2. WHAT IS A MOBILE WEBSITE?
A version of a full website optimized specifically for smartphones and other
mobile devices
Allows easy reading and navigation
Created using code like HTML/CSS
Typically located on subdomains of your main site (e.g.
mobile.yourdomain.com)
Access using a smartphone's web browser
3. MOBILE WEB VS. MOBILE APPS
A mobile site is an extension of your main website
Contains repurposing content optimized for mobile viewing
Mobile Apps are another animal all together
There are two types of mobile apps:
Native Apps – Typically downloaded from an 'app store' and run on a specific
smartphone (i.e. iPhone or Blackberry)
Web Apps – Mimic Native Apps but are built using JavaScript/HTML/CSS but
are accessed via the Internet and run using the smartphone's web browser.
4. ADVANTAGES OF A MOBILE WEBSITE [1]
Easy to find
search engine
Using link or URL
Available on demand – no need for App Stores
Device independent
Not mobile specific – only needs a mobile device equipped with a web
browser
Ideal for mobile marketing – Send information about your organization on-the-
go.
Allows integrated advertising via Radio, TV, Print, Billboards, etc. with your
mobile website allows your consumers to take action
5. ADVANTAGES OF A MOBILE WEBSITE [2]
Easy to integrate with web apps
Use as a menu for other web apps (e.g. symptom checkers and searchable
directories) you make available to your healthcare consumers--providing a
"one-stop-shop" for mobile users.
Less expensive (Relatively speaking)
Building and maintaining a mobile version of your website is less expensive
than launching native apps that rely on app stores.
The wave of the future
With mobile Internet users projected to overtake desktop users in
2013, mobile sites are quickly becoming a "must have" rather than a "nice to
have."
6. RULES OF THUMB
Keep you content simple
Reduce your content to include only the bare minimum needed to get your point
across. With small screen sizes and limited attention spans, less is truly more
when writing copy for mobile devices.
Focus on calls-to-action
Provide directions to Urgent Care or Emergency services
Access to online physician directories
Get updates on available health programs and other resources
Call-to-actions should be front and center on your mobile website.
Build in escalation
Always have a click-to-call option available for mobile users in case they have
questions about your services or need to conduct a transaction that may be too
cumbersome on a mobile device (like registering for a class or event). Providing
phone numbers to specific service lines ensure a seamless transition from web to
call center.
7. RESEARCH [1]
Plan for a mobile website that meets your healthcare customer’s
needs, fulfills your business objectives, and integrate the features you
need now and in the future.
Include features on your mobile site that will encourage users to:
Share
Interact
Locate your business
Meet user expectations
Mobile device users already know what they want when they get to a mobile
website and are more likely to take action once they get there.
8. RESEARCH [2]
To plan for this type of user behavior, answer the following questions about
potential visitors to your mobile site:
Why are they most likely coming to your site?
What information are they most likely seeking?
What types of actions are they most likely to take?
Ask the Consumer
Mailing lists
Online forms
Social networking connections
9. ESTABLISH GOALS
Mobile visitors do not use mobiles site the way they might on a PC, so have
your immediate goals in mind when planning your mobile website and
consider the resources you have to put toward your mobile site.
What are my immediate goals: Sell products, drive traffic to my location,
generate leads?
How much money do I have to invest in the set up and maintenance of a
mobile website?
How much time can I put toward the set up and maintenance of the site?
10. FEATURES
Mobile device users:
Access social media sites second only to search sites
Take action more often than PC users
Location motivated and oriented
Like to share information
Features must be considered based on research and established goals:
Click-to-call functionality
Links to your social media accounts
“Check-in” links for location-based services (like Yelp, Google Places, and
Foursquare)
Google Maps
Ability to SMS (text message) your business
11. RESPONSIVE DESIGN
Responsive Web Design is the process in which content and/or layout that
automatically adapts to the size of the screen on which it’s viewed.
Three primary elements of Responsive Design are a flexible grid, flexible
images, and Media Queries, the latter introduced as a part of CSS3s.
Flexible grids - Basically themes and templates in which design elements are
set in percentages rather than pixels.
Flexible images - Essentially this means that if an element (an image) is larger
than its container, the rule forces it to match the width of that container (the
screen).
The Media Query - Media Queries look at the device’s capabilities versus Media
Types that are device specific
12. TOOLS
Most of the tools have graphical user jQTouch
interfaces and copy-and-paste Mobile Joomla!
code blocks that can be installed
on your site quite easily. Drupal Mobile Tools
Mobify WPTouch
Wirenode mobiSiteGalore
Mippin Mobilizer Zinadoo
Onmobile
Winksite
Mobile Press
iWebKit
13. TESTING
Testing sites give a preview of how your website renders across multiple
mobile platforms, but may also offer free performance reports as well as
tips and resources to fix any issues that may come up.
MobiReady
Google GoMo
Gomez Cross-Device Performance Test
W3C mobileOK Checker
14. KEY POINTS
Establish your goals and objectives
Understand your Target Audience
Do your research
Pick the right Features
Use the right tools
Don't ignore the mobile healthcare consumer.
A website optimized for mobile devices ensures your consumers get the
healthcare information they need, wherever and whenever they need it --
ultimately improving patient engagement.
15. SOURCES
Day, D. (2012). Building a Website with the Mobile Healthcare Consumer in Mind.
Retrieved September 20, 2012, from Sirona Health:
http://www.caretransitions.com/health_call_center_blog/bid/19281/Building-a-
Website-with-the-Mobile-Healthcare-Consumer-in-Mind
Gube, J. (2010, December 16). 8 Tools For Easily Creating a Mobile Version of
Your Website. Retrieved September 23, 2012, from Mashable :
http://mashable.com/2010/12/16/create-mobile-site-tools/
Hay, D. (2012, March 28). 3 steps to a successful mobile website. Retrieved
September 21, 2012, from SocialMedia.biz:
http://socialmedia.biz/2012/03/28/3-steps-to-a-successful-mobile-website/
Nacul, E. (2012, May 10). Responsive Design 101. Retrieved September 24,
2012, from SpeckyBoy - Design Magazine:
http://speckyboy.com/2012/05/10/responsive-design-101/
Editor's Notes
If a user visits your website it should identify that a mobile version of your website is available and automatically redirect the user to the appropriate URLWithout a mobile version of your website, smartphone users will have a difficult time interacting and consuming information on your site -- making it much more likely that they will leave quickly
You don't need to choose between offering a mobile website or a smartphone app. In fact, the most successful mobile strategies use these platforms in conjunction with one another.
The answers to these questions can help you prioritize the content on your mobile site. You should highlight the three most important items and make them prevalent on your site. You may only have a few seconds to make a conversion, so call-to-action links or buttons should be one of those priorities.
Answering these questions can help you focus your mobile website content and decide on the most feasible overall solution.
With percentages as the unit of measurement, that means that an element that’s designed at 50% will always take up half of the screen, no matter how big or small the screen is.Since modern browsers resize images proportionally, the image aspect ratio is preserved as well. What’s more, the 100% rule can also be used for almost all other elements as well, like embedded videos.