Is Your Website Ready for the Tablet Revolution?

The revolution is here.

When Apple launched the iPad last year, it carved out a new category in the mobile device marketplace. With the release of the iPad 2 and newer challengers like the Motorola Xoom and the Samsung Galaxy now joining the fray, the market continues to heat up as more and more users opt to perform everyday tasks like browsing the Web, sending email, watching videos and playing games on tablet devices rather than their desktops, laptops or netbooks.

In fact, according to a recent study conducted by Nielsen, 35 percent of tablet owners polled said they now use their desktop computer less or not at all while 32 percent of respondents said the same of their laptop. The top five reasons cited for preferring the tablet over a desktop or laptop were portability (31 percent), easier interface (21), start-up speed (15), convenience (12) and size (12).

Additionally, Forrester Research forecasts that tablet sales in the U.S. will continue to climb sharply, from 10.3 million in 2010 to 24.1 million in 2011 to 44 million in 2015. The firm also projects that by 2015, 82 million people in the U.S. will own a tablet, a figure which represents one third of the total online population.

What do these numbers mean for you? With each passing day, the likelihood that consumers will be interacting with your brand via a tablet rather than a desktop or laptop is increasing. As we demonstrated previously, not all brands can or should release a native app, and even if you do, you shouldn’t neglect those users who will be surfing your primary site on a tablet-based browser.

As a result, it’s up to you to make sure that your website evolves to provide these users with a high-quality, hassle-free experience, or else you’ll risk losing them to competitors that do.

Here are nine critical elements you must examine now to make sure your site will continue to serve the needs of your customers and support the growth of your business in the era of the tablet:

Balance of content vs. interface

Tablet screens are much smaller than desktop or laptop screens, yet the primary use of tablets is for consuming content. Therefore, it’s important to make sure that your website’s interface is clean and clutter-free so that you make optimal use of the available real estate and allow your content to take center stage.

Typography

The type on your website must strike a happy medium for tablet users. If it’s too small or condensed, it will be illegible without zooming in. If it’s too big, users will be forced to scroll more than necessary.

You must find the ideal balance of font face, font size, line spacing and line length so that your content is pleasant and comfortable to read at the distance at which a user would naturally hold a tablet.

Color and texture

Color and texture are more than cosmetic niceties. When applied in strategic ways, they can go a long way toward improving the usability of your site for tablet users. For example, a subtle gradient on top of a button can provide a visual cue to users that it is an actionable object.

Keep in mind as well that with tablet users, you’re fighting finger smudges and glare for visibility. Bright background colors and patterns can reduce interference from these elements, while solid black tends to make them more distracting.

Buttons and links

When it comes to the tools your visitors use to travel around your website, size matters.

For tablet users, the clicking and scrolling of a mouse are replaced by touching and swiping gestures. As a result, navigation actions are less precise on touchscreens. You must allow a greater margin of error by creating buttons that are the size of a fingertip rather than a cursor.

Also, make sure to allow a little breathing room around your buttons and links, especially those that live in your site’s main navigation. Nothing will frustrate a user faster than being directed to a different page than the one they wanted because your links are crammed together too tightly.

Interface cues

If your website’s interface currently relies heavily on rollover effects, you’re going to be in trouble on a tablet. In the world of the touchscreen, there is no such thing as a hover state. If, for example, you have “previous” and “next” buttons that appear only when the mouse is nearby, those elements will be unavailable to your tablet users.

To create finger-friendly navigation, all elements must be big, bold and obvious. Replace buttons that require users to mouse over them to get a sense of action with style enhancements that draw attention to their “pressability.”

Menus

If your site contains drop-down menus, make sure there are visual cues (such as small up and down arrows) to indicate that the menu is expandable and that the menu remains open on tap.

Alternatively, you might consider streamlining your navigation to eliminate the need for drop-down menus altogether. Instead, you can create a showcase page for each main section of your site that acts as a gateway to the subpages contained within.

Scrolling

Screens on the tablet devices that are currently on the market range from approximately 7 to 10 inches and allow viewing in both vertical and horizontal orientation. As a result, there’s no way to be able to accurately predict what a tablet surfer will see without having to scroll.

The good news here is that tablet device users expect to scroll – not just vertically but horizontally as well. There’s no need to worry about trying to force all your important information to fit “above the fold.” Clean, streamlined design that promotes easy content consumption is the name of the game.

Forms

Many of the most critical interactions between your website and your customers occur through forms, whether it’s subscribing to email updates, requesting more information, logging into a secure account or completing a purchase.

Examine your forms closely to ensure that all fields render clearly. Also, make sure your forms are as streamlined as possible. Trying to complete a long form with many fields on a tablet is cumbersome. While the marketer in you wants to collect as much data as possible from your site visitors, the danger of requiring users to complete too many fields is that they’ll get frustrated and give up, leaving you with no data at all or, even worse, a potential sale lost.

Flash

Apple’s iOS does not – and probably never will – support Flash. Android does support Flash, but the performance of Flash content on Android devices thus far has been less than ideal.

If you have Flash anywhere on your site – whether it’s in the introduction to your site, your navigation menus or video – get rid of it now, or else your tablet users will be plagued with problems. Today there are better, more tablet-friendly options available, such as HTML5 and JavaScript, that can replicate the same effects that once required Flash.

When in doubt, test it out.

The only way to be confident about how well your site performs on a tablet is to put it through the paces on actual tablet devices. While there are some web-based simulators, they aren’t 100 percent reliable since they are ultimately limited by using your desktop browser to render your site.

If you don’t already own a tablet, borrow one or – if all else fails – make a trip to your local retailer and use the display models there.

Be sure to evaluate every element and every page of your site carefully. If possible, recruit other friends, colleagues or family members to do the same, and observe them as they navigate through your site. Because they aren’t as intimately familiar with your site and its nuances as you are, they may uncover stumbling blocks that you might have overlooked.

If you identify any problem areas, seek out the help of a trusted website design firm to address them. While you may have to make an investment in upgrading the infrastructure of your site, it will be money well spent to make sure current and prospective customers can access your site on their device of choice – which is more and more likely to be a tablet.

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Great Content, No Readers: How to Solve Your Subscriber Problem

Hybrid or Hummer: What kind of mileage is your content getting?

Previously, we established that content is the gasoline in your business growth engine. But your job doesn't end when you hit "publish." Promoting your content is just as important as creating it. If content is the gasoline in your business growth engine, then promotion is the difference between putting that gasoline in a Prius versus a Hummer. Even the most value-packed content can’t help your business grow if no one is reading it. For your content to deliver results, you must actively engage in bringing new people to your site.

Here are 12 tried-and-true tactics to boost your readership and maximize the mileage you’re getting from the resources you’re investing in creating great content.

Be a citizen of the web marketing universe.

No website or blog starts out with its own built-in community. However, established communities do exist everywhere around the Web. Identify the ones where the types of people who would be interested in the topics you write about are already hanging out, reading and making connections. Join in the dialog there by commenting on blog posts or participating in discussion forums. Don’t be a shameless self-promoter. Focus instead on adding value to the conversation. If you do a good job, people will be naturally curious to learn more about you, and they’ll seek out your site to see what else you have to say. Just make sure to include a link in your signature so they’ll know where to find you.

Don't beg for links; present win-win opportunities.

Once you’ve earned your stripes as a trusted and valued member of these communities, you can begin reaching out to the other blog owners that run in these circles for opportunities to gain exposure to their readers. But don’t just ask them to link to your site. After all, what do they stand to gain from giving you a link? Instead, frame your request so that it provides benefit to the person on the receiving end as well. For example, invite them to be featured in an interview on your site. Even the most successful and well-established bloggers are always looking for a little added exposure, and they’ll undoubtedly promote their appearance to their fans, too. Or ask if you can contribute a guest post to their site. Most bloggers will be relieved to have one less post to write, and you’ll get the chance to put your own original content in front of their readers, with the added benefit of a link in your bio.

Give links to get links.

When you’re composing your posts, there’s no need to pretend that you’re the one and only person who’s ever had anything of value to say on your chosen subject matter. Link to other articles and experts who’ve either offered great insights on that topic or taken an opposing point of view, if you want to refute their claims. When you publish your article, shoot the person whose blog you’ve linked to an email or a direct message on Twitter. It will definitely get you noticed and will more than likely get you either a retweet or a link in return.

Leverage the connections you already have.

Don’t assume that everyone who follows you on Facebook or Twitter also reads everything you post on your site. Every time you publish a new article, make sure you extend that content to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and any other social media platforms where you are active. Instead of simply posting a link to your article, a great trick is to turn your headline into a question. Open-ended questions leave people craving an answer, which will prompt them to click through to satisfy their curiosity. If you’re using this tactic on Twitter, remember to keep your post to 120 characters or less (link included) in order to allow for retweets.

Extra! Extra! Let them read all about it.

Create a weekly or monthly email newsletter that’s a digest of your most recent posts. Enhance the value of this newsletter by incorporating a few bite-sized tips or links to other interesting articles from around the Web. You might be surprised at the number of new readers the “forward to a friend” button might bring you.

Don’t be shy.

Opportunities to subscribe to and share your content should be omnipresent. Put your email subscription offer either in the header or the sidebar of your site so that no one who visits can miss it. Add extra incentive to join your list by offering a freebie at sign-up, such as an e-book, checklist or audio download. Be sure to present the chance to subscribe to email updates at the end of every article as well. If the reader liked what they read, that’s the best time to get them to sign on.

Give them options – lots of options.

Email addresses are pure marketing gold, but don't be so laser-focused on building your list that you only offer email updates. Let your readers consume your content in the way they most prefer, whether that’s by subscribing in an RSS reader, via StumbleUpon or through the social media channels where you post links to your latest articles.

Be attentive to your readers.

When someone reaches out to you – whether by leaving a comment on an article, sending you a direct message on Twitter or dropping you an email – respond. Making them feel like a part of a community whose members are truly valued will motivate them to spread the word about you and encourage others to join the party.

Create content that sparks conversation.

The real holy grail of promotion is not generating two-way conversation between you and your readers. It's the multidimensional communication that occurs when your readers start interacting with each other as well. That's when suddenly you make the leap from publishing content to building community. The key lies in how you craft your content. While it's important to write with authority and demonstrate your expertise, don't make the presumption that you have the final say. One of your most important jobs as a creator and promoter of content is getting the ball rolling on conversation and debate. Ask for input and advice. Solicit dissenting opinions. Encourage your readers to share their own personal experiences that relate your topic. Great conversation is magnetic. It will keep your current readers coming back again and again, and draw new visitors in when they see the lively interactions that exists around your content.

Find the right balance.

Remember that you don't have to post every day or even every week if that's not realistic for you. It's better to find a comfortable rhythm that will allow you to maintain a steady pace of both creation and promotion. It’s better for someone to come to your site and see that you post one must-read article every month than to see unpredictable fits and starts of activity.

When you find something that works, stick with it.

In the game of promotion, there’s no magic formula for success. It may require a lot of trial and error before you find the right combination of tactics that work for your audience and your schedule. When you do uncover a particularly effective strategy, mine it for all it’s worth. If you write a guest post that gets a lot of attention, find out if there might be an opportunity for you to become a regular contributor on that site. If you get a significant proportion of traffic from one of the sites or forums where you’re a regular participant, by all means, keep it up. If you write a post that gets more traffic, more retweets or more comments than average, continue to develop other articles around that topic. When people tell you what they want, give it to them.

Slow and steady wins the race.

If this sounds like a lot of work, it is. Community building requires time, patience and persistence. There are plenty of articles out there with enticing headlines like “How I got 10,000 subscribers with one post!” This probably won’t happen for you. That doesn’t mean your efforts aren’t worthwhile. Don’t risk becoming a pariah by being overtly pushy and self-serving in your methods. Instead, tread carefully and treat everyone you encounter in the blogosphere – readers, commenters and fellow content creators alike – with respect. As always, follow the rules of trustcasting and allow your community to grow organically in breadth and depth as you cultivate your reputation as a credible and authoritative source of information. Over time, you’ll build a robust, thriving community of people who will not only consume your content voraciously but will ultimately become customers and evangelists for your brand.

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