Is your site prepared for the growing wave of mobile users? The user experience for mobile visitors should be as seamless and user-friendly as possible. The following tips are from Google’s GoMo guide. Read the first 5 tips here: Mobile Site Best Practices, Part 1.
Review of Part 1:
1. Make it quick.
2. Simplify navigation.
3. Be thumb-friendly.
4. Make it visible.
5. Test on multiple devices.
Mobile Best Practices, Part 2
6. Increase conversion rates.
Make it easy for your customers to take action on your website, whether that’s making a purchase, filling out a form, or clicking on a phone number.
Tips:
- Focus your site around information (for example, product details) that highlights your call to action.
- Use as few steps as possible to complete a transaction.
- Keep your forms short, and only ask for information you really need.
- Use check boxes, lists, and scroll menus to make forms easier to fill out.
- All phone numbers should include click-to-call functionality.
7. Design for local traffic.
Mobile users often search for local businesses on their phone or tablet. As local search traffic continues to rise, it’s important to make sure your mobile site is local-friendly.
Tips:
- Make your physical address or store locator prominent.
- Offer functionality for maps and directions to your location. Add GPS for personalization.
- Allow users to search for products in stock at nearby stores.
8. Match your mobile site with your desktop site.
Match your site design and functionality between devices.
Web users often visit your site on multiple screens. Make the transition as seamless as possible by harmonizing the functionality and design of your mobile and desktop sites.
Tips:
- Let users save popular searches and shopping carts.
- Use the same key features on your website across multiple channels when possible.
- Make sure your product or service information is consistent across all channels.
9. Redirect users to your mobile site.
Use a mobile site redirect to automatically tell when visitors are viewing your site on a mobile device and send them to the mobile-friendly version of your website. Ask your site developer to install this code on your site.
Tips:
- Allow users to return to the desktop version of your site if desired, but also give them the option to go back to the mobile site later.
- Allow users to indicate which site version they want to be directed to in the future.
- Make sure important information (such as an address or store locator) is prominently displayed on the redirect page.
10. Base your design on what users want.
The best mobile sites are centered around the user’s wants and needs. That means you need to find a way to ask your visitors what they’re looking for in a mobile site. Testing and site optimization should be an ongoing process.
Tips:
- Take a look at your analytics to better understand how visitors use your site.
- Consider user testing before launching or redesigning your site.
- Ask for user feedback. Tweak your site according to their suggestions.
- Keep improving your site based on your analytics and research.
Mobile Site Design Minneapolis
Need help creating a mobile site? We’d love to work with you. Give us a call at (763) 548-2297 or contact us by email to find out more.
Photo Credit (top): John Karakatsanis on Flickr
Photo Credit (bottom): Judy Breck on Flickr
