What viewing platform(s) will your site be viewed on most frequently? It used to be mostly a Mac vs PC or Internet Explorer vs Firefox sort of question (not to mention the issue of which versions!) but mobile has become increasingly important in the world of internet browsing. While this is a part of knowing about your target audience, it is also

a factor that is vital to consider when planning for the future. Many features on static websites are terrible for mobile and will drive users away.

Apple made the decision to give no support to Flash on it’s mobile devices. This now means that if you have a Flash-based website it is like hanging out a “closed for business” sign to anyone on an iPhone or iPad. Similarly, the majority of websites online today were not built to be mobile-friendly. Mobile search has now surpassed desktop search, with the numbers climbing fast. It is rapidly becoming essential for any business who wishes to remain competitive that they have a mobile-friendly version of their website ready to hang out the welcome mat.

A few other things to consider for mobile—
⁃ If you have lots of large image files or videos on your site, make sure they have been optimized so that they will load quickly and not bog down someone’s smartphone browser.
⁃ Avoid the use of popups.
⁃ Don’t have links opening new windows—or if you must, post a warning that this will happen.

To your business success!