According to research, by 2015, mobile Internet use will surpass desktop use. So, if you think a mobile website is a waste of your valuable business pounds, think again. The whole world is “going mobile.”

This huge increase in mobile browser usage indicates a significant shift in how users interact with online content.  The good news is that if you have a website, then you have a site that can be accessed by any mobile devices such as smart phones and mobiles however the chances are your site looks pretty bad on mobile devices meaning users will leave your site earlier than they would on a desktop site.

Here are 10 reasons why you need a mobile-ready website today:

1. The fastest growing communications channel in history
Your current and potential customers are using their smartphones for everything – information, news, entertainment, shopping, research, purchasing decisions, finding local areas of interest, and much more. According to Eric Schmidt, Google’s CEO, the mobile Web is growing eight times faster than the first wave of online Internet adoption.

2. Immediacy
Customers carry their smartphones everywhere and use them regularly to make immediate decisions and to take quick action. The very nature of consumer behavior mandates that your business have a mobile presence so you’re business website is easily accessible anytime/anywhere your customers need you.

3. Quick access
Typically, mobile website visitors are looking for quick access to your business, they don’t necessarily need everything that’s on your main website but they do want a phone number, a contact form so they can leave a message, your hours of operation, directions to your business, services, pricing etc.

4. Benefit from a larger mobile audience
Having a mobile website makes your company easily accessible to a growing mobile audience with many users making decisions on who they wish to use exclusively by mobile phone. Don’t give customers-on-the-run an excuse to browse elsewhere.

5. Mobile websites are device independent
Mobile websites reach all audiences no matter what smartphone they use. Every smartphone has a browser – so users can immediately find you on the mobile web.

6. Easy for mobile users to read your content
Websites designed for desktops and laptops don’t often work well on mobile devices. Asking your users to pinch and zoom to navigate through your site and read your content can be frustrating for them whereas a mobile-ready site makes finding answer to questions quick, easy and friendly.

7. Your competition
If your competition already has a mobile friendly website, you also need one as soon as possible – or risk losing your customers to businesses with a mobile presence.

8. Make a bolder statement and stronger brand impression
Your business has already invested time and money into its marketing and branding … so don’t let that go to waste with a sloppy mobile presentation.

9. Higher search engine rankings
A business with a mobile-friendly website and a standard site enjoys a distinct advantage over businesses that do not have a mobile site. Google, Yahoo!, Bing and other search engines and directories rank mobile-optimized businesses higher than their competition.

10. Lower your ‘Bounce’ rate
Our own research and statistics clearly illustrate that sites without a mobile optimised website have a larger percentage of mobile users leave their site without looking at more than one page.  Increase the time that users spend on your site will increase the likelihood of an enquiry or sale

Incidentally, if you’re considering a mobile app rather than a mobile website,  go for the website as most users are going to look for you via their web browser.