Since the remarkable growth of smartphones in the latter part of the last decade, mobile web has gained mainstream prominence and is now considered a serious platform for client engagement. From a business perspective, mobile web provides an opportunity to sell products or services in a simplified and direct manner. The mobile web is still in its early stages due to the low number of mobile websites, but with growing mobile web usage, more and more mobile-optimised websites are being made available.
With mobile web, location is key and search engine results are mostly geared towards local services. Google’s mobile search engine accounts for the majority of mobile web searches, a 97% market share according to official statistics. 40% of mobile queries are location related. Mobile advertisement has grown into a billion dollar market, and its value is increasing fast.
Creating the Mobile Web Experience
The mobile platform lends itself to a simple method of engagement with users in a direct manner. One of Google’s factors for higher mobile web advertisement ranking was the use of landing pages which are location specific.
Though primarily, a company’s main website has to be listed in Google Places for location based ranking, this would have a transcending effect on mobile web results being driven by location specific queries.
The incorporation of local modifiers and schema tags is one way of obtaining a high rank in search engines and should feature in any local search strategies.
For design purposes, mobile websites have to provide a simple and intuitive experience to users. With limited bandwidth and considerably lower internet speeds, a mobile landing page should feature only the main navigation themes to narrow down the type of products or service required.
When accessing toptable.com on a smartphone, for example, you are automatically directed to the mobile version which asks you to search for a restaurant or area. If you select an area, a small selection of top-rated restaurants are featured with the option to filter by three further fields: cuisine, price range and special offers. The use of text is limited, and the focus is upon simple search features along with the most desirable results.
Quality of user experience is essential in turning visits into conversions on the mobile web. The costs of developing a mobile web experience are still relatively low, and the opportunities that exist are abundant. The core components of a mobile website is simplicity and the incorporation of location specific data.
The changing environment of e-commerce requires a unique approach through all channels; providing a quick and engaging experience on the mobile is a necessity.
Targeting mobile web users, especially for those businesses which have a very location specific product or service is a great way of diversifying client portfolio. The mobile web presents many opportunities and developing an engaging mobile experience for users is a simple yet effective tool in doing business on the go.