The majority of website traffic is identified as coming from mobile devices. So, it is important that any website you create be optimized for those viewers. What do you need to know when you build a mobile site?
If you’re a business owner and you’re using WordPress and forms programs like Sprout Invoices for your customers, then you will want to keep several considerations in mind.
- Why Build a Mobile Site?
- Best Ways to Design Your Site
- Considerations When Building a Mobile Site
- What are the advantages of hiring an agency versus a single designer?
Why Build a Mobile Site?
If you already have a website for your business, then you might be losing customers if you’re not optimized for mobile devices. If you don’t have a website then you’re missing traffic from mobile and non-mobile customers.
Consider that it is projected that by 2024, approximately 187.5 million U.S. users will have made at least one purchase via a web browser or mobile device (statista.com).
Think of your users and potential customers. Many people reach for their phones when in conversation. A chance mention of your business comes up and then they are immediately searching for it on the nearest web-enabled device – generally, a smartphone.
These searches will help bring your business visibility and in some cases, immediate sales. To help encourage people who access your website, it is best to create a website that shows your business in the best possible light on the device they’re using while providing the information that they need to make purchases or other important business decisions.
The internet’s top search engine, Google, prioritized websites with responsive designs in 2019. Responsive websites allow designers to provide a solid and functional experience on mobile devices as well as normal computer screens.
As mobile device traffic and usage increase, it only makes sense to have your website designed to accommodate mobile devices. Increase the value of your website by making it more accessible and it will become a valued resource that can only help in meeting your goals.
Best Ways to Design your Site?
When making the decision to build your site, you should think about who is building it and using responsive design. The software that you use to build your site can also be an important factor that affects your site design and possibly its cost.
Responsive Design
You may be surprised to know that responsive web design started way back in 2010. Previous to that, mobile sites would generally have a separate set of code making it difficult to maintain. With responsive design, you have one website and one set of code. The advantage is that you only have to update one site – not two.
A responsive site automatically adjusts to the device that is viewing the website. The question then becomes, do you build it yourself, or do you hire someone?
Considerations When Building a Mobile Site
When you working to build a site, there will be a list of things that you will want to consider in order to make sure that your site is providing the best solution for your mobile users. This will be in addition to the usual considerations of how best to represent your brand or design philosophy.
When building with mobile as the focus you should consider the following:
- Touch – how will touch impact your site pages
- Scrolling priorities – what’s showing when you need to scroll?
- Top-loaded pages – optimize for most viewed pages
- Extra Graphics – graphics should all be minimized for shorter loading times
- Form requirements – determine the forms you need and make sure they properly display on a mobile device
- Optimized code – your website code should work well with both a mobile device and a normal computer screen
If you’re a business owner and you’re using Sprout Invoices or Billing, then remember that your WordPress site can be optimized for mobile use.
Software Considerations
You will also want to think of the software being used to build the site. Depending on your needs you may consider using a CMS like WordPress, or other software that focuses on e-commerce. Work with a developer or designer to help you make a good decision in the software that you use for your website.
Build it Yourself or Hire Someone?
If you intend to build the site yourself, then keep in mind that you’re going to need the expertise to build the site. Otherwise, it will be slow going while you learn how to build a site and use the software that’s involved in the process.
Building it yourself will also mean having the software and hardware resources to build and host your website. A designer or agency will generally have the resources necessary to build a website.
You can hire a person or an agency to build your site. This will save you a lot of time but can be restricted by your budget. The main advantage is that you can concentrate on your business while a person or agency builds your site.
What are the advantages of hiring an agency versus a single designer?
These considerations may vary based on the individual or design agency involved. So make sure that you check their body of work and their reputation before making a selection.
Another factor in deciding on building your site is the size and complexity. If your site is a simple small website, then you may not need a web agency to build your site.
In general, a single designer may not work as fast as a group of people in an agency. An agency can delegate multiple people to work on a website. Whereas a single designer has to do it alone. The other consideration will be the cost to complete the site. An agency will likely cost more but take less time than a single designer. You will need to make a decision based on your budget and timeline needs.
It is a necessity that businesses build a mobile site. Keep in mind that with responsive design your site will work for both mobile devices and normal computer screens. Determine the solution that best works for building your site: doing it yourself, hiring a designer, or using a design agency. As you ensure that your site meets your functional and design needs, you will find that you have a website that is a critical part of your business.