Tuesday 30 September 2014

8 low or no-cost changes that reduce frustration for mobile users

Mobile users are concerned with completing tasks, and completing goal as efficiently as possible.
Mobile websites must therefore be designed with task completion in mind - without compromising quality of content.

Here are 8 low or no-cost changes you can make today to reduce frustration for mobile users.

1. Calls to action on prime real estate

Calls to action should be in the main body of landing pages not behind additional menu items. This could be a form field, a search function, or a location based lookup.

2. Stay in one browser window 

Keep users in a single browser window as switching between windows on mobile causes frustration.

3. Make navigating home easy

Make navigating back to the homepage possible from all sub-pages. According to Google’s
usability research, a clickable logo at the top of the page is expected by most users.

4. Click-to-call

Make click-to-call buttons prominent and remove any dialling code parenthesis to enable one-touch dialling.

5. Be finger friendly 

Ensure tap targets are large and finger friendly.

6. Real time error checking

Validate form fields in real time, as opposed to waiting for users to hit submit!

7.  Descriptive form labels

Place clear and descriptive labels above form fields, rather than within them. This way, guidance notes don’t disappear as soon as users attempts to enter text.

8. High resolution images

Provide high resolution close-ups of images – users expect to be able to tap for close-ups, especially on e-commerce sites.

About the author
Claire Cresswell-Lane is a UK based, CIM Chartered Marketer specialising in digital marketing strategy and communications. You can contact her via LinkedIn or Twitter.