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Dental Tribune U.S. Edition | April 2013A14 INduStry NEWS 3 reasons your website should be optimized for mobile device users According to Pew Internet, 45 percent of American adults owned a smart- phone as of December 2012.1 As these powerful devices increasingly make their way into the pockets and purses of your existing and potential patients, it’s a business imperative that your boat — and missing easy opportunities to attract new patients to your practice. Mobile is where your patients are Many of your patients probably use the mobile Web; if they don’t, it’s likely just a matter of time until they do. 87 percent of smartphone users access the internet using their phones,2 and U.S. smartphone users spend an average of 23 billion minutes a month on the mo- bile Web.3 Mobile Web usage has explod- ed over the past few years and shows no signs of slowing: it’s currently the fastest-growing source of internet traf- fic,4 and many industry experts project that mobile internet usage will exceed desktop internet usage by 2014.5 For many smartphone users, mobile has also become their preferred way to use the Web: 31 percent of current mo- bile Web users mostly go online using their phones.6 A sesame Communica- tions research case study found that a mobile website drove an average of 19 calls per month to the practice.7 With so many of your patients “going mobile” these days, it’s important to make sure they can quickly and easily access your site on their devices. Mobile is how patients research — and make — buying decisions More and more people are using the mobile Web to research and buy goods and services. In 2011 more than $106 bil- lion in online purchases were made on mobile devices, and this number is ex- pected to grow at least 42 percent every year through 2015.8 Even people who don’t buy anything on their mobile devices often use them By Diana P. Friedman, MA, MBA Optimizing your website for mobile will help you best capitalize on the mobile Web as a tool for building relationships with patients. Photo/Provided by Sesame Communications CDA BOOTH NO. 1580 website deliver the experience these users expect. A strong mobile presence helps you get in front of prospective patients at the moment they’re looking for your business, and capture their attention once you have it. On the other hand, if AACD BOOTH NO. 227 Ad your site doesn’t look good or func- tion properly on a smartphone, it won’t take long for patients to move on to one that does. Not sure if mobile is important to your practice? Here are three reasons you could be missing the ” See MOBILE , page A15 Deliver the experience that smartphone users expect