What makes a good mobile website?
“Isn’t a website just a website?”, I hear you ask. Well, let me ask you a question - when was the last time you bought something on your laptop and when was the last time you bought something on your phone?
It has been known for a while that Desktop and Mobile users have different shopping behaviours and different intentions. Mobile users are known to be very goal driven - the increased frequency and the way we use our phones in all areas of our day to day lives has influenced users’ expectation of the websites or apps they use, meaning they expect to be able to access what they need easily and immediately (we’re a fickle lot!!).
These days most website builders make it so easy to preview and edit your website on a phone that you might be forgiven for thinking that you don’t need to do anything and the builder will just take care of it for you, but this isn’t always the case. The website builder will always ensure your website can be viewed and used on a phone but it won’t always guide you on best practice usability and experience - this is why you need to know what to look for if you suddenly see your mobile traffic or conversion dropping off a cliff!
Here’s my top 5 hitlist for a good mobile website…
Your homepage is your store front
No matter what you sell or do, you homepage should always tell your customer 2 key things; What product or service you provide to help them AND what action they need to take to get that help from you. Don’t be afraid to sell yourself here - be clear about your mission and make sure your customer’s most used actions (ie. contact button, buy now button, sign up form) are obvious and accessible towards the top half of the page.
Keep your Nav and Search visible and clear
Navigating around a website is one of the fundamental elements of great user experience. Whether your user likes to use search or browse through your navigation menu, the way your webpages are organised and displayed will not only play a big part in your customer conversion and satisfaction but also how Google reads your site for SEO.
Your navigation should contain exactly the same content on desktop and mobile. Your webpages should be grouped into clear ‘umbrella’ titles (ie. Services, Products/Shop, Events) and these titles will then make up the content of your nav. I would also recommend keeping your search bar separate to your nav as it can easily get missed and encourage website bounces. That said, if you find you don’t have space for search in your website header then putting it your nav but at the very top can also be an option.
Don’t use Pop-Ups
Controversial I know. Up until about 6 months ago, nearly all my clients came to me with pop-ups (or lightboxes) on their websites and whilst I can appreciate their purpose, I believe they can cause the opposite effect to what they are intended for - they can negatively impact your branding and they can be fiddly to close on small screens, making them pretty annoying. In my opinion there are better ways to encourage sign ups or promotional events without the need for hijacking your beautiful website or homepage.
Why not try a ‘Hello/Information Bar’ (a small strip of text at the very top of your website, often used for ‘Free Delivery’ messaging) or try adding a sign up form to your website footer - this way the user will always be able to see it.
Make sure your buttons and links are big enough
Ok this one may sound silly but imagine not being able to buy something because the button is too small to click on - annoying!
Make sure your buttons and links are clear and legible and have enough space around them so that the users thumb doesn’t click something else by mistake.
Activate Apple Pay/Contactless Pay
I feel like this is a bit of a no-brainer and honestly a bit of a pet-peeve for me. But I still find myself inputting my card number digit by digit on so many websites, so it had to feature. This, for me, is one of the biggest turn offs of a website. If you’re like me and are all about convenience (I see you!), having to dig my card out of my purse and type in my details is a no no. I have to really want the thing, to go to that much effort and if I don’t want the thing then I don’t bother - and that my friends is a lost online customer.
In 2021, 50% of people who owned an iPhone used Apple Pay, not to mention the fact that 15% of all global card transactions are now done through Apple Pay (wired.com). As I said at the beginning of this post mobile users want things easily and instantly and by not making their checkout experience as smooth as possible you are risking losing them at the very last hurdle of your funnel.
If you would like some help understanding how to improve your website or need a hand actioning any of what I have mentioned in this post please get in touch and i’ll be happy to help.
