Is it already time to forget mobile?

You know more and more people are using their phone to access the web, and you know that you need to make a mobile friendly site, especially for tourism. But wait, new advice is coming out: can you skip doing a mobile site?

"Not that smart" phones
like mine will be around
for several years more

At a recent major tourism conference, a speaker advised against creating mobile-friendly websites for your destination. The reason? Mobile browsers are getting so good, that real soon they will be able to display your regular page with no modifications. So there's no need to invest in creating a whole new site.

I think this is bad advice for two reasons.

1. "Real soon" is relative. Even as the cutting edge browsers get better, it will take time to get those out into the hands of real people. How many not-so-advanced mobile phone browsers are out there right now in the hands of your potential visitors? How many more not-so-advanced phones are they buying every day?

2. People want different information when they are on the go. Think about what information you need when visiting a new town. My guess is people want information on the events happening today, basic attraction information, and other info that is not easy to get from Google or Yelp.

How can you tell what mobile visitors really want? Check your current site's analytics. Look for the number and type of mobile browsers used. Also check the pages with the most mobile views.

Secret Tip: you don't have to duplicate your whole site. Instead, create a special mobile FAQ page to answer the most common questions of your visitors on the go. Keep it up to date with the events of the day. If you can't add this to your current site, use a service like Posterous that is automatically mobile-friendly.

What's your plan for reaching mobile visitors?

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