Tips on designing mobile Web sites
In a world that is big on standards but short on implementation, I’m going to take a firm stand on what appears to be common oversights in the design of mobile Web sites.
During a recent hunt of large brands on the small screen of my smartphone I began to wonder if there was any consensus on the sub-domain or folder nomenclature used by companies to denote a mobile site. This shouldn’t come as a surprise when I say I was unable to find any rules. But I did notice some general trends.
The most common way of creating a mobile domain or mobile site is to create a sub-domain http://m.widget.com where m=mobile. Other variations included http://mobile.widget.com and http://www.widget.com/mobile and, in one case, http://wireless.widget.com.
All of these variations are perfectly valid and all of them fit into the general structure of “m” as the designation or commonly anticipated designator of a mobile site.
However, think small. Your users are fat-fingering words, names and numbers on those tiny QWERTY keyboards constantly. So what’s easier to spell – m or mobile?
But is there even a need to spell it correctly?
Well-coded Web sites should have the ability to automatically redirect requests from mobile browsers to the appropriate mobile site.
Mobile browsers identify themselves through a user agent string when they issue a request to pull down an HTML page at which point the site should serve up the mobile version if a mobile browser properly identifies itself.
I’ve run across several large brands that have mobile iterations, but are not automatically serving them up when called from a mobile device. Go the extra mile. It may compel users to return to your site on their desktop if they have a good experience on their handheld.
To make this a trifecta of recommendations let’s consider the <title> of your mobile page.
Again the rule of thumb here is short and to the point. Try and avoid pitching your company’s core competency in the page’s title – “Widgets.com, the market leader in all things widget.”
Do the selling or pitching of services on the site and not in the title, because if someone chooses to bookmark this page the default name of the bookmark is essentially the name contained between the <title></title> tags.
Here’s an example of a title that’s direct and to the point: <title>CNET Mobile</title>. Facebook’s title tag is fairly short but could stand to be shorter: <title>Facebook | Welcome To Facebook</title>. MySpace’s title is short but lacks any identifying criteria <title>Member Login</title>.
I doubt that with all my bookmarks that I’d remember Member Login = MySpace when I haphazardly scroll through the list to find something.
There are lots of small nuances to take into consideration.
Mobile presence is about streamlining not only your offering but a user’s experience of your mobile presence. Think down the chain of events and how each keystroke represents precious time.
Smartphones are here to help us be more efficient. Don’t be the weak link in the chain of the user’s mobile experience.
Len Shneyder is director of partner relations and industry communications at Pivotal Veracity, a deliverability services and consultancy provider in Phoenix. Reach him at lshneyder@pivotalveracity.com.
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From My Working Life
The Mobile Mob
July 1, 2008
Yes, you can make your e-mail advertising look like a Web page, with loads of content and complex HTML. But your mobile audience is walking around with an inbox-in-hand, reading e-mails, browsing the Web and making split-second decisions based on a screen that isn't much bigger than a credit card.
The old technique of delivering a Web page to the inbox isn't going to work. On the contrary, it'll prevent clicks rather than encourage them.
Here are five simple rules to consider when designing e-mails for the 21st century inbox — the small one.
* Focus messages and calls to action
Attention spans are short; people will navigate away from a Web page or an e-mail in seconds if it doesn't load. Whether you're targeting the young, the middle-aged, or old, stodgy business users like me, long messages with too many offers are a turnoff to fast-paced users who're scanning messages on mobile devices.
Target your offer, create clear and concise calls to action, limit text content and segment by demographic and/or purchasing habits and patterns. Mobile e-mails should be direct, brief and require little scrolling. The call to action should be moved as close to the top as possible along with identifying information.
* Use prime real estate effectively
The new fold line (the point at which you need to scroll to see more content) is at most 320 pixels down and is measured in inches that never hit double digits. The space above the fold is the new preview screen. It's prime real estate, and these few precious lines shouldn't be wasted. Simply put, what you include here can make or break your campaign results.
For example, traditional best practices typically call for add-to-address-book language at the top of the e-mail. Many mailers do this in a smaller, lighter font than the core content. But in mobile, the smaller screen means there's less room to see your message and the general lack of HTML formatting support means your fonts all appear in the same size and color. The result is that the first and only thing visible to the mobile reader without scrolling may be your add-to-address-book language. The mobile mob is a highly focused audience. Make sure you're providing enough information upon first glance to engage it.
* Use a single-column setup
Marketers often design HTML e-mail so it looks like their Web site to preserve the user experience. But many sites use multiple columns to organize information.
Most mobile e-mail readers, including those installed on Symbian devices, Palms and BlackBerries, can't display multiple side-by-side columns and will haphazardly reorganize the page into a single column. A few readers can render a multicolumn e-mail, but the limited horizontal space forces the user to scroll left to right using arrows and other physical navigation keys (remember, there's no mouse). Keep the e-mail straightforward and let it flow from the top down.
* Limit links
Mobile users don't have time to click and load every link in your e-mail; they're not casual Web surfers. The best mobile sites are created to deliver core content and functionality, so e-mails should contain only the links needed to direct users to that content.
* Think about how you link
Keep in mind that mobile users treat links differently than traditional PC-based e-mail readers. Hyperlinking text will not always render and remain clickable. Let's focus on Symbian. By all estimates, 85% of the world outside of the North American market is using a Symbian device. Symbian effectively drops all HTML tags and renders the text of an HTML e-mail. All of the formatting, image references, font sizes and other tags are dropped, including the critical A HREF of your link. But if you use a fully qualified link such as http://, it will remain clickable after Symbian parses the e-mail. Thus, if you want to ensure your links will be clickable by the broadest range of readers, make sure you use the fully qualified URL for the most critical links.
2007 marked a new era for mobile devices. There were more than 3.25 billion users, and sales of smart phones exceeded PC and laptop sales for the first time. While PCs offer a richer experience because of size, speed and extensive media support, mobile devices allow marketers to reach customers anywhere, and at any time.
All of us in marketing should re-evaluate the content, relevance and design of our e-mail communications for one very good reason: Customers are reading our e-mails on both their PCs and mobile devices. The question to ask yourself is whether your e-mail program is in accord with the latest mobile innovations or still moving to the click-clack of a rotary phone.
LEN SHNEYDER is director of partner relations and industry communications at e-mail deliverability consultancy Pivotal Veracity, Phoenix.
July 1, 2008
Yes, you can make your e-mail advertising look like a Web page, with loads of content and complex HTML. But your mobile audience is walking around with an inbox-in-hand, reading e-mails, browsing the Web and making split-second decisions based on a screen that isn't much bigger than a credit card.
The old technique of delivering a Web page to the inbox isn't going to work. On the contrary, it'll prevent clicks rather than encourage them.
Here are five simple rules to consider when designing e-mails for the 21st century inbox — the small one.
* Focus messages and calls to action
Attention spans are short; people will navigate away from a Web page or an e-mail in seconds if it doesn't load. Whether you're targeting the young, the middle-aged, or old, stodgy business users like me, long messages with too many offers are a turnoff to fast-paced users who're scanning messages on mobile devices.
Target your offer, create clear and concise calls to action, limit text content and segment by demographic and/or purchasing habits and patterns. Mobile e-mails should be direct, brief and require little scrolling. The call to action should be moved as close to the top as possible along with identifying information.
* Use prime real estate effectively
The new fold line (the point at which you need to scroll to see more content) is at most 320 pixels down and is measured in inches that never hit double digits. The space above the fold is the new preview screen. It's prime real estate, and these few precious lines shouldn't be wasted. Simply put, what you include here can make or break your campaign results.
For example, traditional best practices typically call for add-to-address-book language at the top of the e-mail. Many mailers do this in a smaller, lighter font than the core content. But in mobile, the smaller screen means there's less room to see your message and the general lack of HTML formatting support means your fonts all appear in the same size and color. The result is that the first and only thing visible to the mobile reader without scrolling may be your add-to-address-book language. The mobile mob is a highly focused audience. Make sure you're providing enough information upon first glance to engage it.
* Use a single-column setup
Marketers often design HTML e-mail so it looks like their Web site to preserve the user experience. But many sites use multiple columns to organize information.
Most mobile e-mail readers, including those installed on Symbian devices, Palms and BlackBerries, can't display multiple side-by-side columns and will haphazardly reorganize the page into a single column. A few readers can render a multicolumn e-mail, but the limited horizontal space forces the user to scroll left to right using arrows and other physical navigation keys (remember, there's no mouse). Keep the e-mail straightforward and let it flow from the top down.
* Limit links
Mobile users don't have time to click and load every link in your e-mail; they're not casual Web surfers. The best mobile sites are created to deliver core content and functionality, so e-mails should contain only the links needed to direct users to that content.
* Think about how you link
Keep in mind that mobile users treat links differently than traditional PC-based e-mail readers. Hyperlinking text will not always render and remain clickable. Let's focus on Symbian. By all estimates, 85% of the world outside of the North American market is using a Symbian device. Symbian effectively drops all HTML tags and renders the text of an HTML e-mail. All of the formatting, image references, font sizes and other tags are dropped, including the critical A HREF of your link. But if you use a fully qualified link such as http://, it will remain clickable after Symbian parses the e-mail. Thus, if you want to ensure your links will be clickable by the broadest range of readers, make sure you use the fully qualified URL for the most critical links.
2007 marked a new era for mobile devices. There were more than 3.25 billion users, and sales of smart phones exceeded PC and laptop sales for the first time. While PCs offer a richer experience because of size, speed and extensive media support, mobile devices allow marketers to reach customers anywhere, and at any time.
All of us in marketing should re-evaluate the content, relevance and design of our e-mail communications for one very good reason: Customers are reading our e-mails on both their PCs and mobile devices. The question to ask yourself is whether your e-mail program is in accord with the latest mobile innovations or still moving to the click-clack of a rotary phone.
LEN SHNEYDER is director of partner relations and industry communications at e-mail deliverability consultancy Pivotal Veracity, Phoenix.
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