On the heels of yet another high-profile smartphone announcement with T-Mobile’s HTC G1 launch, it’s becoming increasingly clear how important it is for website owners to make sure their sites are “mobile ready.”
I realize it may sound obvious and redundant, but as the mobile industry shifts more toward smartphones with a “full-web” experience, the number of an overall site’s visitor count is shifting away from home and office-based PC visits to mobile visits. While site owners make huge strides to attract visitors in a variety of ways, it’s surprising how many totally neglect the mobile aspect of their websites.
The introduction of the iPhone made a huge impact on the mobile-readiness of many sites, with many opting to create an iphone-version of their site to cater to the platform. While that’s an important step, it’s still only one device. With T-Mobile’s G1 handset on the horizon, and many more sporting the Android OS coming down the line in the very near future, site owners will need to make sure their site shows perfectly on not only these, but any future devices sporting any mobile OS.
“The G1 represents another step toward complete Web access for people on the go,” said Chuck Sacco, CEO and co-founder of PhindMe.net. “What we’ve seen with the BlackBerry and the iPhone is a shift away from cell phones to smart phones and the G1 is going to further spur that shift. With Google’s Android technology also available to other cell phone manufacturers who want to develop smart phones, we anticipate a spike in the number of people using handhelds for the kind of online information they used to access while tethered to the home or office computer.”
According to an M:Metrics March 18, 2008 survey, 85 percent of iPhone users access the Web for information and are 10 times more likely to search the mobile Web than cell phone owners. This is solely attributed to the fact that the iPhone has made it so easy and pleasant to use the mobile web. As more and more companies, device makers and mobile OS providers heed the trend, it will soon be an undeniable truth that website owners must face- to make their websites as mobile friendly as possible.
As the shift to mobile web-access increases, so does the need for reliable and effective mobile advertising. Companies that stay behind the times will be left in the dust by those that have noticed the trend and have taken steps to make sure their mobile visitors are happy with their experience. The question I have for you is; how mobile-ready is your website?