Hardwood Floors April May 2018

Come to the Mobile Side (Continued)

No one knows the exact set of rules Google uses to provide search results, so it is unknown how much weight they give mobile versus desktop sites. What we do know is that Google is in business to always deliver relevant results to users, and they have deemed that mobile sites are more relevant to today’s internet user. Google’s search results take mobile readiness into serious consideration. With more than half the internet traffic being from a mobile device, who can blame them? If you still are not sure how imperative a mobile site is to the marketability of a website, take a quick look at the analytics/metrics for your website. These statistics should show you how many visitors use mobile devices or a desktop computer to visit the site. Note that tablets should be included in the mobile category, but they are a small percentage. In the U.S., internet usage is generally divided 50 percent phones, 10 percent tablets, and 40 percent desktop (these are loose stats and vary from month to month). How can I make my website mobile friendly? The first action to take, whether you believe your site is mobile friendly or not, is to test it. You can borrow a device from a friend, but better yet, Google provides a basic tool to test this: goo.gl/vUJWvj.

High-tier phone

Mid-tier phone

Low-tier phone

Desktop

1024 X 768 px

375 X 667 px 320 X 533 px 240 X 320 px

Additional reporting, including views of your site on various screen sizes and devices, is available through a free tool at ready.mobi. Once you know how the site performs, further action can be taken either by a consultant or yourself. The quickest and easiest way to have a mobile-friendly site is to use a website hosting company that offers templates for websites that are already mobile friendly. This template will form the foundation of the website, keeping all pages looking and acting the same, which makes it easier to navigate as well as mobile-friendly. Although most templates offered by web hosting companies are mobile-friendly, make sure to confirm this before purchasing a service or changing your current site over. Look for words like “responsive,” which in a literal sense, means the site will respond to any device it is viewed on, including desktop computers. If you are working with a consultant or designing the site yourself, keep this one thing in mind: Keep it simple. Take a minimalist approach with menus, images, and busy or extra text. Consider what exactly the user is looking for when coming to the site. What message are you trying to convey? They will appreciate the refined experience and ability to achieve their purpose. Once you select a web host and template, start content creation for the pages within the site. Think about content (and the entire site) from a “mobile first”

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