Is your website optimised for mobile devices? Is it easy to read and use on a laptop, smartphone and tablet? If not, it’s probably time to make some changes.
Having a mobile-friendly website is now vital for businesses – and in Australia, it’s probably even more important. Why? According to a recent report by Business Insider, Australians “have adopted smartphones and tablets into everyday culture faster than consumers in many other developed economies.” The country’s geography is part of the reason for this change, but Australian carriers have also expanded networks and data infrastructure in major urban areas, creating demand for more mobile devices. Smartphone penetration has reached 72% of all mobile phone users in Australia (up from 36% in 2010), and 71% of smartphone users said they accessed the Internet using their phones on a daily basis (up from 56% in 2012).
The bottom line: If your visitors can’t access your site, find your contact information or call you from their phones, you’re missing out on a big part of the market.
Be aware also that there’s a difference between your website being mobile friendly and mobile responsive. Mobile friendly is merely when your website resizes to fit on a mobile screen. Mobile responsive is one step further where the design of your site changes according to the size of the screen the website is being accessed from. This can mean you redesign your navigation bar, or place wording in different places on the screen. If you’re redeveloping your website and choose a design theme (there are thousands available in WordPress), mobile responsiveness may already be built into the theme – but check to be sure.
Here are some questions to ask and some suggestions to make sure your website is accessible for as many viewers as possible:
- First, take a good look at your site using different types of smartphones, tablets and laptops. (Here’s an extra tip: Sit down with someone from outside your organisation to get an outsider’s perspective about the site, too.) Make sure you view it on PCs and Macs, iPhones, iPads, Androids, etc as well as in different browsers such as Google Chrome, Safari, Internet Explorer and Firefox. Does your site look the way you want it to in all cases? Does it look good in one format but not others? Take notes and see where improvements need to be made, and then talk with your web developer.
- How easy is it to find your contact information? How quickly can a viewer find your phone number and call you? Do you have a click-to-call feature? If you’re a local business that relies on local customers, do you have a map that viewers can access if they’re in their car and driving to your premises? Ideally, contact information should be front and center on your home page so that if nothing else, a visitor can call you for more information.
- Keep in mind that a mobile user doesn’t have a mouse for navigation; everything is done with fingers and thumbs. Give your site the ‘fat finger’ test: Are the buttons easy to push? Is it easy to zoom, navigate and click? Does the viewer have quick access to key points or does it require a lot of scrolling? When in doubt, simplify your text and get key information across early.
Have more questions about how to get your site in shape for mobile users? Contact us!
