For many businesses, keeping up with one website gets daunting, so the idea of adding another is mind-blowing. However, this may prove to be essential. Smartphones dominate the technological world today, with over 491 million being sold in 2011 alone. Businesses need to embrace this new technology trend or risk getting left behind like Netscape and MySpace.

Over 1/3 of US adults and almost half of teenagers own a smartphone. For a quarter of users, their mobile device is the primary way they access the Internet. On top of that, 87% claim that they use the Internet or email on their phones, with 68% saying they do it on a daily basis. Add to that the number of people with tablets accessing the Internet, and you have a substantial market share.

With handheld technology having such a presence on the Internet market, companies need to consider the impact this will have on their business. Many sites are still oriented toward desktop users, who have larger screens and add-ons like Flash Player to optimize content. When a mobile user accesses these sites, content is jumbled and an error message is seen instead of the intended content. This causes potential customers to lose interest in the company and, in turn, the product.

Companies using Flash on their websites need not worry, Flash Player is still a great way to display content prominently on a website. For mobile devices, a separate site needs to be made that will still show much of the same content, but in a different format. Instead of a slide show depicting products, have thumbnails. Reformat the content so it fits on the smaller screens. A mobile site can be simpler, but should still have the same aesthetic feel as its sibling site. By having a mobile site, it allows users on the go to access content and prevents those users from getting turned off by the lack of mobile access.

With so many people turning to smartphones, and many using them for their primary Internet access, businesses need to consider the implications of lacking a mobile-friendly site. By ignoring this new technological movement, companies can drive away current and potential customers. But by including this new type of website in their portfolio, companies can increase web traffic and can engage the customer on the go.

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