Mobile matters

Use of mobile devices to access the internet is racing ahead – among consumers and the business community. In fact, before 2014 mobile internet use is set to overtake desktop internet use. Dean Parker discusses how best to invest to benefit from this new era.

How is business responding to the growth of mobile?

Research by SAS shows that 34% of FTSE 100 companies either have a corporate site that doesn't work properly on mobile devices or lack a version that has been specifically built to work on mobiles. In the Dow Jones 30 this figure rises to 53%.

Of those that have looked at mobile most provide a basic mobile site - a cut-down version of their corporate website that uses a simple design and stands a reasonable chance of working on mobile devices. This is the level that around a quarter of FTSE 100 companies have reached.

The highest percentage of basic mobile sites is provided by companies in the financial sector (43%) - reflecting the demand amongst their audiences for on-the-go financial data and news.

The lion's share of tech-company sites function well on mobile devices. But 70% of FTSE 100 companies in the consumer goods sector fail in providing a satisfactory mobile experience for their corporate site, whilst taking to provide mobile content to their consumers.

And what of the App?

16% of the FTSE 100 provides an App of one kind or another - but studies in the UK and US have found that many Apps are downloaded, tried once and then binned.

And demand for the App as we know it is likely to decline post 2013.  Tomorrow's App will either be pre-loaded onto a mobile device or be part and parcel of a mobile website.

All pointing towards…

Shrinking desktop internet use; the ascendancy of mobile devices; the predicted decline of the App - all roads lead to a mobile future.

But how to prepare for it?

Does it require substantial investment? Will you have to discard your current site and start again? Should you be building a site from scratch? Happily, the answer is invariably "no".

Going mobile

Building websites for desktops is relatively straightforward. Not so for mobile devices: there are myriad different device and screen sizes, operating systems, browser types, technical capabilities and interaction models to allow for.

As a starting point, you should audit your current sites to ensure its existing content is compatible with mobile devices. Then find a mobile solution that suits your timescales, audience, budget and the resources available to you.

Your options include:

• An interim basic mobile site
• Undertaking a redesign and rebuild of your existing one
• Developing a more sophisticated mobile framework that takes advantage of all the benefits of mobile.

Whichever option best suits your organisation, consider this: the 'Mobile Web' is creeping up on us fast. Companies that will benefit the most will be the ones making careful decisions based on long-term goals.

This article featured in the latest edition of Communicate Magazine.

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• Digital, Brand