Websites are crucial to any startup’s business. Without a website, or even with a poor website, businesses will fail because potential customers will not be able to discover the business and the niche it fulfills. With a good website, potential customers can become loyal returning clients.
Today, websites are changing due to how we interact with them. Users no longer primarily surf the web through their primary laptop or desktop pc. Smartphones have enabled us to access websites anytime and anywhere. How we consume website content has also changed, as the old “format” of websites for computer use does not work on the much smaller screen size of smartphones. Having a “mobile optimized” website is crucial, because a lack of mobile optimization will drive customers away instead of attracting them. Below are some tips to create a mobile optimized website:
User Experience (UX)
Placing the user first is crucial for a mobile optimized website. Keep things clean, organized, and concise. The smaller screen does not afford the luxury with cramming more content into your site.
Speed
Speed is important, and Google has even been on record in saying that faster loading websites receive better marks on their SEO results. With the invention of AMP’s (amplified mobile pages), this signifies an even bigger push to fast loading websites and pages. Users don’t want to have to wait even a second longer while using their smartphones, so making it load quickly is a huge benefit.
Design
This goes back to the UX aspect of the site, but a mobile optimized site needs to be very different from its desktop counterpart. Some things will need to be formatted differently and moved around to accommodate the size of the loading screen. Also, instead of having a definite cursor (like on a computer), users have to tap and swipe to navigate the page. Leaving a sufficient amount of space, and potentially using buttons and icons instead of traditional text links, will help make your site look better and more minimalistic.