Did you know one out of five people are only searching the Internet
with a mobile device? As years pass, that number is expected to rise as
laptops, tablets and Smartphones become the new standard – and reach
higher levels of technology. It’s not just the “hip” thing to do, it’s
becoming a necessity.
After all, many people have either lost interest in desktop
computers, travel too frequently or perhaps avoid desktop computers for
health reasons -sitting upright at a desk for hours at a time is no easy
feat. No wonder companies small and large are investing time and money
into building mobile sites.
The good news is, you don’t actually have to spend hundreds (or
thousands) of dollars just to design a mobile alternative. By investing a
little bit of your time and by using free or low-cost WordPress mobile
tools, you can make your site mobile-ready.
Mobile Themes
One of the easiest ways to do this, rather than spend hours creating a
new site for mobile, is to install a plugin that lets you auto-run a
mobile theme whenever a user accesses the site from a mobile browser.
You can look for mobile-centric themes and then choose a “switch” to
decide which theme you want for mobile phones.
Some of the top plugins include Wptap,
which offers WP-site conversion compatible with all the major brands,
from iPhone to iPod Touch, to Blackberry to Android phones. You can also
choose between free themes and premium. The Wptap offers a theme for
news and video blogging, a news gallery type image and a news press
style setup.
Another free plugin is WP Mofuse,
which does much of the same, and ensures your site can be viewed by all
major Smartphones. However, freedom is limited when compared to other
themes. WPTouch transforms your blog into a Web application, and offers a
panel for administrative use. There is also a WordPress sponsored
Mobile Edition, which auto-detects the browser your users are using and
displays an appropriate theme and interface.
Focus on Features and Eliminating Troublesome Content
Many companies are so gung ho about reaching mobile customers, they spend big money on developing an app.
You don’t have to create an app, but this knowledge should convey the
importance of developing a user-friendly and practical mobile theme.
The first thing to keep in mind is mobile is a different experience;
there is far too much information on a full website for it to display
properly on a mobile screen. (And of course, users always have the
option of viewing the full website on their device).
However, when you’re thinking mobile, it’s best to focus in on only
the most important content that will be of interest to customers in the
“here and now.” This will make your website much less cluttered.
Scratching your head about what to include? Then pay extra attention to
“take action!” information -the content that is going to make a customer
buy, or at least signup for a newsletter.
It goes without saying that you want to avoid popup images if at all
possible, since they are doubly annoying on such a small device.
However, did you know that Flash animation is also best avoided on
mobile units? Animation simply does not convert well on a lot of phones
and it can look very awkward.
White space is another key issue. Your first priority as a webmaster
on a desktop is to cram the page with great content, right? With
cellphones, this can be a problem. If you don’t plan a mobile
alternative, you may very well be working hard on aspects that are not
showing up on a mobile user’s screen – or you may be creating a very
amateur looking disaster.
The best solution is to build the mobile site with a mobile theme and
then reduce your design elements significantly just to create more
“white space.”
What About Themes?
One thing you need to know about mobile themes for WordPress is:
don’t get too flashy. That may be a difficult concept to grasp,
especially since everyone likes flashy these days. However, it is
important to make the “brand” consistent and try to mimic the
construction, layout and static images as much as possible.
It is easier to convert your site into a mobile site rather than
creating an alternative mobile theme. However, before you take the easy
route, be sure to test your site on mobile units to make sure it is
displaying correctly. Many company designers find that creating a site
from a mobile theme is easier in the long run.
Veronica Clyde.
Post from: SiteProNews
How to Turn Your Blog Into a Mobile-Friendly Site