There are many reasons having a mobile friendly website is important here are a few:
- Increased Traffic: More mobile users lead to higher site visits, and search engines prioritize mobile-ready sites.
- Higher Conversion Rates: Seamless navigation and functionality encourage sales.
- Enhanced Customer Experience: Uniform quality across devices boosts user satisfaction.
- Credibility: A modern website reflects a business’s attentiveness to customer needs.
- Business Preservation: As mobile usage grows, mobile optimization becomes vital to remain competitive.
Business owners with digital websites or e-commerce platforms are always looking for new ways to pull in traffic, increase conversions, boost sales, and enhance the customer experience. They may be surprised to learn that paying attention to how visitors access their website can be critical to their metrics. In particular, they may wish to turn their attention to mobile devices.
Most of the population owns and uses a smartphone, which is more than just an impressive statistic. It signals that many website visitors are or should be incoming from mobile devices. Yet, traditional websites developed years ago are only formatted for computers or large-screen displays. Mobile users encounter all sorts of problems, including missing content, broken structures, poor navigation, slow page speeds, and errors.
Most customers would only spend a few seconds on a webpage presenting such difficulties. Since this is the case, developers must consider mobile adaptive design. If they do, their technical SEO efforts will pay off in multiple ways. Find out what a mobile-friendly website is and why it is valuable below!
What Is a Mobile-Friendly Website?
A mobile-friendly website displays itself correctly on small screens, such as smartphones and tablets. It formats the page content to fit the screen size without sacrificing functionality, useability, or aesthetics. Visitors can have an excellent user experience and accomplish their goals from any device.
Many web page developers achieve mobile-friendliness by creating a responsive design, where the page automatically adjusts to the current screen; others use dynamic serving or develop an entirely different version of the site for specific devices. If business owners want to stay ahead of the curve, they may build a separate mobile app. However, it is best to optimize the website for users who cannot download the app version in these cases.
Additionally, many elements play into how user-friendly a website is for smartphone users. Web developers or designers may look at:
- Page Load Speed
- Optimal Text and Media Size
- Non-Flash Media
- Touch-Friendly Elements like Buttons and Links
- Left Aligned Navigation
- Interactive AI or Chat
- Mobile-Friendly Forms and Fields
- Mobile Search Intent & Corresponding SEO
- Short Meta Titles and Descriptions
Why Is A Mobile-Friendly Website Important?
In 2023, all websites should be optimized for mobiles, tablets, and small laptops. Ultimately, it is a win-win for both businesses and visitors. Explore the top 5 reasons below:
1. It Significantly Increases Traffic
Mobile-optimized websites stand to gain more visitors for several reasons. First, an increasing number of users are visiting websites from their handheld devices. They appreciate the convenience of finding the information they need at the touch of a finger. Often, they may even prefer using their smartphone over a laptop or desktop. The entire experience can be faster and much more enjoyable than navigating on a computer. However, that is only the case if a website is mobile-friendly.
Second, if first-time visitors can use a website smoothly and seamlessly, they may continue to browse the pages, come back for fresh content, or revisit for more services or products. Overall, it indicates that they enjoy their user experience and that it helps them accomplish their goals.
Third, while businesses love to see those analytics, search engines appreciate them even more. It leads to better rankings on search engine results, as they can recognize users’ search intent is being fulfilled or exceeded by the page regularly. For instance, Google added mobile-first indexing in 2019; this means it will rank new websites higher than websites that have yet to be optimized. In 2021, they added core web vitals into their ranking criteria. It looks at how quickly a page loads, how fast the page stabilizes, and how responsive the elements are on a page. These all factor into mobile-friendliness and play a role in higher rankings. Remember, the higher the ranking, the better the visibility and traffic!
2. It Boosts Conversion Rates
One of the most important Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for websites is the conversion rate. It indicates the percentage of visitors who take a specific, desired action; it may be signing up for an email subscription list, purchasing a product, downloading a service, or contacting a business.
Suppose a potential customer is searching for fruit and vegetable seeds for their garden. They landed on a particularly excellent website that would suit their needs exactly; however, it does not fit their smartphone screen, so they have trouble navigating it and reading the text. Unfortunately, they will not complete an order, and they will go on to find a mobile-friendly competitor. They will likely not return, as they had a particularly frustrating experience. Now, imagine this happens with hundreds of customers. Unfortunately, this is a disappointing reality for many online business owners.
Alternatively, imagine a web page developer prioritizes responsive design and truly considers the mobile user when creating an intuitive structure, architecture, and navigation. The visitor will now have an excellent user experience, increasing their chances of returning and solidifying a positive customer conversion.
3. It Improves Customer Experiences
Visitors make decisions about websites in mere seconds. If web developers and designers can make those moments as flawless as possible, they have a hook. If they can continue to delight visitors throughout their experience, they have a customer.
Mobile-optimized websites can improve the user experience significantly. If they can expect the same clear and comprehensive content from their phone as they can from their computer, that’s a step in the right direction. Additionally, including the same pages and directives allow for optimal search engine rankings; that means smartphone users can find the website just as easily with similar user intent.
Additionally, businesses can go one step further; they can ensure the mobile user experience is even better. Many smartphone owners prefer using their devices instead of their computers. They’re more accessible, and ultimately, experiences can be smoother & faster. Digital apps or platforms may also be more engaging as designers and developers tailor them to users’ preferences. For instance, they may have vibrant colors, scannable paragraphs, short media videos, or interactive chats.
4. It Helps Build Credibility
When someone meets a stranger, they have a hard time believing their words or trusting their actions. It is a similar experience when visitors land on a new website; however, one of the ways that businesses make websites more credible is through a responsive design.
The bottom line is that users visit a website expecting it to function well. When they encounter a mobile-optimized website, they understand the business understands its visitors’ needs. It also indicates that a company stays updated with how its consumers change. Accordingly, it clearly shows that a business recognizes and caters to its target audience, an essential factor for credibility.
Furthermore, a website is more likely to appear on primary search results if it is fully mobile-optimized. Businesses may even optimize web content to appeal to mobile searches, such as through long-tail keywords (voice searches) or technical SEO (local searches). In these ways, smartphone users can easily find the webpage near the top of their page. Intuitively, they lend more trust to these websites as they know it meets most users’ needs.
5. It Saves the Business
Heard the phrase: “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction”? It applies to mobile-adaptive websites. Ideally, businesses conform to this new wave of technology, as they can see increases in visibility, traffic, conversions, and retention. However, if they neglect reformatting their traditional webpage or creating a mobile-responsive design, they will actually see a decline in these numbers; their visibility, traffic, conversions, and retention will all decrease steadily or drastically (depending on their target audience).
As more audiences switch to mobile phone usage as their primary device, it is becoming more critical for businesses to respond to the demand. When companies do not adapt, current customers may flock to competitors. After all, that may be easier than logging onto their stationary computer in their home or office to view the website.
Ultimately, all businesses would be wise to invest in developing responsive design, dynamic serving, or an app. In the long run, it will save them preventable customer and sales losses. More than that, it can save them time and money in other departments. For instance, they could design and develop an online chat to help customers with questions or concerns. Users could access this right from their mobile device, which satisfies clients but it also reduces the need for support personnel and lines.
Final Thoughts
Smartphones are one of the most important devices for a customer, and savvy business owners use that information to their advantage. They design and develop websites that a mobile user finds intuitive and smooth. They can reach and attract more visitors in these ways; they can also establish credibility and trust, delight visitors with a fantastic user experience, and retain loyal customers.
Businesses can expect demand for mobile-friendly websites to only be more significant in the future, so it is best to stay ahead of users’ needs and desires.