More people are using their mobile devices to check the internet. Indeed, the use of mobile internet has so far exceeded expert industry predictions. 2012 saw the first wave of mobile websites rolled out by a lot of companies; 2013 is likely to see the second wave of mobile sites come out, in many cases fixing the problems inherent in the first.

So what are the basic design considerations for a web design agency providing mobile site design?

A mobile device has two major elements to it, which differentiates it from the laptop or PC. First, it has a very small screen (relative to the screen size of a PC) and second, its screen is often sensitive to touch. Certainly, most phones that are able to connect to the internet in a meaningful way are also equipped with touch screen technology.

Web design requires that a web design agency create sites that their end users can interact with in intuitive and sensible ways. Where a device has a smaller screen, with touch sensitivity, one of the first things to change is the way in which the site user navigates his or her way around the pages.

A small screen cannot show the breadth of information that the traditional PC screen home page does. So the web design agency must either find an alternative way of showcasing the same amount of home page information (for example by using a Windows 8 style series of tabs or tiles); or it must find a new way of splitting that information out into multiple pages.

There are famously several ways to skin a cat, so there are also multiple ways for a web design agency to use a new technology to its advantage. In addition to the mobile version of the website, the mobile marketer is able to use mobile-centric marketing methods to make end users aware of changes in the market, or of special offers they wish to take advantage of. Any form of marketing that puts a mobile phone user into a buying or site using frame of mind can connect that user instantly with the website. So these agencies in keeping up with its expanded modern role as digital marketing solutions provider may also aim at running SMS campaigns or QR code campaigns alongside a mobile site launch.

The QR campaign represents a particularly interesting use of technology. In many ways, the QR code is the logical next step for integrating the web with the real world; in a way that is by definition specific to people using devices they keep in their pockets.

You cannot interact directly with the world and the web at the same time when you use a laptop. The screen is too big. When you point your phone at something, though, only a tiny part of your visible space is taken up by the screen on which the internet is displayed.

The judicious use of the QR code allows the web designer to bring an element of interaction between the real world and the web. For specific types of customer and their site, this is an ideal way to get the customer thinking about the brand at crucial moments.

About author:

Sharon Wayne is freelance content writer. In this article she explain the factors to consider for a web design agency while creating websites for mobile devices.