Of all the time that users spent online in 2017, 71 percent was spent on a mobile device. And by 2018, that number will grow to 83 percent. Additionally, 72 percent of total digital ad spending will be allocated for mobile platforms by 2019. And smartphone conversion rates are up 64 percent compared to the average desktop conversion rates.

What do all those statistics mean? Like it or not, it’s time to optimize your marketing strategy for mobile. Need more help? Contact BlueSwitch, we're a digital marketing agency that knows how to optimize your strategy! Below are a few tips to help you optimize marketing for mobile.

Prioritize a Mobile-Friendly User Experience for Your Website

First and foremost, you’ll want to ensure your e-commerce site loads quickly and performs well on all mobile devices. According to Google DoubleClick, mobile sites that load faster than five seconds experienced:

25 percent higher ad viewability
70 percent longer average sessions
35 percent lower bounce rates
Two times more mobile ad revenue

Sites that load faster on mobile devices and are optimized for the user receive more engagement because they’re less frustrating and more trustworthy. In fact, 79 percent of users who are dissatisfied with how a company’s website performs are less likely to buy from the same site in the future.

In addition to ensuring your site loads and performs well on mobile devices, you should make sure it’s built with the mobile user in mind. Include an easy-to-navigate menu, touch-friendly buttons, links that are easy to click on, forms that are easy to fill out, and products that are easy to browse and purchase on a mobile device.

Optimize Locally for Mobile Users

According to research highlighted by MarTech, consumers showed a dramatic preference for locally relevant pages versus national or “corporate” pages. They want to know things like business hours, addresses, contact information, and special offers.

To appeal to the more locally oriented consumer, include geo-targeted content to attract mobile traffic. Include your e-commerce business in Google My Business directories to appear in more search engine results. Use Google’s Keyword Planner and similar tools to learn more about what your customers are searching for in targeted geographic locations. If you have more than one location, include unique information for each place.

Understand Your Multiple Marketing Channels on Mobile

Your e-commerce site isn’t the only thing that needs to be optimized for mobile devices. Your emails need to optimized be as well, especially if you include links to products or special offers that are hosted on your website. Regardless of where your marketing content is hosted, make sure it’s easy to view and navigate from a mobile device. This includes blog posts, images, videos, white papers, and any other form of marketing content.

Also, consider allowing customers to purchase items through chatbots and messaging apps on their mobile devices when viewing products, to make their experiences more mobile-friendly and seamless. And if you leverage social media for your e-commerce business, consider using social commerce buying buttons that make it easy for customers to purchase items directly from their social media apps.

Structure Your Content for Mobile

Mobile users want content that answers their questions immediately. They are more likely to abandon a site or ignore an email with dense paragraphs of text that are hard to read and sift through. Be sure to break up longer text posts and content into smaller bits and sections that are easier to scan from a mobile device.

Also, be sure to get to the point quickly and include headers and sub-headers that clearly state what your content will uncover; use bullet points and high-quality images. Think about including video content on your mobile e-commerce site in the form of welcome videos, product demos, etc. Studies show that video content leads to higher conversion rates. Working with a digital marketing agency will ensure that you're doing the most and learn other tricks for higher conversion rates.

Don’t Forget About Voice Search on Mobile

Optimizing your e-commerce marketing strategy for voice search on mobile is critical. Consider the following statistics:

Google voice search queries in 2016 have increased to 35 times their 2008 volumes
50 percent of all searches will be voice searches by 2020
40 percent of adults now use voice search once per day

Be sure to include keywords and the semantic language your customers are using when they conduct voice searches in the content on your e-commerce site and landing pages. And include structured data on your e-commerce site to better optimize it for voice-generated search queries.

Consult Analytics and User Behavior

Consistently analyzing how your users are interacting with your mobile-enhanced e-commerce site is the best way to ensure it remains optimized. Continually look for bounce rates from mobile devices and what’s causing users to abandon your site before they make a purchase.

Finally, test your site’s speed and mobile performance, and find out how many conversions you’re gaining from mobile users and how they’re finding your e-commerce site. Use the tips above to keep your marketing strategy optimized for mobile users in 2018 and beyond.

Optimizing Your Marketing Strategy for Mobile