Back in 1999 you were way ahead of the game if your business had a website at all. By 2012 things had changed a lot and just having a fantastic website wasn't enough anymore. For those who really wanted to succeed online, a mobile-friendly site was becoming a requirement.
BBC website 1998 - '99
This trend has continued strongly to 2015, when even Google decided to get involved and punish companies that failed to serve mobile-friendly (a.k.a. "responsive") websites, by pushing them down their rankings. This happened because people's expectations have changed beyond recognition in the last few years. With the first wave of mobile devices, web pages displayed just as they did on a PC, just very small. Visitors had to pinch-and-zoom to navigate. While this was revolutionary, people's behaviours soon showed us this was far from ideal. To solve this, designers began adapting sites to respond to the different widths on mobile devices - hence "responsive web design". Businesses that did this were ahead of the game and, just like the early adopters in the late '90s, enjoyed higher revenues and customer satisfaction.
Responsive website as it adapts to each device
Today, responsive websites are already the norm and an absolute requirement - but people's expectations have already moved on! Simply having a responsive website just isn't enough to get proper traction and user engagement online. According to Google, 75% of people in Ireland use a smartphone to access the Internet. So it's no wonder we see up to 80% of customers' web traffic originating from mobile devices. What is also clear though is that visitors now demand more from your company online. They expect a deeply immersive tailor made mobile experience - that is responsive to their expectations. Companies that fail to provide this immersive mobile experience are demonstrably losing visitors, revenue and negatively impacting their brand. By a lot of measurements, that's failing online. It's not just a case of providing cutting-edge designs, slick animations or faster downloads - although they are all important. It's ensuring familiarity and consistency so that visitors immediately feel comfortable and therefore less likely to navigate to a competitor's site. After all people will judge (and leave) in an instant.
MyPanda web experience developed for Panda Waste
So the takeaway is, work with a specialised digital agency to create that truly immersive mobile experience. Understand who your customers are, where & when they look for you, and what they expect from you. Combine context and customer experience, with an immersive mobile experience and you're back at the cutting edge. It's like 1999 all over again, except with 3,000,000,000 more users! For more advice on the potential of immersive mobile experiences contact us today.
