Mobile technology has revolutionized the way that consumers get the products and services they need. Expectations are higher than ever, and every business needs to stay mobile friendly if they want to compete. So what exactly makes or breaks the mobile-friendliness of your site?
Design & Usability
One key factor determining the mobile friendliness of a website is how usable it is for mobile users. Your site’s ability to adapt to the dimensions of the device (also known as responsiveness) is only one part of the picture here. The mobile-optimized layout of a site must be designed to account for the specific demands of mobile browsing. Larger buttons, precise text formatting, and streamlined navigation architecture are just a few examples. If your mobile site isn’t properly designed will all of the right elements in mind, 57% of visitors will not recommend your business. Mobile users are expecting a smooth experience!
Technical Factors
Of course, there’s more than just surface-level design to consider. A variety of technical and backend factors can add up to affect the mobile friendliness of a site. Viewport meta tags, for instance, are crucial for ensuring that your site is responsive to the dimensions of the user’s device. Meanwhile, page load speed has a considerable effect on bounce rates. If your mobile site takes more than three seconds to load, 53% of your users will leave. Everything from your use of images to how you implement JavaScript and CSS will contribute to this. Finally, using Flash on a mobile site is a big no-no, since it’s not supported by Android or iOS devices.
Mobile SEO
Since 2015, Google has given increasingly more weight to mobile friendliness as a ranking signal. In fact, over the past year and a half, their system has begun to index mobile sites first and their desktop counterparts second. In other words, your mobile site has more influence than ever over your company’s visibility and mobile SEO is pretty much non-negotiable. This probably has something to do with the fact that over half of Google searches are mobile. By having a responsive site (the form of mobile-friendliness preferred by Google) that is both highly usable and technically sound, you’ll have some of your most essential SEO bases covered.
When the web design and development team at CAYK builds a site for your business, they’ll ensure that it meets every standard for mobile use and mobile SEO. Don’t miss out on the mobile traffic and conversions that you need, call (403) 456-0072 to mobile-optimize today!
