8 Great Reasons Your Site Should Be Mobile Friendly

“Do I need a mobile friendly website?”

Now more than ever, it is important for every business to make sure they are not only online but also optimized to appear on mobile and smart devices.The use of mobile devices has become a common and integral part of any online experience. These experiences can range from online shopping to information seeking and everything in-between. Since many online experiences start on a mobile or smart device, it is important to be able to reach your target audience from the very get-go. Here are 8 great reasons why you should think about converting your site to a mobile responsive design and begin targeting this audience!

1. Google makes mobile-friendly sites a priority!

This means when your users perform searches on their mobile and smart devices, Google will show mobile-friendly websites before non-friendly ones. Since nearly 60% of all searches start on mobile devices, making sure you appear in these results will ensure you are reaching everyone you can.

2. Everyone everywhere uses mobile or smart devices!

In a recent Pew study, 95% of Americans were reported to own a cell phone. With over half the world’s population using smart devices. Of this group, 77% owned a smartphone. It is projected that by 2020, over 6 billion people will be connected via smartphones and other smart technologies. By making sure your site is optimized for these devices, your users will be able to find you quickly and at any time.

3. Mobile-friendly equals user-friendly!

Smartphone and mobile device users in the United States spent an average of 87 hours per month on their devices in 2016. Since most non-responsive or mobile-friendly sites provide a poor user experience on these devices, users are less likely to interact with an outdated experience. By making their mobile experience fun and easy to navigate, users are more likely to stay on your site and become converting customers.

4. Mobile-responsive is easy to manage has a great ROI!

Creating mobile-responsive sites is quickly becoming the standard best practice for new and current websites. Many CMS platforms are also starting to provide comprehensive and customizable responsive designs in their portfolios. Having separate mobile and desktop sites equals twice the work when updates need to be made. By having one mobile-responsive site, you only need to manage one website which saves you time and money that could be spent elsewhere.

5. Targeting mobile users helps you stay ahead of your competition!

Similar to #3, having a mobile-friendly site does more than keep users engaged with your brand. It helps build up your reputation as a brand that cares about being able to deliver the content your users want, when they want it. Allowing them to connect with you when they are on the go or have a moment of down time, places you a step above other brands who have not optimized their sites to reach mobile users. The hidden benefit? By creating the initial bond of trust with a mobile-friendly site, users are more likely to return to your site on subsequent searches, regardless of platform.

6. Your website will look great and feel great to everyone who uses it!

No brand wants to be seen as a stick in the mud, unwilling to change and adapt with the times. Regardless of the goods or services you offer, a non-responsive site makes your brand look dated. This can skew how users perceive the content on your site – assuming they make it that far! Optimizing for mobile, modernizes brands online and makes them seem more relevant than competition that has failed to adapt.

7. It’s not just Amazon – online shopping is stronger than ever!

According to a 2015 study, 62% of mobile users have made purchases using their smart devices over a 6 month period. Additionally, 80% of shoppers use their mobile devices to look up product reviews, compare prices, or find alternative store locations. Even if you don’t have an E-Commerce website, having mobile-friendly conversion points on your site will make it easy for potential customers to find and contact you. Streamlining contact and shopping experiences for mobile keeps users on your site for a painless one-stop shop experience.

8. Social media drives mobile visits!

If your brand uses social at all, a mobile-friendly site is a must. With all major social networks fully adapted for mobile devices, your website is just a tap away from users on any post, status update, tweet, or company profile. Don’t lose these social visitors with an outdated site. If they cannot use your site, they may stop following you on social. However, if your website is integrated with your social experience, this could increase your social followers as well as traffic coming to your site.