do I really need a mobile website?

how mobile web users are changing web design

You may or may not like it, but mobile web surfing is the future of the web. Mobile devices will continue to revamp how we think our websites should be built and how they should look. If you don't adapt with the mobile world, you will be left behind. In this article, we'll go behind the curtain of the mobile web market and show you how a mobile website could benefit your business.



the mobile future

According to a report by Cicso, mobile internet usage nearly tripled between 2009 and 2010. And, the expected growth by 2015 is staggering. There will be an estimated 788 Million mobile users by then. If you are thinking what we did a while back, you're wanting your own mobile website and piece of the mobile pie.

Mobile options

Essentially, there are a few options for those who want a mobile website. Here are the current approaches that are used:

• Complete Mobile Version: This is your full website re-built as a mobile website
• App-Like Version: This is a down-sized, app-like mobile site (like ours)
• Mobile Rendered Content: This is where only the content is shown on mobile devices
• Responsive Design: This is a site that's designed to respond to the browser dimensions

Which is right for me? Well, that really does depend on your website and your overall goals. Each version has its own benefits. We chose to build an app-like version for our own site. That's because people typically just want to see our portfolio and contact us. But, if you want to offer more functionality or show all of your site content to the mobile viewer, you would either do a complete mobile version or have us rebuild your site to be responsive to browser widths.

what works and what doesn't

Most modern phones, iPads, and other mobile devices will allow for:

• CSS
• HTML
• Video ( HTML5 or YouTube might be blocked. But, soon, these will be available )

But, many will not allow:

• Flash ( will not work on iPhone or iPad )
• Javascript ( many mobile devices block javascript )
• AJAX ( it might be a while before mobile devices fully accept AJAX )

Getting STarted

Contact us today if you are interested in discussing the creation of a new mobile website.

By: Brian Jardine,
Creative Director, ALG