April 3rd, 2012 • Posted by Kathleen Gardenswartz • Permalink
In 2011, 5% of global online traffic came from mobile phones and tablets and will continue to grow rapidly in 2012.
ComScore recently reported that tablets saw a big increase in popularity in 2011. In just 2 years, the tablet market has grown to almost 40 million in the U.S. alone. Tablets are changing the dynamics of how we all work and play online, and that evolving interaction should emphasize the importance of making sure your business website looks great on tablet devices.
According to ComScore, 35% of tablet users access their emails daily from their device. For businesses, that means you need to think about developing visual interest and dynamic copy in email marketing campaigns to leverage the tablet's enhanced resolution capabilities.
It's important to utilize color to attract attention and engaging content, giving tablet users specific and actionable steps to increase email conversion rates. Test all your emails on a tablet before they are released so you can evaluate their look visually.
In a recent Mashable article, Stan Schroeder outlined the exponential growth of the tablets and e-readers in such a short amount of time. Consider that 19% of U.S. adults own a tablet, and 29% own a tablet or an e-reader, according to a recent study from Pew Internet. These findings are amazing because it means the share of U.S. adults who own tablets nearly doubled from 10% to 19% between mid-December 2011 and early January 2012, and almost the exact same thing happened to e-readers, which grew from 10% to 19% over that same time period.
Litmus.com created a fantastic Infographic outlining the Tablet's target audience and usage trends all of which can be used to help you reach these sought-after tablet owners.
Consumer tablet demand is under-appreciated according to the Global Technology, Media and Telecommunications Equipment Team at Morgan Stanley.
- By end of 2012, shipments of the tablet may hit 100 million
- Tablets are accelerating the adoption of the mobile internet
- Two-thirds of businesses are predicted to allow tablets on their networks within 12 months
- Tablet users are doing much more than surfing the web, checking email or playing games and are moving toward content creation.
- Tablets are predicting to reduce the PC market by 3% in 2011 and could surpass that quickly
- Tablet growth will help the established leaders while challenging older technology
- Printing companies will be cannibalized by and we highlight AMD, Dell, Lexmark, and Ricoh as potentially challenged from tablets
So what can your business do to enhance your website's look for tablet users?
- Take a look at your website on both mobile and tablet devices so you ca see how it renders.
- Most businesses don't need a dedicated tablet version of their website
- Keep your website design crisp and clean, with clear navigation, so prospective customers can move around intuitively
- Stay away from Flash, since iPads don't support it.
