4 Tips for Going Mobile with Your Website
We’ve built hundreds of websites here at The BLU Group – Advertising and Marketing, ranging from financial institutions to pet care. I’m currently working on building a mobile site for one of our clients using an online program. I’ve used this program before (DudaMobile.com) to build a mobile site for our client Dee’s Auto Care Specialists. It worked great and I had the site up and running in a flash.
There isn’t much of a difference (on the front end) between a mobile site and a regular website. A majority of websites built nowadays can usually be viewed without a problem on a tablet or smartphone. But if you want a mobile version of your website, there are some things you need to keep in mind. Here are four tips on what to include, leave out, and link to:
1. Pair down your information. Keep the site simple, easy to use, and most importantly, the information should be easy to find. You don’t have to include every single page of your real website in your mobile site. Before you start building anything, go over your existing site map and decide what the most important pages are to keep in the mobile version of your site. It’s a good idea to even go through the copy on those pages you decide to keep and see if any of that copy needs to be cut or reworded in the mobile version.
2. Include easy ways for the user to contact you. Mobile sites, obviously, are used by users when they are on the go, probably already looking for a service like yours. Make it easy for them to get in contact with you right away by adding in buttons or links for click to call, mobile maps, contact form, and click to text for example. If you are a restaurant, include your menu, add a way for the user to make reservations online, and include a link to leave reviews on Yelp.
3. Don’t forget about social media. Including links to your social networks is yet another way for the user to contact you. It’s not just for them to contact you the first time, but over and over again. It also lets them learn more about you than just what’s on your website / mobile site. If you have an e-newsletter, include a sign-up form on your mobile site (and your regular website too).
4. User friendly, but not boring. Just because you’re simplifying your site doesn’t mean that it needs to look bland. Include images to give the user an idea of what your business is all about. Having a slideshow of images, for example, is a great way to show off your business, but not take up too much space. However, don’t build that slideshow in Flash – Apple devices won’t run Flash and Android devices can run Flash but it has to be enabled or added.
There is a lot more that goes into the building of a mobile site, but these tips will help you get started in the right direction. If you have any questions or want some help going mobile, give us a call at (608) 519-3070, or e-mail us at info@theblugroup.com.
