We’re well aware that your business is something other than creating websites, but you have to adapt as your customers adapt. Ten years ago, not having a website wasn’t a big deal. Five years ago, it kind of was. Today, it really is.
A mobile website is right in that “it kind of is” range right now.
Go to a regular website on a mobile phone
Just because a regular website can display on a mobile phone doesn’t mean that it’s easy to navigate. When a new customer visits your non-mobile website on his phone, he might be able to clearly see where everything is laid out… but only after he zooms in.
And even then, non-mobile sites don’t cooperate with mobile phones, especially when it comes to clicking on things. On a computer, you have a mouse to accurately click on anything you want. There’s no guesswork. But on a mobile phone, the user has to tap, and he might end up tapping the wrong thing.
Don’t think this is a big deal? Think again. Remember, this user has all of your competitors in his grasp by clicking the back button. If he gets fed up with your site, he’s going there.
It’s expected of you
The above was relating to new customers, but even your regulars expect you to be advancing. If you continue to stay still, then your competitors (who are using technology to their advantage) will slowly begin to steal them away. It won’t be a coordinated effort, but if your regular happens to stumble upon a competitor’s website one night, that mobile site might be enough for him to make an order and begin going there instead of to you.
It helps seal the deal
Okay, enough of what not having a mobile site will do for you. What will having a mobile site do for you?
It’ll close that customer. If you own a pizza shop, you can set up your mobile site to accept orders and make the checkout process completely painless. If you’re a business with higher price points – let’s say a lawyer – then that mobile site can display your phone number in large text. And you can format it so that the user simply has to click the large text and the call will start.
Something like this might seem like overkill, but it’s really not. People searching for businesses on mobile phones are looking to reach out immediately. (They’re on their phones, after all.)
A mobile website can help you close deals that you wouldn’t have closed without the mobile site. Get it? It’s just that simple. Add in the fact that mobile sites are infinitely easier to navigate and you get brownie points from your existing (and potential) customers.
You’re going to have to get a mobile site within the next few years whether you like it or not. Why not get a jump and beat your competition to the punch?