Retail surgery: What makes a good mobile-optimised website?

A good mobile-optimised website answers the needs of the users. Why are they looking at your website on their mobile phone? Are they out and about and want to find where you are? Or are they grabbing five minutes on their commute to make a few simple purchases? In each of these scenarios there are some features that every mobile site needs.

MobiSite.co.uk managing director Nick Leech says to start with, the site needs to be the same width as the screen. “It’s much easier for users to navigate up and down a page than left and right,” he points out. Second, make the most important information the easiest to find. “People use their mobile phone to view your website when they’re out and about, often because they want to find out where you are or to get in touch,” says Leech. Adding a map, directions, and a click-to-call button all make these tasks easy.

Third, it’s not easy to type on a mobile phone so forms or text boxes for users to type in should be kept to a minimum, advises Leech. Preferably give users a choice to click three different options, rather than type in what they’re looking for.

A mobile-optimised site also needs to match the look and feel of the main site. Users need to immediately understand they’re on the right website, it’s just a mobile version. Retailers should also make sure they redirect mobile users to a version of the site that is right for their handset.

Lastly, give your users the option to switch to the normal version of your site. Leech says: “Some smartphones can properly handle normal websites, so users should be given a choice.”