Most companies today have a "regular" website, but the new frontier is the mobile web – the Internet as viewed on a cell phone.
The mobile industry is still in its infancy, but it is growing fast and very few have a website that can be easily viewed on a mobile phone. Now is the time to create a mobile-friendly website and be the leader in your market.
A growing market
Six in 10 people today now have cell phone service, according to a United Nations report. This is an estimated 4.1 billion people worldwide, compared to only 1 billion in 2002.
- In the United States, 26 percent of mobile phones have Internet access, according to a study by The Kelsey Group.
- In the U.S., revenue from mobile searches is expected to grow 112 percent each year thru 2012
- By 2020, more Internet searches will occur from mobile devices than from traditional desktops, according to Pew Internet.
- The trend is toward wireless-only households. In 2007, 14.7 percent of U.S. households were wireless only. Here in the Pacific Northwest, we trend higher, with 16.3 percent in Washington and 17.3 percent in Oregon.
Why your business might need a mobile website
By now, I'm sure you're thinking that you own a small, local business – why would you need a mobile website? In fact, small, local businesses are the most searched-for from handheld devices.
When your customers are out and about, they're not near a desktop computer. If they are hungry, they want to find a place to eat. If they are in a mood for a movie, they want to look up what's playing and at what time. If their cars break down, they need to find a nearby repair shop.
For example, let's say some potential customers are coming to see you because of your ad in the newspaper. They get lost and use their phone to find directions. They can't find you or your business website won't work on their phone – but they do find your competition. They click on your competitor and get turn-by-turn directions to their door.
Now you've lost a customer.
So what kinds of businesses need a mobile website? Every coffee shop, restaurant, night club, doctor, dentist, lawyer, accountant, car repair and dry cleaner needs one.
Especially if:
- your business depends on local customers.
- your business depends on advertising in the Yellow Pages.
- your customers want to get their information on the go.
What to consider when going mobile
Mobile websites are different than traditional websites. Cell phones have small screens and as they access the Internet, they cannot read "regular" websites well. Cell phones require simpler websites, smaller in size and with few graphics.
Mobile websites are much smaller and have fewer pages, so its message is much more focused to what a mobile audience wants to know.
The mobile web is lighter than the normal web. Desktops connect to the Internet through a stable high-speed connection, whereas cell phones, by their nature, have to connect on the move. Connections are transferred from cell-tower to cell-tower and are affected by carrier coverage. This makes mobile devices limited in bandwidth.
There is a tremendous variety of mobile phones today. They range from very small screens to the larger screen of smartphones, such as the iPhone, creating challenges to make website for phones with different capabilities, features and restrictions.
Doug Williams is the president and owner of Alesco Marketing, a Vancouver-based Internet marketing company. He can be contacted at 360-695-8100.
