A friend of mine is setting up the IT infrastructure for a brand new office space. Instead of having to set up laptops and PCs each staff member was given a tablet. How very forward-thinking. Another friend of mine described her new, upgraded office space. Much smaller with no designated work space per staff member. Meaning you come to work with your tech in hand and find a free desk. Leave the photos of your cat and your snow globes at home thank you.
Now more than ever, the design of your business, from firewall security through to your website and marketing pieces, has to look good and work great on mobile devices.
What does this mean for ux design?
- Content first approach
- Small screens
- Less content
- Simple navigation
Instead of having to set up laptops and PCs, each staff member was given a tablet. How very forward-thinking.
When designing your website, you want to ensure the content looks good and functions on mobile devices. Images should fit the smaller screens. Text should be easily scrolled through using a smaller device instead of a laptop or PC. Important links and Call to Action (CTA) buttons need to be positioned above the fold.
Going mobile in business can be both a blessing and a curse. Mobile gives us the freedom to avoid being tied to a desk. – maybe I take my conference calls at the cabin. But it also means the office is always with us. Does anyone out there remember the days when Dad came home (because Mom’s generally didn’t work) put his briefcase down and got washed up for dinner? His work day was done. Not to mention the weekends. Sundays were a day of rest, regardless of your religious beliefs and nothing was open.
Before I start in on how far I walked to school every day and what it was like working in an office before email, let me bring this blog to its conclusion. One definition of mobile is: Capable of moving or being moved. So get up and take that iPhone for a walk already — but make sure your business is designed to go with it.
Until next time!