As more users turn to their mobile devices to browse the web, the importance of touchscreen-friendly web design is growing. Most standard websites are not easily navigated on touchscreen devices. As a result, you will need to redesign your website to accommodate mobile users. Part of a mobile-friendly design is making it touchscreen friendly.
You can dramatically improve the usability of your website on mobile devices by making it touchscreen friendly. Mobile users expect to be able to easily navigate any website that loads on their device. Don’t disappoint them. They may never return to your website again if they have a frustrating experience. Here are a few tips to help you make your web design touchscreen friendly:
Font Size and Line Height
You can improve the usability and readability of your website by increasing the font size. A good rule of thumb for touchscreen friendly web design is 16 pixels for font size and 1.5 for line height. This will make your content easier to browse through and read from any mobile device.
Touch Targets
Unlike the precise mouse pointer on desktops and laptops, mobile device users are relying on their imprecise fingertips. Often users are moving while they are browsing, making their touches, taps and swipes even more inaccurate. The standard touch target for mobile devices is 44-by-44 pixels. Design elements that are to be touched around this target.
Keyboards
Enable contextual keyboards on your website to improve its usability on touchscreen devices. For example, if you have a form that requires entering an email address, your keyboard should dynamically change to include an @ symbol, underscore, hyphen and other commonly used symbols for email addresses. For phone numbers, enable a numeric keyboard and so on. The idea is to make entering information on a mobile device as easy as possible through contextual keyboards.
Icons
Font-based icons are ideal for touchscreen friendly web design. Graphical icons can become pixelated and difficult to decipher across different browsing platforms. Therefore, it’s always a good idea to use font-based icons for the best appearance on all devices.
These are just a few of the many considerations you need to keep in mind when making your website design touchscreen friendly. Work with a trusted web designer to ensure that you are offering an optimal web browsing experience to all of your users regardless of whether they are visiting your site from a desktop, laptop, tablet or smart phone.
Is your website touchscreen friendly? If not, you could be making it harder for your customers to get in touch with you. For more information about creating a more mobile friendly web design, contact us today.
