There have been an incredible amount of articles written about the new iPhones that were recently released by Apple. Lots of these articles focus on topics specific to the company or the phone, but none of them go into detail about how they relate to web design or marketing in general.
Personally, I think there is a lot to learn when it comes to this recent Apple release for us designers, developers, and marketers. Let’s take a look.
Responsive Design is a must
This phrase is quickly turning into the new “Content is King” or “Social Media is Changing Marketing”. It has been said many times before – if your website isn’t responsive yet (or if you aren’t building responsive websites for your clients) you are behind. Two years ago maybe you would be okay with not having a responsive site. Today, it’s a different story.
The new iPhones have screens that are larger (this is becoming a trend) which means that your website is now being looked at through even more dimensions. A simple “mobile website” won’t do anymore. Mobile websites are limited in that they are set for certain sizes, but as with this recent release we can conclude that sizes are all across the board. It is much simpler to develop a responsive website that is going to fit on any screen.
Keep an eye on tablet traffic
With the new iPhone 6+ we are seeing a surge in “Phablets” taking over the smartphone market. Phablets are considered smartphones that are almost as large as tablets but are still small enough to be considered a phone. Another example of a Phablet would be the Galaxy Note 3.
I predict that with the new rise of phablets there are going to be more users selling their tablets because they no longer have a need for them. What does this mean? We should pay close attention to our tablet traffic over the next year and see if it doesn’t drop because of phablets.
Mobile traffic will be surpassing desktop traffic
I don’t know about you, but here at Marketing Giant a lot of our clients are already seeing mobile traffic surpass desktop traffic. People don’t want to have to sit down, turn their computer on, wait for it to load, open up a browser, use a keyboard to type a query into google, get the answer, and print it or write it down. Can we blame them? It’s much easier to just search from your phone. Many people watch TV from their computer but with these new phone sizes we might be seeing more streaming from smartphones.
This leads us to the next point.
Mobile optimizations (title tag length, etc)
As mobile traffic surpasses desktop traffic we should start learning about mobile optimizations more and more. Simple things such as studying the title tag length in mobile browsers vs desktop browsers can help us optimize better for mobile devices. Some other examples include making simple call to actions, making your phone number click-to-call, and increasing font sizes to make it easier for the user to read your page.
Companies aren’t warning many of us (ties in with responsive design)
Something else that we can take with the recent iPhone launch is that companies aren’t warning us about what their plans are anymore. There will always be leaks, rumors, etc. but for the most part companies are keeping silent about what their next moves are. As marketers, designers, and developers this should force us to stay on top of things and progress alongside the company instead of wait for them to tell us what they are doing.
High Quality Images
Screens are getting incredible sharp. The new 6+ has a 1080p display on it which means that if your website isn’t looking sharp a user can just assume it’s old and leave. Don’t be lazy with your images! Get high quality images (and please get rid of the boring stock photos) and make them look great.
The above are observations that we here at Marketing Giant have taken from the recent iPhone launch. If you have any additional observations, please comment below.
As always, if you are looking for a marketing firm that will show you actual results – we are waiting for your call.
