Anatomy of a successful mobile website

Odds are your organization is thinking about mobile communication, which means leaders want to develop a mobile app or two. But they also should look at making a seperate, mobile-friendly version of your site.

“Optimizing your website is the first thing you have to do for mobile,” says Shel Holtz of Holtz Communication + Technology. “It’s sort of the price of admission.”

But it’s easier said than done to cram a site originally intended to be viewed on 17-inch wide-screen monitors into 5-inch phone screens seen mostly in portrait mode, isn’t it?

Holtz and other experts offer best-practice tips for condensing your site without reducing its utility.

What are users looking for?

Before you start constructing your mobile website, ask yourself a simple question: Why are people coming here?

“Take a serious look at the content and functionality of your current website and your analytics,” says Patrick Kerley, a senior digital strategist for Levick Strategic Communications who also blogs. “At the end of this process, the site map for your mobile website is basically done. It is a list of five, six, or seven activities that a mobile user most likely needs.”