If you’re reading this on the go, how do we look?

Let PR show you how to take advantage of mobile technology to reach today’s consumer

When people are at work (or supposed to be working), relaxing at home, traveling or spending quality time with family and friends, they are frequently online, more and more on mobile devices. Is your company ready?

The public can access information from anywhere with the help of mobile devices. As a result, the floodgates have sprung wide open for news organizations and businesses, and you need to be ready to provide the information your audiences are looking for.

What this means for your company

Countless information outlets and a 24-hour news cycle mean that people now have a wide variety of sources, making it both easier and harder to reach them. Customers can now read about you any time, wherever they happen to be, but with so many others competing for their time, you have to be exceptional to capture and hold their attention.

You can use this on-the-go culture to your advantage by connecting with customers in a meaningful way through their mobile devices. Instead of simply counting how many touch points you’ve made in your sales cycle goals, you can now provide real value and foster actual dialog. This helps you to engage your audiences, increase awareness and create customer loyalty. Location-based apps and QR codes are just two of the ways to do this.

In addition, everything, including your website, must be designed to be viewed on mobile devices, since studies have shown that almost a billion people use them to search the web. Sometimes, they may use tablets, but that is also significantly smaller than a traditional PC monitor or laptop computer. As for phones, which everyone seems to access constantly, even the largest screen on the market is only about eight inches.

How to make your website more mobile-friendly

• Test your website on all devices to ensure that it appears the way you want it to.

• Messages and blogs should be as short as possible and easily scanned for pertinent information.

• Graphics should be uncomplicated and type size must be easy to read.

• Place important information at the top of the page. This includes your company name and logo, phone number and navigation tools.

• Remember that many users will be navigating with touch screens, so use buttons and links that cater to this population.

• Make it easy for visitors to ask questions, discuss complaints or post positive reviews from their mobile devices.

• You may even want to create a separate webpage just for mobile devices.

Some technologies are designed for this specific issue. For example, you can use responsive design in your website, which automatically adjusts to users’ devices so that your website will look perfect on any screen. In addition, there is adaptive design, which displays different, individual web pages depending on the user’s device and its unique capabilities.

What can PR do to help?

While you’re trying to remember all of this, it can be easy to forget that content is still king. No matter how user-friendly your website is, if the information doesn’t add value, people won’t keep coming back.

Let the experts at Axia show you how to take advantage of mobile technology and use it to increase visibility and profitability. Contact us today to discuss how we can develop your mobile technology campaign for measurable results that fit into your company’s overall strategic plan for success.

Lisa Goldsberry is a writer for Axia Public Relations with more than 15 years of public relations experience. She specializes in business, higher education and technology PR. Connect with Axia Public Relations on Twitter at @axiapr.