If you already have a website dedicated to your brand or company, or if you want to create one, you should know, first of all, that mobile optimization is absolutely crucial. In recent years, the growing adherence to smartphones has led to the exponential growth of mobile access to millions of websites. But, after all, what does it mean to have a mobile-optimized website? Is this really that important? What are the benefits? In this article, we show you how to make your website more user-friendly and accessible. Good reading!
What is a mobile-optimized website?
A mobile-optimized website is one that displays correctly on mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets. In other words, an optimized or responsive website is one whose content adapts to the different screens of different devices, regardless of their shape and size. Ideally, an optimized website is one that presents information in a clear and structured way on computers and mobile devices alike.
The goal is to adjust the layout to maximize the user experience, making it more accessible and enjoyable. When optimizing a website, you will need to make sure that the format, size of images, fonts and other elements are proportional and correctly positioned on screens of different sizes.
Certainly, we’ve all visited a website on our mobile phone whose letters were distorted, the images superimposed and, in general, we’ve found a huge mess difficult to decipher. This is a perfect example of an unoptimized website. This is the scenario we want to avoid.
Optimizing a website for mobile? The statistics speak for themselves
According to Statcounter, in April 2021, 55% of all world web traffic originated via mobile and 43% via a computer. With a less significant percentage, tablets follow with 2% of world traffic. On the other hand, in Portugal, 65% of web traffic comes from a computer, 33% from a smartphone and only 2% from tablets.
Although the numbers referring to mobile use are less significant in Portugal, the truth is that the values have been increasing from year to year, and the trend seems to have come to stay. The numbers don’t lie. Worldwide, smartphones are the main means of accessing web traffic and only later do computers appear – a fact that has gone against the trend seen since the beginning of internet use. In Portugal, the data for each year indicate that we are following the same path.
What are the benefits of having a mobile-optimized website?
Now, let’s go over the advantages associated with a mobile-optimized website:
- Improves user experience
Users need to be able to navigate your website effortlessly, and for that, you need to ensure that the appropriate mobile optimizations are in place. By creating a fun, appealing and easy-to-navigate online platform, it solidifies the user experience, further increasing your chances of return.
- Is valued in terms of SEO
Search engines usually show different results for manual searches and searches performed using computers. Therefore, if your website is not mobile-optimized, it will be more difficult for mobile users to find your page.
- More pageviews and lower bounce rates
Offering a “mobile friendly” website is one of the most effective ways to keep visitors on your page for longer. People are more likely to stay on a website that is easy to use, aesthetically appealing, well-structured and clear, thus reducing bounce rates.
- Increased visitor loyalty
If people have a positive interaction with your website, they are more likely to use it again. The same happens in reverse. If your website hasn’t made a good first impression on the visitor, you can count on one less person checking your content. In fact, 62% of users who have a negative mobile experience with a website are less likely to purchase from it again in the future.
- Increases page loading speed
An optimized website speeds up the loading of its pages, which is always advantageous for any user. In addition to satisfying your visitor, you can enjoy another advantage: Google prioritizes mobile pages with faster loading speed. In other words, one of the factors that helps Google determine your website’s ranking in search results is precisely the loading speed of your pages. So here’s one more reason to bet on optimization!
- Mobile devices are most used to research products before purchase
Before purchasing a particular product, users like to explore their options first, analyzing prices, available supply, among other factors. Statistics show that 69% of users worldwide aged 18-39 search for products from mobile devices.
Optimizing your site for mobile is something that should be seriously considered. Don’t forget that your website is often the first point of contact between your brand/company and users, so creating a good first impression is extremely important. With the growing number of traffic coming from mobile devices, ignoring the optimization of a website for mobile means ignoring a potential opportunity for your business. We hope we helped!
