Why Your Foodservice Website Needs To Be Mobile Friendly

Google consistently changes how they rank pages. One of the most important factors is responsiveness. If your current foodservice website is mobile-friendly, you can skip this article. If it's not, you may want to take advantage of Google's always-changing rules and read on. Not sure if your website is mobile-friendly? You can start by finding out now.

Okay, now that everyone knows if their current site is mobile-friendly, let's get into the details. More people are using mobile devices to surf the web than ever before. Google's own statistics show that even when at home or in the workplace, 77 percent of searches are conducted on mobile devices. And these are even in places where desktop computers are likely to be accessible.

So, if building a responsive website in today's foodservice industry is a necessity if you want your website to get found, what are the next steps, according to Google?

Google's Top 3 Considerations When Building a Mobile-Friendly Website for Your Foodservice Business

1) Make it easy for your customers to navigate your site and achieve their goals.

If you want your users to take a certain action, make it clear and easy for them to do so. Your website's main purpose should be to make your customers' lives easier by providing clear access to the goods and services you sell.

2) Measure your site's effectiveness by how easily a mobile user can complete a common task.

Always begin with the most common and most important tasks your users will complete on your site, and make those tasks the easiest to complete. For example, if you're a manufacturers' rep and want your users to read information about your lines, make that information accessible. If you sell a catalog of high-end chocolates, make it easy for your customers to connect to your cacao on your site.

3) Select a template, theme, or design that's consistent on all devices.

Make sure the processes behind accomplishing the common tasks on your website are responsive on all devices (desktop, tablet, or mobile phone). Not only will this provide seamless navigation for your users, but using responsive web design also gives developers and owners the convenience of only maintaining one site versus two. 

Build the Site Yourself or Work with a Developer?

Ask yourself a few important questions: Do I have the time? Do I have the knowledge? Do I have the desire to build my company's website? For many foodservice companies, one or more of these answers is "no." And for those who prefer to work with a developer or marketing company to create a mobile-friendly website design, Google suggests six points to consider for any potential candidate.

Google's Considerations When Working with a Web Developer: 

1) Review references and a portfolio of mobile-friendly websites.

2) Make sure your developer understands your target audience and how that audience will interact with your website on mobile devices.

3) Find a developer that creates quick and fast-loading websites.

4) Use analytics or software like HubSpot that provides measurability.

5) Build your site with best practices from Google's webmaster guidelines.

6) Make sure any contract includes improving and maintaining your site after launch.

Ready to talk websites with a web developer dedicated to creating foodservice websites that have an impact?