Is Your Website Mobile-Friendly?	1.0/5.0 (1 votes total) Rate: Select 1 - Terrible 2 - Poor 3 - Average 4 - Good 5 - Outstanding
Daniel Bailey May 16, 2017

In 2015, the Pew Research Center revealed that almost two-thirds of Americans own a smartphone. Currently, mobile purchasing only makes up about 15 percent of total dollars spent online as opposed to traditional shopping on desktop or laptop systems. Business Insider speculated about the reasons for this in a December 2016 article. Many users face significant roadblocks when shopping on a mobile device, so it’s vital to ensure your website is simple to use on most platforms. Such accessibility only makes sense and will lead to satisfied return customers for your business.

E-Commerce Vs. M-Commerce

While some use e-commerce as a blanket term for all online purchasing, the difference between customary online purchasing and mobile shopping is distinctive. Functions available to desktop or laptop users may be somewhat more robust than on mobile devices, which must display information on smaller screens and make efficient use of bandwidth on cellular data or wi-fi networks. Optimizing a shopper’s experience for both environments is crucial if you wish to avoid frustrating customers and losing out on revenue.

Obstructions to Convenient M-Commerce Shopping

Sadly, it is the very innovations that have made smartphones so easily usable that also present challenges for both shoppers and retailers. As revealed by the Business Insider article mentioned earlier, small screen sizes lead to difficulties reading product details, and also increase the likelihood of mistakes made by shoppers when they enter their payment information. Moreover, cellular data and wi-fi networks can be less reliable than traditional connections, and losing internet access in the middle of a purchase is aggravating. Finally, lingering questions exist surrounding the security of buying goods on mobile devices, given the added vulnerability to hackers.

Plenty of Advantages

With that being said, such obstacles are not insurmountable. The rise in retailer-specific apps demonstrates how many businesses are intelligently harnessing the power of mobile device access. Furthermore, developers and online giants alike have addressed such issues with functionality that is tailor-made for smartphones. Examples include the integration of Buy, buttons on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. Additionally, major retailers such as Amazon have incorporated one-click options that store payment information on a user’s account for later re-use. Such innovations hold much promise for the future of m-commerce.

The U.S. Census Bureau disclosed that mobile commerce comprised over 11 percent of total online sales, which reached $303 billion in 2014. Additionally, Business Insider predicts that mobile shopping sales will reach $284 billion by 2020 and constitute 45 percent of total online commerce. Such numbers are unsurprising, given technological developments and social patterns that may lead to increased device usage. The Pew Research Center revealed in that 7 percent of users only access the Internet through their devices, and tablets such as the later versions of the iPad are becoming more capable of handling tasks previously delegated to laptops.

Stepping Up Your Game

With problem-solving innovations and greater profit potential, it behooves many businesses to ensure that their websites are mobile-friendly. For non-tech startups and small companies, addressing these realities can be challenging. However, a mobile online presence is not out of your reach, and a feature-rich website builder is an ideal solution for many enterprises. In most cases, it’s possible to develop a mobile version of an already existing site. This option makes it easier than ever to enter the m-commerce market, and for many enterprises, the cost of entry can be lower than expected.

If the prevailing forecasts are correct, m-commerce may explode in the next decade. Entrepreneurs who strategically take advantage of the coming trends are wise, and may see their planning and execution rewarded with strong and improving sales. The key is finding a website platform and builder to support your venture into mobile commerce.