It is really astonishing how fast technology keeps changing. A few years back having access to internet was a big thing. Today, however technology has eased our access to internet even when we are on the move. Interestingly, ComScore quoted that 75 million Americans access the Web from mobile phones and this trend is being observed in emerging countries like India as well. In the recent past, it is seen telecom service providers are increasingly launching innovative data plans at throw away prices resulting in a sudden spurt in the number of people accessing internet on their mobile handset. According to Google, number of people who have used internet through their mobile phones in India has doubled to about 8-10 million since 2009. The figures are expected to grow further given that many handset companies are thronging the market with new, innovative and user friendly GPRS models at affordable prices.
This trend has alerted many big as well as small business houses in India to plan their growth strategies in accordance to this evolving market. It is quite elementary that internet as a platform is something that every marketeer would think is worth trying to leverage. Moreover, it is still obvious that going forward social media platforms are aggressively going to drive the mobile internet or mobile commerce businesses. However it is often seen that websites are built to support internet accessibility through desktops and laptops and hence there are not many smart phones that will enable user to view the websites in the same way as they do on the laptop/desktop. Many companies in the western countries have re-acted to this trend and have already looking at possible options to make their website more user friendly for customers using mobile phones.. These companies are building what is termed as “Mobile Website” which in fact is separate from the company’s primary online presence. Moreover, in-order to ensure that the platforms are device friendly, we have observed more collaboration of software & device manufactures in the recent past.
Dwelling more on the ‘Mobile website’ thought, it is observed in some of the western countries that developing a mobile website is not a herculean task and neither does it cost a fortune. There are a plethora of online services that can easily create a mobile-friendly version of a company’s existing website (it only helps that most of them are for free!). Google Mobile Optimizer is probably one of the best alternatives in this respect. It is also the most basic version and least customizable. There are some other premium products like Mippin, MoFuse, Mobify, and WireNode which offers greater customization. For people who want greater customization, hiring web designers who could provide a platform with exactly sufficing the need of the company. Hiring a web designer is advantageous as it saves time as well as the money.
One of the most challenging tasks for companies though is how to translate the content designed for desktop experience into much smaller mobile screens and slower pace of mobile devices. According to industry experts it is always the context and not the content that needs to be tailored to suit the needs of a mobile user. It is most often the device that ultimately dictates the consumer experience of viewing a mobile website. Even though there is always a temptation to replicate everything in the original website into the mobile website one must start with the most important things relevant in the mobile context. This could vary from business to business for example if it is Courier Company then the most important thing for the company would be to allow customers to track their consignments easily via their mobile phones. The most important aspect in doing this is always to put yourself in the shoes of the user and try to know what their needs are.
Mobile platform provides a new challenge to business and indeed the companies that can seize the initiative and cater to customer needs would always stay ahead. Hence it is very important for all companies to act smart and act fast. Mobile is the way ahead!
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