Take a look around in nearly any public place and you’ll immediately see the potential of the mobile Internet. Nearly everywhere you look, you’ll spot people glued to their smartphones, from the line at the grocery store to the booths in the coffee shop. If your web page isn’t mobile optimized, you’re missing out on a big market. Still not convinced? Here are some compelling reasons why you need to go mobile.
Many People Browse Primarily on a Smartphone
Image via Flickr by GillyBerlin
According to the Pew Research Center, over a third of today’s Internet users choose a smartphone as their primary device for accessing web pages. This means that these users are setting aside laptops and desktop computers in favor of phones. If your site isn’t mobile optimized, you’re missing out on this gigantic market completely. Sixty percent of cell phone owners use their phone for Internet at one point or another, even if it isn’t their primary connection.
A Mobile Site Improves Your Image
Whether your customers use their smartphone for all their online access, or simply pop on to your site from their phone on rare occasions, just having a mobile optimized site will improve your reputation. A Latitude study revealed that 61% of people had a better opinion of brands that offered a positive mobile experience.
Give your customers a stale site that’s difficult to navigate and they’ll probably view you as stale and troublesome as well. Offer a sleek, functional, and well-organized site and suddenly your entire brand is infused with this image. Don’t overlook the fact that your mobile site is another excellent opportunity to carry through with your branding strategy, using iconic images and recognizable logos to send your company’s message.
Shoppers May Visit Your Site While Still in the Store
Over half of mobile shoppers use their smartphones both in store and on the way to the store. If your site is informational and easy to use, it may seal the deal and help your customers make a final decision about a purchase. If your site isn’t as useful as your competitor down the street, however, you could lose your shoppers while they’re still sitting in the parking lot doing their due diligence on a smartphone.
Never underestimate the importance of your mobile presence, even if you do most of your business at a brick and mortar location. Many shoppers will still start online when they’re looking for the closest and most convenient place to make a big purchase.
Your Mobile Site Can Build Brand Loyalty
Smart companies know how to use mobile features to enhance in-store experiences. Take Target, for example. Their Target app offers mobile shopping features and weekly ads for users who want the basics. The Cartwheel app then goes a step further, offering exclusive discounts and sales that are available only to mobile users who opt in for these deals. Shoppers are learning that they can score big savings by keeping their smartphones in hand. Offer similar benefits and you can build loyalty for your brand this way, too.
Mobile Sites are a Great Jumping Off Point
A mobile optimized website can act as a powerful starting point for all kinds of different mobile features. A mobile site is often just a scaled down version of your full website that highlights the features users are most likely to want when they’re on the go, like sales flyers or a store finder. The best mobile sites feature large text that’s easy to read, and don’t require the viewer to scroll all around the page or zoom in to see things.
This is just the beginning, though. Your mobile site can also direct viewers to various apps, offer to pull up store directions, or allow your customers to call you with just one click.
If you don’t currently have a mobile website, or you’re falling behind the competition in the category, now is the time to put a new marketing plan in action and catch up fast. The mobile market is only growing as PCs fall into the background, leaving unlimited potential for companies to make the most of this market.