Thoughts On Redirecting Visitors To A Mobile Website

Facebook and Twitter are two of the most user-friendly sites on the mobile web -

and that's great news for those who are going mobile with their websites, because it means people can right-click on links in Twitter - and be automatically taken to a mobile version of your site, if they're accessing it from Twitter.

The best way to accomplish this is to set up redirects, so that whenever a user is detected on a mobile, it goes straight to the mobile version of your site. There are several ways to do this, all based on detecting browser screen size.

The easiest method I've seen comes from niche websites and involves inserting a small piece of JavaScript code on your main website, "anywhere between header tages. (I'd recommend right at the bottom of your page, so as not to interfere with search engine bots and site SEO.) I tried the piece of code provided - and it worked! I don't have permission to reproduce the code - I only found it today, and there's been no time to contact the blog owner, but you can find the article with the code snippets on the internet.

Treat Your Mobile Website like A Tweet, so you've successfully redirected them to the mobile version of your website - now what?

If you're re-writing a shortened, condensed version of your main website, treat it like a Twitter tweet: Just hit the high points, and strip out all the filler. (One thing Twitter has done for us since its inception: Turned us into effective self-editors!) Think of your mobile site visitors like Twitter users, and you'll increase your targeting automatically: You have about 2 seconds to get to the point, and half that again to show them where they want to go.

Don't use bottom of the page or sidebar navigation - simple tabs at the top will do the best job (and people are becoming used to looking there for them.) Make sure your type fonts are large enough, and easy to read (Verdana and Arial are two of the most popular), and avoid "high tech" color combinations with dark backgrounds (unless your demographic is between 18 and 26): Most people find them hard on the eyes.

Make your site easy to bookmark - and remind people to do it (your "call to action".)

Above all, be consistent with every element. After all, you'd find even Twitter confusing, if the colors and layout changed every time you visited.

Don't worry - you'll soon get into the habit of "thinking mobile". But until then, remember this maxim : Keep it short... and sweet.

by: Bercle George

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