfying mobile user experience. Plenty of other companies are improving their mobile presence as well. Take Takohl for example, whose web presence in general was rather poor before they recreated their site to make it more mobile-friendly. They’re seeing much more traffic now, much of which is on mobile devices.
Responsive Web Design vs. Dedicated Mobile Apps
Considering the magnitude of internet traffic generated by mobile devices, having a satisfying, user-friendly mobile experience is of the utmost importance. There are essentially two approaches that can be taken to achieve this: responsive web design or a dedicated mobile app. Responsive web design is a somewhat easier route to implement and will work on virtually any device – the page layout automatically adapts based on screen size. Mobile apps require more care and development effort to ensure the app provides the correct user experience, look, and feel for the targeted device(s) – and allows use of specific to those device features.
While responsive web design may be easier for companies to achieve, it does require an internet connection and a web browser. Mobile apps tend to feel much faster and natural to use compared to websites. Of course, these approaches are not mutually exclusive. For example, sites like Expedia or Southwest have mobile responsive sites as well as mobile apps. The mobile apps tend to be much easier to navigate and provide a better user experience for performing certain tasks like quickly pulling up a boarding pass. Using some combination of responsive web design and native mobile apps will likely provide the best user experience overall.
The Shift Towards Mobile-Friendly Websites
Desktop-only websites are slowly but surely being phased out in favor of mobile-friendly websites as people realize the importance of a proper mobile experience and the ever increasing prominence of mobile device usage. The numbers don’t lie – mobile traffic is very substantial and cannot be ignored forever. Take the initiative now to avoid missing out on mobile moments with your consumers in the future. You won’t regret it.
