If you just learned the value of having a website, you’re in for another treat – mobile websites. While some people believe a mobile website is pulling up your regular website on a mobile device, they are sadly mistaken. A mobile website is a website that is designed and developed to display and function on iPhone/Droid/Blackberry internet browsers.
Why is it so important to have one? Let’s look into it.
Flash: As if flash wasn’t already bad due to the lack of search engine optimization allowed, it gets worse. Mobile devices, such as the iPhone, do not play flash. If your beautiful restaurant website, in flash, has a stunning, page-flipping menu, you’re screwed! When somebody goes to pull that up on a mobile device, they are going to see an empty page. All that time and money into that nice website for nothing! Now the sole reason for having your menu online – to let people see what you have – has been neglected!
Text vs Image: Many opt to have important text displayed as an image to spruce it up and “make it pop”. While theirs nothing wrong with that, it’s not adding the value it should be. This can hurt your cause for two reasons.
- On a mobile device, if the phone detects an address (it’s smart – that’s why they’re called SMART-phones), it will automatically link it to Google Maps to allow your visitors to quickly see that address on a map and get directions. The same applies with the phone number. If the phone number is text, it will allow a user to click the phone number and call you.
- That address and phone number are not getting crawled by the search engines. Google can’t see the contents of an image or scan it for important information. On the contrary, if your phone number, address, and other important TEXT is displayed as text, it will allow Google to see that and become aware that your company is offering contact information – and we all see the value of that, yes?
What’s Important: A full-blown website is meant to really educate your visitor on what you and your brand offer and who you are. When visiting a regular website from their computer, you’d expect somebody to read through things thoroughly, browse around, interact, and maybe try to contact you. The goal of a mobile website is different in so many ways. If someone is on a phone looking at your website, chances are they are trying to contact you, or get information FAST.
You need to show them the most important information you want them to see, and show them how to contact you asap. For example, if you are a restaurant, you can cut out all the extra jargon on your website that lets people see how fun you are, and display your menu, hours of operation, and directions so that people come down and see you!
When deciding to get a mobile website, it’s important to also do your research and not just dive at the first person who tells you they CAN build you one. While it is a new service, it is a service that is being done world-wide and like anything else, you should pick the qualified candidate to build it out.
Basch Solutions, LLC is currently offering mobile websites for $49/month with no money up front. Included in this package is a mobile design tailored to your brand, a content management system to manage all of your content, and we will transfer all content to your new mobile website. To inquire more about our mobile website service, feel free to email us at development@baschsolutions.com or send us a quick message using the form to the right!
