Johannes Tromp says the Web site for his South Carolina bed-and-breakfast generates good business. But last fall, he found a way to reach even more potential customers: He made a version of the site for cellphones.
Mr. Tromp signed up for a mobile Web address with the newly available suffix “dot-mobi” and used a self-starter kit from a company called Roundpoint Ltd. to build kilburnie.mobi, the mobile site for his Inn at Craig Farm. He says he’s gotten a surprisingly good response, with 30 to 40 new calls per month from interested travelers who heard of his inn by accessing the cellphone site.
Now new low-cost tools and services are making it easier to jump onto the mobile Web. Internet registrars such as GoDaddy.com Inc. and Network Solutions, who have helped millions of small businesses set up traditional dot-com sites, are now also beginning to roll out all-inclusive packages that help companies register and build mobile Web sites.
The wireless Internet is just beginning to take shape. Most consumers aren’t nearly as comfortable with mobile Web surfing as they are with trolling the Web on PCs. Entering URLs can be difficult on many cellphones, and there’s a limited amount of content that is well-formatted for a small screen. Cellphone networks are getting faster but still lag behind landlines significantly in broadband speeds.
Nearly three out of four U.S. consumers today have devices with Web access, according to a recent survey by the Online Publishers Association. Even if consumers don’t seek out the mobile Web page of a flower shop or pharmacy, they might come across it using new cellphone search services that let users look up local businesses quickly.
Photo by MSDesigns.
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