Will you sink or swim?
Right now, 65% of online visits in the US comes from mobile devices and it keeps growing exponentially. This persistent mobile growth in the digital industry is strongly suggesting that all online users today will soon be a part of the mobile era. And any company that fails to capture and make the most out of this information isn’t just missing out. It might be prepping for failure in the long run. Now, more than ever is the perfect time to both guard your position and get ahead of competitors. But before taking action, there are a few important things to keep in mind when it comes to mobile development.
Allocate a discernible amount of commitment
Let’s take a look at River Island, a rock star clothing brand based in the UK. This company diligently monitors its mobile growth and has been quite vigilant about it. It’s taking mobile growth as a valuable asset and a main avenue for growth. They are doing literally everything to be at the forefront of this digital revolution.
Retail Week reported that the family-owned company had a 40% increase in click-and-collect sales with 30% increase from mobile sales last year. This growth rate is absolutely something to take seriously and that’s exactly what its owners are doing. The Lewis family having 3 family members on the board, dropped a multimillion dividend this year in favor of online and IT system investments. In the Daily Telegraph interview of River Island’s chief executive, Ben Lewis, he said that:
“We are investing heavily in technology and people against a backdrop of a very challenging environment. Consumers are shifting their behaviours and they expect retailers to be multichannel.”
River Island is aware of the exponential growth from the mobile audience and they are determined to grow with it with major digital investments. This only makes sense considering the bounce rates of the average mobile websites due to lack of proper mobile development.
Cease the moment
It’s safe to say that the majority of online business leaders today are already riding the mobile wave. However, most of these companies are failing to have adequate mobile conversion due to a few common issues.
A joint study by Google and Soasta, revealed that mobile users usually do not wait for more than 3 seconds for a page to load. They are more likely to leave slow loading sites and then move on to the next website in the search results – that would be your competitors. In addition, 79% of users who are dissatisfied with web performance (on mobile) are unlikely to buy again from the same website. Unfortunately, the same study shows that the average US retail mobile sites load in 6.9 seconds.
This only shows that any effort towards digital progression through mobile software development that are done halfheartedly is a waste. On the other hand, if your competitors are part of the statistics, it’s the perfect opportunity to get ahead by enhancing mobile customer journey in mobile websites and mobile apps.
Mobile presence beyond a mobile website
Aside from a mobile website, mobile apps contribute a substantial weight on a brand’s mobile presence. It’s a business tool that makes a brand stand out, lead to a higher conversion rate and promote customer loyalty. And most of all, data shows that next to a mobile website, users frequent mobile and smart phone apps when going online. So when your target audience goes online through a mobile device, make sure they have a few reasons to connect straight to your company. And having a useful mobile app should be one of them.
Desktop is still relevant
Although comScore report via Marketing Land shows that 65% of the US audience goes online using a mobile device, it also shows that 35% still use a desktop for various internet purposes. Desktop still holds a relevant portion of target audiences in various industries and desktop optimization is still worth keeping competitive. Despite the mobile growth, some industries are still having higher online conversion rates via desktop. It’s still a significant part of the digital center stage and could remain so for a long time. Without question, optimizing for this platform will always be useful.
The transition rate of internet users from desktop to mobile just keeps gaining momentum and every company today has only two options for it. Businesses can either take it as a flashing opportunity for a growth jackpot or as an omen for an impending doom. How many traditional businesses have we seen shut down when they failed to cope with competitors online? Now that the competition is dawning on a new platform, it only makes sense to adapt and embrace the change. However, what makes others stand out from the rest is the abandonment of mediocrity. This fleeting moment while most mobile sites and mobile apps are barely working properly, is the perfect opportunity to take action and grow. In this age of mobile software development, you can only sink or swim.