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Tip #3: Add a Search Box
When you limit the content you present on your mobile page, you reduce the number of navigational avenues into your site. Since there are fewer navigational options, it’s important to provide a way for users to find specific content.
That argues for a site search box, placed prominently on the home page. (Note the search box right at the top of Lowes’ mobile home page.) You have to give customers a way to find what they’re looking for, no matter what.
Tip #4: Use Smaller Images, Fewer Images, or No Images at All
Here’s something else you need to do while simplifying the content of your mobile site -- cut back on the graphics. Since space is at a premium, you can’t waste it with superfluous images. In most instances, you can present content more efficiently in text than in pictures; let that drive your mobile page design.
Compare the use of images on Victoria’s Secret’s regular website with that on their mobile site. Their regular website is filled to overflowing with sexy photos, as you might suspect while their mobile site offers just a single banner image before it gets straight to category navigation. This approach puts more content on the smaller screen, which makes navigation much easier for mobile users.
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Figure 5 Victoria Secret’s normal home page, full of product images.
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Figure 6 Victoria Secret’s mobile site; text is more important than images.
Using text instead of images also affects the download time for your mobile pages. Mobile web access is typically slower than you get on a computer-based connection; everything takes longer on the mobile web. Keep this in mind and reduce the number of large elements that take a long time to download -- don’t make visitors suffer through an interminable download just to look at a pretty picture.