In today’s world, a smartphone does much more than just calls and texts. This device is like our everyday buddies. We cannot imagine leaving home without them. These smartphones have become a big part of modern life for personal and business use. They have changed how we talk to each other, find out stuff, and do business.
For businesses, they have shaken up how we buy things, chat with each other, and sell products online. That is why having a website that works well on smartphones is crucial for business owners. After all, 58.33% of the global website traffic comes from mobile devices, making it an excellent avenue to draw and connect with potential customers.
Now ask yourself, is your business’s website mobile-friendly? If you do not know the answer, find that out by using Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool. All you need to do is copy and paste your website’s URL and click “Test URL”, which might take one to two minutes before you can get the results.
12 Tips For Making Your Business’s Website Mobile-Friendly
1. Develop A Responsive Layout
A responsive layout ensures that your website’s design and content adapt fluidly to different screen sizes and orientations. It involves flexible grids, images, and CSS media queries to rearrange and resize elements. This way, your website will look great and remain functional whether a user accesses your website on a smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop.
2. Optimize Loading Speed
Mobile users are often on the go and have limited patience for slow-loading websites. Think With Google has found that the bounce rate increases to 123% as the page loading time goes from one to ten seconds.
To optimize the loading speed of your business’s website, below are a few things you need to do:
- Compress images without sacrificing quality
- Minimize unnecessary code,
- Leverage browser caching
3. Avoid Pop-Ups
Pop-ups can be frustrating on mobile devices due to limited screen space and potential difficulty in closing them. If pop-ups are necessary, use them sparingly. Guarantee that your pop-ups should not cover the whole screen, and there should be a close button that allows visitors to dismiss if they are not interested in their content.
Below are some examples of proper layouts of pop-ups.
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4. Use A Large And Readable Font
Choose fonts that are easy to read on small screens and maintain a font size that allows comfortable reading without zooming. Because they are readable, sans-serif styles like Arial or Helvetica are frequently chosen for digital content.
Even Microsoft uses Helvetica on its website to ensure its message gets across well to its readers.
5. Keep Content Short And Sweet
Skim reading has become the new normal, especially for mobile users who tend to skim content, looking for key information. So, when creating content, remember to keep it brief. Get to the point quickly. Use clear words. Avoid long sentences. Make your main ideas stand out.
You should also use headings and bullet points. These make it easier to catch important details. Mobile users like it when content is easy to scan and it. So, keep it short and sweet!
6. Structure Your Content With Text Hierarchy
Just like newspapers and magazines use headlines, subheadings, and paragraphs to make their content easy to read and understand, your website should also have a clear structure:
Headings:
These are like the main titles of different sections on your website. They grab attention and tell readers what the section is about. For example, if you have a page about different products you sell, each product could have its heading.
Subheadings
Under the main headings are smaller titles. They break down the content into more specific topics. If your main heading is about a product category, the subheadings could be about the individual products within that category.
Paragraphs
These are the smaller chunks of text that make up each section. Each paragraph should focus on one idea or point. It makes it easier for readers to follow along and understand your message.
Structuring your content with text hierarchy improves readability and helps search engines understand the content of your business. Proper use of headings makes it also easier for users to navigate through your content, especially on smaller screens.
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7. Leave A Lot Of White Space
Besides keeping your content concise and using text hierarchy, you should consider leaving a lot of white space. White space around web design elements provides visual breathing room. Think of it like your home; how would you feel if it had little space to move around?
Enough white space prevents your business’s website from feeling cramped to look at and navigate. Users can better concentrate on the information and tap links and buttons without mistakenly selecting the wrong one.
8. Place Contact Visibly
Make your contact information (phone number, email, address) easily accessible, preferably at the top of your mobile website. This ensures that users seeking to get in touch with your business can do so without searching.
Here is a good example from Mega Furniture:
9. Add Video Wisely
Videos are great for getting users interested, but think about how they work on mobile devices. Choose video players that can change based on screen size. Adding subtitles can also help some target audiences who do not speak the language used in the video.
Keeping video file sizes small is vital for mobile-friendly websites as well. Big video files can slow down the site and make it harder for people to use, especially on their phones. Always try to strike a balance between excellent video quality and reasonable file size.
10. Simplify Forms
Mobile users may find filling out long forms cumbersome. Keep forms short by only including essential fields. Use input types optimized for touch (such as date pickers) and consider adding input masks to guide users in entering information correctly.
11. Add A Search Function
Implementing a search bar simplifies navigation for users looking for specific information. Place it prominently and ensure it’s functional and easy to locate. Forbes magazine has done it well. Adding a magnifying glass vector at the top of its web design helps capture the user’s attention right away, making their search for what they are looking for a lot easier.
12. Use Clear CTAs
Clear and well-designed CTAs guide users toward desired actions, such as making a purchase or signing up for a newsletter. Use contrasting colors, concise text, and a touch-friendly size to ensure CTAs stand out and are easy to tap.
How Mobile-Friendly Is Your Site?
If you have done and followed all of the tips mentioned above and are still unsure whether or not your business’s website is mobile-friendly, test it again with Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool as you did earlier. You can adjust the web design of your company’s site accordingly to increase its website mobile-friendliness.
Conclusion
A mobile-friendly website allows users to access it regardless of the mobile devices. Visitors no longer need to pinch and zoom the screen to see the text and images as clearly as possible. A responsive website will automatically adjust its design and functionality to provide a better user experience.
If you barely have time to improve your website’s mobile friendliness, contact OOm. Our website designers and website developers can help improve and make your website accessible to everyone.