What is Mobile Optimization and its Importance?

It’s a fact that mobile and the internet have changed the world and transformed our lives in a way that we couldn’t have thought of a decade ago. What used to seem like a dream, is a reality now. With more and more people using mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, it is no hidden fact that mobile devices are used the most for browsing websites and information on Google. In fact, Google also claimed that over 55 percent of website traffic comes from mobile devices and 9 in 10 internet users use the internet using a mobile device. After all, it’s the most convenient way to access the internet.

What does all this mean? It means that if you have a website or want to create one, it is important to optimize it for mobile use. Without a mobile-optimized website, it can be very tough to approach your target market and achieve your desired marketing goals.

So, what is mobile optimization, and why it is important for your business website? Let’s have a look at this in detail.

What is Mobile Optimization?

Many people get confused between a mobile-friendly site and a mobile-optimized site, but the fact is that there is a huge difference. For example, a mobile-friendly website is designed to accurately display the content on smaller screens and papers as a smaller version of the same website so that it can be accessed on smaller devices. Talking about the features of a mobile-friendly website, it comes with the same features as text-based phone numbers or email addresses that can trigger direct calls or email messages.

On the other hand, mobile optimization takes your website a step further. The website that has been optimized for mobile devices can reformat itself for smaller devices. Not only does it properly display the contents on smaller screens, but also makes the site much easier to navigate. When the user lands on your website, he or she will see a completely new version of the website that seems specially designed for smaller devices.

Google aims to provide the best user experience, which is why it has mentioned mobile optimization as one of the most important factors for better ranking in search engine result pages (SERPs) and to generate higher organic traffic.

Elements of Mobile Optimization

Responsiveness – One of the most important parts of mobile optimization is responsiveness, which refers to a website design approach, which means your website can respond to and adapt to its accessed devices’ screen and window sizes. When the website is having a responsive design, it will easily adjust to the smaller screen so that it can appear flawlessly on the end-user’s device, regardless of its screen size and orientation.

Mobile-Friendly Navigation – Another very important element of mobile optimization is navigation. It is because, on the smaller screens, you don’t have enough space to place web elements and content as you would on a laptop or desktop. This is why the navigation should be entirely different so that it can keep the essential links visible without cluttering the screen.

Performance Optimization – When you want to make your website ready for mobile users, it is very important to ensure that it loads faster than desktop websites. After all, mobile users are usually in a hurry and will not wait longer than 4 seconds for the website to load completely. In case it takes more time to load, there are chances that the users will bounce away from your site.

Content Optimization – Just like optimizing the design and performance, it is also very important that the content is optimized for flawless rendering on mobile devices. When designing a website, it is important to ensure that the user attention span on mobile devices will probably be lower than on larger screens, which means you will have very little time to make an impression. When the content is not clear, it will not make a good impression.

The Benefits of Mobile Optimization

Improved User Experience (UX) – One of the most important reasons behind the increasing popularity of mobile-optimized websites is that they are very helpful in increasing overall user experiences. Optimizing websites for smaller devices requires developers to calibrate it for faster page load time, easier, mobile-friendly navigation, etc. So when you invest in a mobile-optimized website, you invest in creating better user experiences, which can help attract more traffic to your site.

Sales Go Up Due to Mobile Search – We all know that more and more people these days are using mobile devices to browse the internet. People are using mobile devices for almost everything to be done online like reading or writing reviews, exploring products, communicating with friends, or anything else. According to Google, mobile searches for the term “best” went up by over 80% in 24 months. So when people are searching online, they are more likely to pick out the correct search terms to lead them to you. With so many people searching online, creating a website that is designed for mobile devices will help you reach your audience and provide them with a great user experience.

Competitive Advantage – We are living in this highly competitive marketplace where every business is trying to offer something different and better to their customers. If you are also planning to cater to a larger audience and grow your business, it makes sense to get the competitive edge with a mobile-optimized website that can help you gain a significant advantage over your competitors. When your website is designed to cater to mobile users, they will be more likely to keep coming for more. Remember that when people like your website, they will also visit for more.

Google Loves Mobile-Optimized Sites – Previously, we already mentioned that Google aims to serve internet users with the best user experience, which is why it is taking constant steps to make the internet the better place for searchers. Since mobile optimization is a great way to enhance overall user experience, Google also prefers listing mobile-optimized websites at the top of searches. Back in 2015, Google also introduced an algorithm called Mobilegeddon, which penalized those websites that failed to be mobile-friendly. So when your website is not optimized for mobile devices, it is not likely to get a good ranking on Google.

Final Words

Considering the importance of mobile optimization and how many people use mobile devices to perform search queries online, it makes sense for every business owner to create a website that is optimized for smaller screens like mobiles and tablets. Without such a website, you risk losing a significant part of your target audience. So make sure to hire a professional website development agency that is able to create a website that will work well on mobile devices. When you are a mobile-optimized website, it becomes possible to compete.

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