Having a mobile-friendly website is vital to your business: Richard Michie

And when you checked the site was ok you did it on your laptop never, even considering anyone would do otherwise. Well, I’m afraid you are wrong.

Roughly 90 per cent of website visits come from people on mobile phones, that even applies if you have a B2B website where the figures for mobile viewing figures will be slightly lower.

So the first question you need to ask yourself now is how does my website look on a mobile?

I can see you reaching for it now but stop the temptation and read on before you check your site.

First, let’s start with the basics; all websites should be mobile-optimised.

If your website is so old that it’s not working on mobile, you need to fix that fast.

Mobile phones don’t have large screens and could be connected to your website on a bus or shopping centre, so your website needs to be concise. You’ll need to lose those huge images and let your customers know what you do and how they can buy from you.

Your site needs to load quickly, too. Longer than three seconds and your website is toast.

Busy people on the go have no time for slow websites.

The best way to check if your site is okay out in the wild is to try checking it on a busy Saturday at The White Rose Centre, Elland Road, on match day or on the bus to work. See if your family members can use it and understand how it works. Don’t guide them; just ask them to do a crucial function like placing an order.

Once your site is mobile-friendly, the next stage is to ensure you can be found in the vastness of the internet. There are around 250,000 websites launched each day, all wanting customers to find them and spend time and money on them.

There are a few ways to ensure you’re found. One is to pay Google and all the other social media channels so your site is found. This works well as long as you have enough budget and your site performs well enough to convert your visitors to customers.

The other way is with Search Engine Optimisation or SEO. This involves writing and creating content that matches the keywords people put into search engines like Google. If your page copy is deemed by Google to be the right fit, then bingo - you’ll appear at the top of the search, underneath the ads.

SEO can seem complicated, but it’s simple, really. Google wants to show searchers the best possible answer to their questions.

So, for your site to appear, you need to have a detailed page that answers your users’s popular questions. In addition, Google also wants the answer to come from an authority, so your whole website needs to be a source of as much knowledge as you have on your product, service or industry.

You see, digital marketing isn’t as complex as some people make out. If you create trustworthy content your customers can access quickly, and it helps them buy from you, you’ll do well.

Richard Michie is CEO of The Marketing Optimist