
Remove your desktop-tinted glasses
While some perceive the size of a handheld device as limiting the options for user engagement, this is only the case if user engagement activities are viewed through the lens of being developed for a desktop website. A good designer doesn’t see limits, she simply sees parameters, and a great designer replaces perceived limits with opportunities.Strip it all down for easy scannability

Keep it clean, clear and concise
The small amount of screen space on hand-held devices requires site content to be clear and concise. Use whitespace to draw the eye to the key element on the screen. Shorten category names, and keep paragraphs short and sentences succinct. Limit use of graphics as they make download time sluggish and users are often in a hurry. Mobile users are busy, multi-tasking and impatient. They are likely on the move, and may be searching for something in the neighborhood – a café or a women’s boutique. Perhaps they want to be entertained, or they are taking a break or waiting in line and they are bored. Some may use their phones to perform a task they will do again and again, such as looking up banking activity or paying a bill. Anticipate what their main task is, and make the element to complete the task front and center on the page.Simple call to action and elements

Shallow navigation is beautiful
Mobile users have even less patience than traditional online users, and they want to find the information they require immediately. Remember, they may be walking, on a crowded bus or subway and carrying a briefcase or knapsack. While the rules of user engagement suggest getting your users to spend more time on your site, one-handed searching and scrolling through drop-down menus is only going to irritate your user and prompt them to find a site that is easier to navigate with their handheld device.
Give an answer and take an email address
Once the site answers the immediate question, a good way to engage users who require more information is to offer it as an email or as a text message, or to update the user with text alerts. The user must provide an email address or phone number to facilitate future communication. This encourages interaction but also keeps it brief, as mobile screens aren’t great for filling out long forms that require a lot of information. Always be on the lookout for new ways to engage your mobile website users. Study the navigation of mobile sites and review analytics to see which pages users are leaving from most often, and spending the least amount of time on. These pages are targets for engagement activities as they will keep the user on the page longer.Capitalize on mobile capabilities
One of the exciting things about mobile site design is the new opportunity to engage the user due to the extra capabilities of devices. The camera, compass, accelerometer, GPS and phone functionality make it easier to identify the customer’s location. These allow designers to customize the user experience in real-time, keeping their attention for a longer period of time and enhancing their user experience through augmented reality features for information-based websites or user-targeted promotions for business websites. Location-based search functions can find the chain restaurant location closest to the user and let them know how long the wait is for a table. Click-to-call buttons can be used to book reservations with one finger-tap. In addition to location-based searches, picture taking with mobile devices is a popular activity with mobile users who then upload the images directly to social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. QR scanning for giveaways, coupons or even to provide more details on an item are other popular ways to utilize mobile capabilities. Prompting users to upload their images directly to a merchant social media account opens two-way communication and further engages the user.The wild world of mobile user engagement
The traditional marketing technique of enticing a customer to remain in a store as long as possible to increase sales is also true of websites, and the basis for user engagement and user experience, as we know them. The more appealing the environment, the more likely a consumer will want to look around, try on the merchandize or take it for a test-run, and the more likely it is they will buy something. Making that environment appealing on a mobile screen is a very new area of web design: mobile user engagement. User engagement is part psychology, part data analysis and sometimes just plain old trial-and-error. Just as web designers, developers and marketing departments are getting the gist of what engages users and makes them want to visit websites, the surging popularity of mobile devices has the potential to take user engagement into uncharted territories. Data about target markets and customer patterns that previously cost companies thousands of dollars to obtain through focus groups or surveys is now available by simply studying the site analytics for mobile browsers. The world is in the midst of another communication shift as mobile technology changes the way many of us communicate and do business. The opportunity to provide and obtain highly customized information anywhere and at any time is unprecedented. Many businesses are just starting to realize this, creating a demand for mobile-first designers, and those who are quick to create innovative mobile-specific user engagement techniques will be well-positioned for the increased demand as mobile sites become must-haves for businesses large and small.Sarita Harbour
Sarita Harbour is a freelance writer from Ontario, Canada. Follow Sarita on Twitter @avamummy or visit harbouronlinewritingservices.com
Read Next
30 Most Exciting New Tools for Designers, 2023
As we near the end of 2023, we wanted to take a look back over all the tools we collected over the past year, to pick…
3 Essential Design Trends, December 2023
While we love the holidays, too much of a seasonal theme can get overwhelming. Thankfully, these design trends strike a…
10 Easy Ways to Make Money as a Web Designer
When you’re a web designer, the logical way to make money is designing websites; you can apply for a job at an agency,…
By Louise North
The 10 Most Hated Fonts of All Time
Remember when Comic Sans wasn’t the butt of the jokes? Long for the days when we actually enjoyed using the Impact…
15 Best New Fonts, November 2023
2023 is almost over, and the new fonts are still coming thick and fast. This month, we’ve found some awesome variable…
By Ben Moss
Old School Web Techniques Best Forgotten
When the web first entered the public consciousness back in the 90s, it was primarily text-based with minimal design…
By Simon Sterne
20 Best New Websites, November 2023
As the nights draw in for the Northern hemisphere, what better way to brighten your day than by soaking up some design…
30 Amazing Chrome Extensions for Designers and Developers
Searching for a tool to make cross-platform design a breeze? Desperate for an extension that helps you figure out the…
By Robert Reeve
Exciting New Tools for Designers, November 2023
We’ve got a mix of handy image helpers, useful design assets, and clever productivity tools, amongst other treats. Some…
The Dangers of Doomscrolling for Designers and How to Break Free
As a creative professional, navigating the digital realm is second nature to you. It’s normal to follow an endless…
By Louise North
From Image Adjustments to AI: Photoshop Through the Years
Remember when Merriam-Webster added Photoshop to the dictionary back in 2008? Want to learn how AI is changing design…
By Max Walton
3 Essential Design Trends, November 2023
In the season of giving thanks, we often think of comfort and tradition. These are common themes with each of our three…