Mobile Content Creation for a Mobile World

Mobile Content Creation for a Mobile World

I have been really focusing on graphics and images for the past few weeks, but for this entry, I want to get back to basics, overall content, including text. More importantly, content for mobile.

You need to use a completely different approach when creating mobile content. The majority of the time, you do not have even a fraction of the attention of your audience.

How important is it to consider mobile usage?

I found this interesting statistic, “17 percent of cellphone owners do most of their online browsing on their phone, rather than a computer or other device.” – Pew Internet and American Life Project. That’s almost ⅕ of cell phone owners (who doesn’t own a cell phone) don’t really use a computer, they only use their phone. Not tablet, which at least gives you additional screen space, but on their phones! So I will keep writing this blog.

When creating content for mobile there are 3 things you need to always remember:

• Less screen real estate
• Slower internet speeds
• Readers divided attention

Of course those 3 factors are actually relevant for all content creation, since:

• Computers can have screens as small as a tablet
• Mobile data speeds can be much faster than some broadbands
• Everyone is multitasking these days

But with keeping those factors in mind for your content, here are some things you can do to help make sure your audience has the best experience reading your post from a mobile device.

Keep text short and sweet

With smaller screen sizes and shorter attention spans, you want to make your text easy to digest.

• Get to the point quickly
• Use shorter sentences (3 words!)
• Make bullet point lists (like this one)
• Break up your thoughts into smaller paragraphs

Long flowing sentences are great for sitting and reading a novel. When you are trying to get a point across to a less attentive audience on the go, get to the point quickly!

Smaller, less detailed images

High resolution images with tons of detail looks great on the big screen. It’s why you go to the movies rather than just watching that blockbuster on your phone. But if we are intending for our images to be seen on the small screen, then make sure they are clean without too much distracting elements. Also, keep the file size as small as possible, so that you do not lose your reader as it loads.

Less is more

This can apply to everything I have already mentioned, but especially for graphics. When talking mobile, you don’t want too many images in your post. They will make it take much longer to load, cause additional, unnecessary scrolling and break up your concepts too much. Include one early on to make the blog more visually appealing, maybe one in the middle to break it up some and then a final one to wrap it up.

If you are going to use something more involved, like an infographic or SlideShare, make that pretty much the entire entry with only a short introduction.

Use Video

Mobile video marketing is a very powerful tool. You can explain complex concepts in an easy to digest format. And it’s much easier to watch a video that to read a long blog entry on a mobile device. Just make sure you format your video correctly. There’s nothing worse than a great video that will not play.