Eric Schmidt used the ‘Mobile First’ phrase for the first time to describe Google’s changing priorities for mobile over desktop products. While many followed the suit and took the mobile first plunge, enterprises are the last ones to take a call. The right balance between mobile and desktop is the question we get often from our enterprise clients and we always end up giving them the same advice to think beyond mobile first user experience.

Revisiting the basics

Strategy Analytics predicted mobile enterprise business applications market to reach $128 billion by 2022. Mobile presence has become a necessity for enterprises and there can be three approaches to your mobile strategy.

Some established enterprises are making a switch by Graceful Degradation of their desktop user experience for mobile devices.

of their desktop user experience for mobile devices. However, for newbie products, they are opting for Progressive Enhancement by starting small and then enhancing the design to fit the larger devices.

by starting small and then enhancing the design to fit the larger devices. Mobile Only approach has been adapted by a few, but some early adopters have already traced their steps back.

None of these approaches promised a great user experience. An ideal enterprise mobile strategy should be more than just designing for mobile devices, but about streamlining the experience across all devices.

In today’s times, mobile first could not be your go-to approach, but your mobile strategy should be a blend of the following four.

Consistent UX

Consistency in design results in interfaces that look, feel, and work in a similar way irrespective of the device. It involves reusing the common core components based on the similar UX design patterns. But these patterns have to be tailored for device compatibility. Consistent experiences allow users to get onboard quickly and easily, taking the shortest path to complete the action.

Pros of consistent UX in a glance

Short learning curve

Reduces confusion

Saves time and effort

Focus on task

The user research helps us in discovering all the touchpoints and designing interactions that focus on accomplishing a goal on all devices. This means refining the workflows and slimming down the desktop tasks for mobile users. A strong focus on task completion results in a simplified mobile UX, with just the essential task-based options that can be performed only via phone.

Pros of task-based UX in a glance

Context sensitive guidance

Helps user in taking the right actions

More efficient and productive UX

Smart UX

There are a variety of complex tasks that can be really hard to complete on mobile devices, at this junction you need an intervention of desktops. Smart UX is one that anticipates user needs and services them with the right depth of experience. Users can even customize their interface to add tasks that are essential and can be easily completed via mobile phones.

Pros of smart UX in a glance

Automation and customisation

Value addition

Guidance with less learning

Accommodating quick interactions

This drills down to taking advantage of the mobile interactions and designing the quick actions. These interactions involve skimming through the notifications and performing the actions directly through their smartphones. This will allow the mobile users to deal with tasks that require their immediate attention and can be finished with a quick swipe or a few inputs.

Pros of quick interactions in a glance

Simplifies UX

Quick and easy actions

Reduces mistakes

What lies ahead?

The decision between mobile first vs. desktop first approach is not easy as most of the enterprise users switch between multiple devices. While exposing too much information and complex tasks can dishearten the mobile users, but it’s also not wise to not give them the luxury of completing small tasks on the go. The balance should be in not reducing the functionalities for mobile devices, but tailoring experiences and customising views based on the device used.

Are you looking to transform mobile experience for your organisation? Drop us a line.