We’re all using our phones more when it comes to web browsing, often preferring them over our PCs and laptops.
More and more of us use our phones instead of or PCs
But if your Analytics data doesn’t show that people are visiting your site from their phone, it may be because they can’t find what they’re looking for.
So to combat this ever-so-common problem, we’ve compiled a list of 7 mobile mistakes you should always try and avoid when it comes to your website.
1. No Legibility
This occurs when visitors can’t buy from your shop, book a room at your hotel, or get the health information they need, and if they can’t read your website on their phone.
Top Tips
- Content needs to be legible and formatted well, properly spaced and with margins
- Consider contrast as phones are often used outside, in sunlight and rain, and users are stood up as well as sat down
- Ensure images and content work well on the phone
2. Wrong images & content
If you’re sending out emails as part of your marketing campaign then make sure that they work on a phone, and the website or page you’re driving traffic to works on a phone.
Top Tips
- Email – over 50% of emails opened on phones and tablets and probably won’t be read on a desktop
- Social – nearly half of all Facebook users only use their phone to access the service
- Your marketing campaign needs to work well on mobile phones for it to be effective
- If visitors can’t read it, or your site isn’t mobile friendly then visitors leave and won’t convert
- Remember that text and images designed for desktop devices often can’t be read on a phone
3. Poor functionality
Remember that mobile visitors expect the same functionality on their phone as on a desktop PC. You shouldn’t ‘dumb down’ functionality or reduce content simply because of the device being used.
Top Tips
- Ensure that mobile visitors can zoom, filter and compare products on your ecommerce site
- Keep forms as straightforward and simple as possible, and take advantage of mobile friendly inputs, such as showing the numerical keyboard for dates or numbers
- Make sure that your site doesn’t rely on proprietary technology such as Flash or Silverlight for core functionality otherwise mobile visitors won’t be able to use it
It’s essential to ensure your website has a mobile and tablet version
4. Difficult to navigate
Making sure that people can actually find what they are looking for is essential. And remember, if they can’t find it they can’t convert.
Top Tips
- Content needs to be easy to find, whether using icons, or internal links
- Links need to be clearly recognisable
- Implementing a search function can help mobile visitors find what they want quicker
5. Lack of touch targets
Ensuring that your touch targets, such as links, images, buttons are appropriately sized and well spaced, will help visitors to click on what they want.
Top Tips
Remember, visitors often won’t be giving the task their full attention, as they might be:
- Looking at a train timetable website whilst on a platform
- Looking for health information whilst holding a crying baby
- Checking delivery status whilst at work
- Think about context and use cases, and typical types of visitors
6. It’s too slow
Mobile visitors expect your site to be just as quick to load and navigate between pages as desktop visitors. This means that you need to make sure that it is fast.
Top Tips
- Think about page speed and page weight. The rule of thumb is the smaller the page (in MB), the quicker it will load
- Faster loading sites are better for visitors, and better for search engines. Visitors don’t want to wait for pages to load
- Compress files
- Remove unused and unnecessary assets
- Ensure images are sized in the most appropriate file format
- Reduce the number of fonts, tracking code, scripts, advertising networks
We use our phones as it’s often the most convenient device
7. Not knowing your audience
Remembering why mobile users are visiting your site will help you ensure that you have the right sort of content, functionality and design.
This will depend on your products or services, your target audience, and your business model.
Top Tips
Not all visitors will come to your site for the same reasons. So you need to cater for everyone. Consider the following groups who might be visiting to your site for a wide range of purposes, such as:
- First time visitor who found you via an advert
- Loyal customer who visits weekly
- Somebody doing research before making a reservation
- Somebody ready to purchase
You also need to consider what type of service your site is providing.
Is it?
- Information
- Ecommerce
- Lead generation
Think about what activity most of your visitors are coming to your site for and tailor it specifically to their needs. This could be:
- Browsing
- Finding information in a hurry
- Mundane tasks such as paying a bill
- Impulsive purchases
- Considered purchases
Also, what devices are visitors using to visit your site?
Are they?
- Looking on a PC at work at lunchtime
- Using a phone on the train home
- Using a tablet at home
Conclusion
While there is a lot to think about when it comes to improving your website for mobile visitors, a lot of it is straightforward, and relatively simple to implement.
If your current website is not mobile friendly, you need it to be. We recommend that you choose a responsive website, as it will work as well on a small smartphone screen as well as on a large TV screen.
As it is not device-specific Responsive Web Design is relatively futureproof too.
If you need a new website, then why not browse our Services and Work?