Mobile content - or is your storytelling smartphone ready?

Summary

• It’s a mobile world - how smartphones are becoming the most used screens in our lives
• Understand the mobile user experience - how the role of mobile in our lives has evolved and how it changes how we consume content
• Tips for your mobile content - how to create content that meets the new expectation that the mobile experience creates

It’s a mobile world

Smartphone purchases and usage is predicted to continue to expand. Additionally, it’s predicted that tablet sales will surpass personal computers in 2015.

Today, the smartphone is a primary source for consuming everything from the written word to video. I don’t have to look any further than my living room to see an example of how the smartphone has become pervasive. We’re watching TV, but everyone also has their smartphone out. It’s the second screen. Or maybe I’m wrong. Maybe it’s the primary screen and the TV is the second screen.

Understanding the mobile user experience

It makes sense to think of the mobile user as someone who is looking for a quick answer - the location of a restaurant or the showtimes for a movie. But the mobile experience has expanded. The smartphone has become the go to activity to fill in those gaps in our days.

For example, you’re waiting for a meeting to start, so you check your phone. The second screen scenario I gave above is another illustration. Both of these examples give us insight into how the user is engaging. Attention can be split between screens or there is just a short time to engage. This should inform how we create content that complements how our users are engaging on their mobile devices.

Tips for your mobile content

The importance of mobile is undeniable. And we’re understanding how our users are incorporating it into their lives. With that in mind, here are a few tips to ensure your content works well in the mobile environment.

1. Make it snackable – keep your sections lean and your paragraphs as concise as possible. It allows your users to get through a chunk of content easily.
2. Consider a summary at the top – a quick summary lets your readers decide where they want to start and navigate there with ease.
3. Use visuals wisely – pictures and graphics can add a nice break to a longer piece of content. But make sure type is legible at the smaller mobile screen sizes.
4. Incorporate video – more and more video is being consumed on mobile devices. Again, be cognizant of the screen size. Make sure the visuals and type are big enough to discern at this resolution.
5. Use smart technology – a responsive site ensures that your content is easy to read and navigate whether your user is accessing it on a laptop, a tablet, or a smartphone. After all, there’s nothing worse than having to pinch, zoom, and scroll to get through a story.

This post takes advantage of a good number of these tips. There is a summary at the top that allows you to navigate quickly. The sections are easy to get through. And it’s responsive – if you’re on a pc or laptop, shrink your browser window down to the size of a smartphone screen and watch how the page adjusts.

Mobile is changing the standard for how we engage with users. Make sure your content is smartphone ready. And you’re delivering an experience that matches the expectations your users have today.