Five Tips to Make Your Website Mobile-Friendly

When you design your website, you need to take many things into consideration. One of those things should be how mobile-friendly it is. According to Statista, approximately half of all web traffic is viewed on mobile devices. "In the first quarter of 2021, mobile devices (excluding tablets) generated 54.8 percent of global website traffic." This figure has been around the 50% mark since 2017. With this figure in mind, you need to be cognizant about factoring in mobile-friendly features into your web design so that you don't leave out half of your potential audience.

Another big reason to ensure your website is mobile-friendly is because Google focuses on mobile search. This process actually started in 2015 when Google rolled out a mobile-friendly update. What this means is that Google will actually penalize websites that are not mobile-friendly and that the mobile version of the website is used for indexing and ranking. If you aren't mobile-ready, you may not appear in Google searches - no matter what your content is.

So what makes a site "mobile-friendly"? In loose terms, this means that the website is easily viewable on a mobile device. It is designed and optimized for those users. The site should be scrollable, the text should be sharp, white space should be incorporated, and images should be high quality - no matter what size they are. Fortunately for the web designer, many platforms are creating a scaling format that allows content to form to the device it's being viewed on. Another way to explain this is to refer to your site as having a 'responsive design.' This means that the only thing that changes about your site is the CSS. Your URL remains the same for your site, and no matter how a viewer looks at your site, they can access it and enjoy viewing it. You can use Google's Mobile-Friendly Test to see if your site is compatible with mobile devices. If it's not, our UI/UX design specialists are prepared to help ensure your site is mobile-friendly.

In the meantime, here are five helpful tips you can use to keep your website mobile-friendly.

1. Create content for mobile users. Think about what people who use mobile devices might be searching for, and then add it to your site or blog. A lot of people will pull out their phones to search for something specific. So, if your site has what they are looking for and it's provided in an easy-to-view option for mobile users, your site will get more traffic.
2. Reduce the number of or remove pop-up ads. While they might help generate revenue, pop-up ads are very intrusive in a mobile viewing window. Most users will navigate away from your site at the first hint of a pop-up. It severely reduces the user experience on a mobile device.
3. Make sure your site is speedy. If your site loads slowly, your mobile users will move away quickly. Make certain images are optimized for web viewing and that your hosting plan accommodates your current traffic needs.
4. Larger font sizes read better on smaller screens. A font size of at least 14px will ensure that users can read your content easily.
5. Keep it simple - your design, that is. It can be very easy to get trapped into complicated designs for your website. Simpler is better when it comes to mobile-friendly sites. Avoid clutter and stick to a clean, minimalist design.

Our UI/UX design team is prepared to assist in making your site more mobile-friendly so that your get better traffic. Contact us today!