The internet is evolving at a breakneck pace, and it is a constant struggle for many public facing business and organizations to keep up. Ten years ago, things like mobile responsive development and social media presence were just entering the mainstream awareness, and were way off the radar for many. Now, any public outreach strategy lacking these things is going to be at a serious disadvantage.

Mobile development in particular is a potential home run if it’s made a priority, but is easily overlooked. By mobile development, we mean any website or app that is tailored for use on a phone or mobile device. This could be a full-blown, downloadable mobile app. Or it can simply be a website that is responsive to varying screen sizes and types of interactivity (ie. a mouse versus a thumb). So why is this important?

Your Website Represents Your Business

It goes without saying that the internet has replaced the yellow pages. Everyone understands the importance of having a professional looking website that is searchable on Google. And many organizations put a lot of time and money into making that happen. But a website that is sleek and polished on a computer screen will fall apart on a mobile device if it is not made to be responsive. A costly effort to build a professional web presence can be a waste if mobile is not part of the strategy.

Users Will Leave

What if users go to your website and it appears tiny, or they have to scroll around frantically to read anything or interact with the page. The vast majority will simply leave, and search for an alternative that is easier to use. Ten years ago, people put up with a bad mobile experience because that’s all there was. Now, mobile responsiveness is the standard and the only competitive strategy.

Many Users Are Mobile First

Now that smartphones are everywhere, many users spend more time browsing the internet by phone than by computer. These users may be unwilling or unable to move to a computer to view a site that is poorly made for mobile. In the rapid fire environment of the internet, most sites will have been forgotten by the time a user gets to a computer. And though this may not be relevant for every business, it is worth keeping in mind that large percentages of the world only have access to the internet through mobile devices.

Search Engine Optimization

Perhaps the most important reason for optimizing your site for mobile is that search engines rank mobile optimized sites higher than non-optimized sites. Do your competitors have mobile responsive websites? If they do, they are likely ranking higher than you on Google, Bing, and Yahoo. Furthermore, a lower ranking on the search engines makes your website harder to find. You could be losing traffic to your site by not having an optimized mobile presence. 

If you’d like to learn more about our mobile responsive website and web app creation process, feel free to contact us.