Your business needs to tap into the ready market that is smartphone users. Considering that 84% of adults in the UK own a smartphone, and spend at least two hours on them daily, you need to reach them there. With so many businesses competing for their attention, you need to make your website as easy to use and convenient as possible. In this blog, we discuss ways to optimise your web design for mobile devices and why this is important.
What is a website optimised for mobile devices?
A mobile-optimised website contains all the changes to make it mobile-friendly but does so from the ground up. Mobile-friendly websites are scaled-down versions of desktop websites. In contrast, mobile optimised websites are purpose-built to function fully on mobile devices. Therefore, they utilise all smartphone resources to ensure a smooth and productive browsing experience. For example, the website connects to your social media apps, has large navigation buttons, is touch-optimised, and uses legible text on small screens.
Why do you need your website optimised for mobile devices?
While you’ll spend more on optimising your web design for mobile devices, you’ll reap greater rewards in the long run. Such optimisation offers you several benefits:
Improved website speed
Utilising your website for mobile device resources ensures it runs smooth and fast. Desktop websites can be large and clunky, and reducing their aspect ratio to fit smartphone screens does little to make them run faster. Therefore, optimisation for mobile devices ensures visitors spend more time on your website, thus improving your chances of conversion.
Better user experience
The ease of navigating your website, how content appears on the smaller screen, and the ease of connecting with other apps are important in the user experience besides a fast-loading website. Remember, a rich user experience goes a long way in grabbing more attention than your competition.
Increase average time on your site
With a pleasant to use and convenient browsing experience, visitors will spend more time on your site. Some may prefer browsing on their mobile devices rather than visiting your desktop site. This benefits your business, as visitors use their mobile devices when they are more agreeable. Therefore, visiting your website at such times improves your chances of conversions.
How to optimise your web design for mobile devices
Here are some of our top tips for optimising your web design for mobile devices:
Implement responsive design
Responsive web design creates your website to fit the screen size and resources of the specific device a visitor is using. Such design greatly improves user experience and leads to better SEO. Considering the variety of smartphones, responsive design ensures that all visitors enjoy the same excellent user experience on any mobile device.
Use a simple navigation menu
Browsing on a smaller screen is tricky. Therefore, you must ensure that the navigation menu is the simplest and easiest part of your website for visitors. A good solution is a hamburger-style menu, which occupies a corner of the screen and slides out in full only when necessary. Its buttons are large enough and can be optimised to display relevant items per the page.
Optimise buttons for one-handed use
People tend to hold their phones with one hand and scroll with their thumbs. Therefore, your website should allow for easy thumb scrolling and place the buttons conveniently close to the thumbs.
Optimise your forms
Filling forms on a small screen is cumbersome and tiring if you don’t design them well. Therefore, you need to make the forms simple and the pages as few as possible. The questions should be short and direct, and the responses required also short.
Strategically locate high-priority CTAs
Your website aims to increase conversions. Therefore, ensure your CTAs are placed where a visitor’s eyes are likely to rest. Typically, the top left and bottom right regions are hot spots. You need to place your CTAs there, as well as on most of the bottom region. If possible, have them floating down there as the visitor scrolls.
Use concise content
Reading on a small screen is tiring to the eyes. Therefore, ensure your content is concise, conveying your message before it puts off a visitor.
Conclusion
Optimising web design for mobile devices is a worthy investment, considering how smartphone browsing has become popular. By utilising the pointers shared here, you’ll soon reap the rewards of such optimisation.
At Fifteen, optimising your web design for mobile is just one of the many services our web design and web development team offer. Take a look at how we can help you as well as the full range of services we offer. Contact us if you’d like any more information or if you have questions.