A 5 Step Checklist for Developing a Mobile-friendly Website.

Should I make my website mobile-friendly or not? This is a complete no-brainier question when even Google has joined the bandwagon and emphasized the importance of having mobile-optimized websites with its new update, Mobilegeddon. More than 3/4th population of the world is using smart-phones to access the internet and most of them are of the opinion that all websites must be mobile-friendly, otherwise, the website is of no use. Mobile optimization is the need of the hour. The only thing that determines whether the mobile website will be a success or a failure, is the manner in which the steps are executed. In this article, I will enlist a 5-point checklist that must be remembered in order to make a successful mobile website.

1. Know the Needs and Demands of your Target Audience

 

The first thing you need to consider while making a website is what your target audience wants. Do they need information about the services and products? Do they need the ability to register and make their own accounts? Before you move on to the next step, you must be well aware of the requirements of your target audience.

2. Have a Clear Understanding of Technology 

There are a lot many design options available like responsive design or mobile-specific design. You need to make the appropriate choice depending on the needs of your target audience. Get a clear and in-depth knowledge of the technology that would be used to construct the website. If your visitors want the same user experience as the desktop environment, responsive design is the best fit. If the visitor wants only few limited functions, consider building a mobile-specific website.

 

3. Test the Design well before Deployment

Make sure all the links in your website are working correctly. Keep the navigation simple. Check how the layout and buttons look on your mobile device to understand what adjustments are to be made to make the buttons and links easily click-able. Remember, different people have different sized fingers and the design should appeal to all. If you have an e-commerce website, walk through the complete shopping experience on the mobile website. There would be many intricacies that needs to be taken care off in a mobile website and testing the design before deployment ensures that all these minute details and flaws are corrected properly.

 

4. Use More Visualizations

 

Trying to fit a lot of written content in a mobile website tends to look messy. All designers must keep in mind that the screen size of mobile devices is limited and too much of written content can cause stress to the eyes of the visitor. Try to keep the content as much visual as possible. Images, info-graphics are the best way to make sure that your message is delivered in a short yet effective way.

5. Keep Track of the Website Analytics

 

Search engine rankings, bounce rates are important metrics that gives you the idea on how well your mobile-optimized site is performing as compared to the desktop one. Keep a close look at these analytics to remain updated about the latest trends and insights.

Finally, understanding the complete concept behind web design and development is the key to success. Upgrading your website design using the latest technologies will keep increasing the website traffic and make it more user friendly. If you are not equipped with the resources needed to develop a good website, hiring a professional web design company to do the job can prove to be a fruitful investment.

Why is Enterprise App Development Challenging?

Mobile applications are rapidly becoming a priority in all business sectors as enterprises realize the importance of 'anytime-anywhere' access to critical business information. In present times, all companies wants to have a strong online presence and enterprise mobility plays a crucial role in creating and maintaining this presence. The many benefits of enterprise apps like better customer service, improved business opportunities and more employee satisfaction is the catalyst which drives enterprises to adopt the mobile application development technology across all verticals. However, enterprise application development is more of a challenge than an opportunity for the IT departments. Creating a well designed and fully functional enterprise app is not a cake-walk. It involves a lot of complexities and poses a serious challenge to the mobile app developer who is more habituated with creating apps for the app store. Let us take a look at the things that pushes the challenge factor of enterprise app development a notch higher:

1. Understanding the Difference between Consumer-centric Apps and Business-centric Apps: In general, all app developers whether android or ios are accustomed to building apps for the app stores that are used by the common man. A simple, generic app appeals to a vast consumer base. However, the case with enterprise apps is very different. Different enterprises have different needs and catering to these varied interests requires a lot of research and analysis. Finding a solution to the specific concerns of every enterprise is gruelling and not much of your previous app development knowledge will come in handy while developing enterprise apps.   2. Implementation of Technology and Back-End Integration: Selecting the appropriate development technology is a matter of serious concern in enterprises. Most of the businesses already have a well structured and complex IT infrastructure in place. The apps that a enterprise app developer creates is just an addition to the already existing system. Enterprise apps, unlike consumer apps, are not standalone. Deployment of apps in this business environment requires the app developer to have an in-depth knowledge of the cross-platform development tools and a good understanding of the client's business process. Hence, it is a prerequisite for the enterprise app developer to have strong domain knowledge. 3. Managing Security Issues: Security is a flexible thing and varies as per the theme of the app. For example, in apps like banking apps the payment procedures needs to be more secure as compared to information apps. Proper implementation of authentication, validation and encryption policies are the key to developing a highly-secured app. 4. Agility: The operating systems are being updated continuously. Every day, there is a new app development tool in the market. These changes in technology must be adopted by the enterprise app developer to ensure a smoother and faster app development process. Agility and optimism are the characteristics of a successful enterprise app developer. Efficient management of deadlines is another skill all enterprise app developers have to master. People expect mobile apps to be developed within a few weeks, in contrast to creating a web or desktop app for enterprises, which is a long-drawn procedure where software developers can take years to complete one full-fledged app. The only way enterprise app developers can manage to such crazy deadlines is by using agile methodologies.   These are the factors that makes enterprise app development one of the most challenging areas in the development world. Ultimately, it requires a lot of efforts, expertise and focus to achieve success in this field.