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The question remains; how should you optimize a mobile web page? All
of the presenters provided tips, but Cindy Krum’s presentation provided
the majority of information. I listed a blend of the tips from all
presenters below:

1. Make certain that no information is located more than 3 clicks from the home page
   




2. Organize
   the page so the main content appears first on the page followed by the
   navigation. For most this will seem counter intuitive, but by laying
   out the mobile page in this manner mobile users will see the content
   they want faster and thus know they are on a different page; versus
   seeing the same navigation listing again if the navigation was at the
   top – which would look the same across all pages. In addition, mobile
   users want to avoid scrolling as much as possible so having the content
   first will offer better visitor retention.
   




3. Organize
   your navigation in the most logical fashion. In other words, place what
   is likely to be the most popular buttons first using text links,
   followed by the others in order. In addition, make certain to word the
   buttons clearly and succinctly to use as little screen real estate as
   possible while applying good call to action principles.
   




4. Offer a sitemap so that spiders and users alike can quickly navigate the mobile site if need be.
   




5. Keep the filenames for the mobile pages short and keyword rich.
   




6. Do
   not use pop-ups, frames or Flash because these are likely to block
   mobile browsers, not just search engine spiders.
   




7. Optimize
   mobile pages for short keyword phrases since mobile users tend search
   using up to three words in a single phrase.
   




8. Rely only
   on the textual content, not on images, objects or scripts because they
   may not appear on handheld browsers.
   




9. Minimize file size for faster content loading.
   




10. Use
    optimized heading tags wherever appropriate. Just like standard web
    pages, properly optimized Heading Tags play a significant role in
    search engine algorithms.
    




11. Test and validate your mobile
    website to ensure maximum effectiveness for both users and spiders
    alike. Here are some options that Cindy Klum provided in her
    presentation:
    Simulators: Skweezer, Google,
    Validators: .Mobi Validator, W3C Mobile Web Validator
    




12. Conduct
    a traditional link building campaign specifically for your mobile
    website. Do this by submitting to local and mobile directories and
    getting links from other mobile websites. Also, purchase text links
    from other mobile and traditional websites.
    




13. Announce to
    the world that your mobile website now exists through press releases.
    This will add bonus backlinks to your website.
    




14. Offer social book marking and tagging functionality to your mobile website.
    
    

15. When a user clicks on one of these phone numbers their mobile phone will immediately connect them to the number.

    Include
    your main website address in the footer of the mobile page and make
    your phone numbers clickable using the following sample syntax:
    < href=”tel:2503851190″>250-385-1190< /a >
    
    Note: eliminate spacing immediately beside brackets for the code to work.
    

Other Tips from the Mobile Optimization PanelAmidst
discussion and the question and answer period there were a few great
points that I felt were worth adding to this summary:

• If
  you choose not to use a .mobi domain as your primary address for the
  mobile website then you should still purchase the domain and forward
  traffic to the alternate address. In this way, you will at least
  protect your brand. As an added note, I would strongly recommend using
  a 301 redirect from the .mobi to the main address if you decide to
  follow this path.
  




• Google offers a transcoding system
  that will attempt to change any website into a mobile website
  automatically. It was universally agreed on the panel that depending on
  transcoding to provide your mobile users with a mobile-friendly website
  is a very bad idea.
  




• According to Gregory Markel,
  approximately 17% of mobile traffic comes from users navigating
  directly to a URL. As a result, it is strongly recommended that your
  mobile URL is very simple to remember and easily typed in (no too long
  or difficult to spell).
  




• The current best source for mobile user statistics is http://www.mmetrics.com/
  




• Google produced a (PDF) Mobile Search Behavior study that Gregory Markel mentioned was an excellent source of information.
  

I will end this synopsis with an apt quote that Rachel Pasqua began her presentation with:

“… it’s really not a matter IF the mobile phone will become the dominant internet platform any more but WHEN…” – Yahoo! analyst Russell Beattie