HOTELMARKETING.COM

How to optimize your mobile site

November 24, 2011 | Online Marketing

Optimizing your mobile site means cutting out the junk. Mobile users tend to be searching for quick information; they're not so interested in site-seeing. And don't forget to take advantage of smartphone functionality, such as providing click-to-call functionality.

A mobile-friendly website uses just one single column, according to Dennis Mink, vice president of marketing for DudaMobile, one of Google's Go Mo partners. DudaMobile's platform automatically translates websites into their mobile-friendly versions.

"All that information on the left- and right-hand sides of the page has to go away," Mink says. "With a mobile phone, you have such limited real estate that you have to boil it down to what's the most important thing you want to communicate about your business."

Use bullet points instead of blocks of text, he advises, and prioritize the content mobile users are most likely to want. For example, your website may contain information about your company's history, your management team and your mission. That's great stuff for the desktop, but your mobile site should put front-and-center of the action you want mobile users to take.

"If you want someone to call you, have a click-to-call button," Mink says. "If you want people to come to your business, have a click-for-directions button that leads directly to a map. If it's a way to generate leads, don't have a complex form. You might instead have a simple, click-to-e-mail button."

Get the full story at American Express Open Forum

Visit our sponsors: