How many people do you know that do not own a smartphone? Chances are, the number is very low, if not zero.
Mobile technology plays an ever-growing part in today's world, from smartphones to smartwatches, and their functionality continues to grow. As smartphones become the device of choice to access the web, among other things, it's important that this audience is catered for. If you're still asking yourself if you need a mobile website, the answer is yes.
Google Likes Mobile Sites
It's true. If your site isn't mobile-friendly, Google may penalise your site.
Why does this matter? Over 93% of searches in the UK start on Google so it's important to try and meet the criteria of the search giant. Recent data (viewed November 2024) by Smart Insights puts 58% of searches happening on a mobile device, while desktop searches are at 40%.
Now, you may think that 58% isn't a large amount of visitors, but put that into perspective. Let's say, for argument's sake, that you run an e-commerce site with an average visitor level of 150 visitors per month (approximately 3 per day). If you value each sale at just £10.00 (that's £1,500 based on 150 users), that means that mobile visitors make up 87 of those visitors per month, or £870. For a small business, that's a large chunk.
Realistically, you will never convert 100% of your visitors, but still losing that 58% means you're losing one-third of your potential audience.
Google aims to provide the best user experience possible, so if a user searches on a mobile device, then it can potentially favour a mobile-friendly website.
The bottom line is - ensure your website is mobile friendly and don't miss out.
Mobile Users are Different
We mean this in terms of their goals. Think about how you use websites yourself. Generally, a desktop user will browse websites and read several pages, whereas a mobile user wants information quickly and easily.
If you're looking for information as quickly as possible, you'll want it to be easy to navigate and complete your task. While you may try to achieve the same goal in some instances, such as looking up a phone number, mobile devices are smaller, and websites need to be optimised to suit this.
Reduce your Bounce Rate
If you're not aware of what a bounce rate is, Google defines it as the percentage of single-page sessions (i.e. sessions in which the person left your site from the entrance page without interacting with the page).
It's an important statistic which can really show you how users see your site. A high bounce rate could mean one of several things, such as:
- Incorrect implementation of your tracking code, such as Google Analytics
- Your site is unsuitable for the user (e.g. not tailored to their device)
- User behaviour (e.g. visits, bookmarks your site and leaves)
- Genuine (e.g. wrong site)
Ensuring your website is mobile-friendly could help reduce this by ensuring it's suited to their device.
How do I make my Website Mobile Friendly?
There are a few options to making your website mobile friendly, including having a responsive design, where the design 'responds' to the device it's being viewed on, and a dedicated mobile site, which is when a site has a separate mobile site dedicated for mobile users.
Both methods are popular (there are a few others too) and easy to implement. However, responsive web design is the easiest to maintain, whereas a dedicated site allows you to manage everything specifically for a smaller device. Facebook uses a dedicated site for example, whereas Currys uses a responsive design.
The path for your website depends on your web development team, the site's functionality, and its audience.
Conclusion - Where next?
Think about your mobile visitors, and also think about how you would feel about visiting your site on a mobile device if it wasn't suitable. Consider how you would navigate it to ensure you pin down a suitable route.
Also, regularly check your Google Analytics (or other analytical software) to keep an eye on your bounce rate, the devices being used, and routes users are taking to ensure you deliver a good user experience (it's good for SEO too!)
