Most advice about ensuring that websites are mobile-ready is aimed at designers, involves aspects such as coding and loading speed, and is of little concern to writers. However, with mobile usage at an all-time high—accounting for 51 percent of daily Internet access, according to Smart Insights—mobile content writing is no longer something writers can ignore. Here are a few ways to gain optimal engagement from your posts.
1. Cut the Fluff
Eliminating fluff is important for creating quality posts for any audience, but it is essential for mobile content writing where distractions reign. Start your posts with a snappy introduction explaining exactly what your audience can expect to find in the content, and continue with concise, to-the-point information throughout. This by no means suggests you should create only short posts; mobile-friendly content can still be long-form, provided it is free from words and sentences that add no value.
2. Focus on Layout
Small screen sizes demand appropriate layout. Keep your paragraphs concise, with plenty of whitespace as users scroll down. You can also enhance layout with subheadings in bold font, bullet points, and images.
3. Cater to the Busy Lifestyle
Every piece of content you write is competing with a huge amount of other information for attention. Encourage readers to consume your content immediately by writing on topics that target people on the go. To ensure your audience stays engaged, create pieces that users can benefit from instantly.
4. Think About Your Links
Including links in content is a great way to boost SEO; however, these, too, need to be mobile-friendly. Firstly, always check that links lead to a mobile-responsive site to avoid frustrating users, who may otherwise navigate away from your site. Secondly, ensure that links are easy to click by creating hyperlinks that consist of at least two words.
Even when you are writing blog posts that are not necessarily intended for mobile consumption, it is likely that a high percentage of your readers will access the content on their cellphones and tablets. For this reason, whenever you write, it’s best to keep these mobile content writing tips in mind.
