With so many of us using our smartphones and tablets to search the internet, it’s more important than ever for you to make sure your studio website is mobile-friendly.
What is Mobile Friendly?
Did you know that mobile browsing is responsible for over 30% of the search traffic on the internet today? And because these mobile devices have smaller screens, it is often very difficult to see and navigate from a website that is laid out for a larger desktop display. A mobile-friendly website either adjusts to the users screen size using a responsive web design, or provide a separate mobile version that displays when a user is viewing your site from a mobile device.
As an example, let’s look at Jay & Organ and Piano in Ft. Myers, FL. Their music studio website offers different displays for desktop users and mobile browsers:
The most important difference you will notice is that while the full screen desktop version shows a visually rich rotating banner illustrating their products and services, the mobile version concentrates on delivering the more important content to the mobile device user.
Less is More
When it comes to mobile website design, it’s important to remember that LESS IS MORE. Large amounts of graphics and images can cause slow performance on mobile devices and be difficult to read when shrunk to fit the smaller screens. And with mobile browsing increasing daily, it’s important for your studio to accommodate these mobile visitors to make it as easy as possible for them to see your website information and quickly contact you about your classes and services.
Here are some tips to help you attract online users with a mobile site that’s user-friendly.
1. Simple Navigation
Keep the navigation simple and use large buttons or a convenient dropdown. Be sure the homepage has your most important contact information which most mobile users would be looking to find quickly. Make our newsletter signup and contact information prominent enough that a mobile user can easily take action to contact you.
2. Limit left-to-right Scrolling
On smaller mobile devices, it can be very frustrating to have to scroll horizontally across the screen to see all of your information. Concentrate on keeping your important information in a vertical column that fits easily on the smaller screens.
3. Limit Image Sizes
Your regular website may be filled with lots of large graphics but be sure to rethink that when creating your mobile site. Having too many images can significantly lengthen page load time and increase the odds that visitors will leave your site. Choose smaller images or resize existing ones so they load quickly on the smaller devices.
4. Link to your Full Website
Sometimes your mobile visitors want the option of clicking through to your full-size site to see more detail or view larger images. So include a link in the footer to allow them to view your full website version as well.
5. Get Help
If you are savvy in html, there are several DIY tools available on the web, or if you’d rather spend your time building your studio business, you may want to contact a professional web designer/developer to help.
Whether you build your mobile website version yourself or hire a professional to do it for you, be sure to test it on different mobile devices to be sure all your mobile visitors have a smooth experience, and be sure to keep keep your content up to date.
Betty Walker is a technology consultant that specializes in helping studio owners and small businesses “take it to the web” through custom website development, social media marketing, and innovative online solutions. You can contact Betty at http://www.wiseweblady.com.
