As more and more consumers ditch their desktops and laptops in favor of their smartphones for internet browsing, the overall percentage of mobile traffic continues to increase.
In the United States alone, 96% of people own a cellphone of some kind, with the share of Americans who have smartphones rising to 81%. So it’s really no surprise that more and more internet traffic is now coming from mobile than any other source.
What is online mobile traffic?
Mobile traffic is just what it sounds like: Internet traffic that comes from a mobile device. Typically, mobile devices include:
- Cellphones
- Smartphones
- Tablets
- e-Readers
It’s important to note that, despite being mobile in nature, laptops aren’t considered mobile devices.
What percentage of internet traffic is mobile?
While it’s nearly impossible to get an exact number, as far as online mobile traffic goes, research has given marketers a number as of the first quarter of 2019.
In the first quarter of 2019, mobile devices generated 48.71% of global website traffic.
That means those using cell phones and smartphones made up nearly half of all website traffic. However, this number isn’t exact, as the research explicitly states that it excludes tablets, which are often considered mobile devices.
Source: Statista
How to measure your mobile traffic to your website
When it comes time to measure your mobile traffic to your website, you’ll need to have the right tools. There’s plenty of technology out there that can help you generate the total number of users that visit your site from a mobile device, including the free Google Analytics tool.
There are two ways to go about measuring your mobile traffic to your website from Google Analytics.
The first method is to go through Acquisition Device, which breaks down traffic based on the use of desktop and laptops, mobile devices, and tablets. This shows you the number of users per device type, their average session, and revenue generated from each.
Source: Google Support
The second option is to check under your audience tab and then choose “Mobile.” From there, you can select either a total overview or choose by devices.
From there, you’ll have the opportunity to check total users, new users, and their average session, along with their behaviors and total conversions.
Does mobile traffic really matter?
More and more people worldwide are getting away from desktops and even laptops for their internet searching. Thanks to the ease of internet browsing through the use of a smartphone, more people can simply ask Google their question via voice activation and receive answers in a matter of seconds. It also allows them to do this while out and about, so they’re less restricted to their desktops and laptops than ever before.
Let’s break it down by device to give you a better idea of just how frequent mobile traffic is becoming.
- Mobile device traffic in May 2019 – 47.5%
- Desktop device traffic in May 2019 – 48.65%
- Tablet device traffic in May 2019 – 3.85%
What now?
Now that you know just how vital mobile traffic is for your website, you’ll want to ensure that not only your website is mobile friendly, but that your email campaigns are as well.
With 68% of email campaigns being opened on a mobile device, having a mobile-friendly design—also known as responsive design—is more important than ever.
Make sure you’re creating mobile-friendly email designs and check out our seven essential tips on creating mobile-friendly emails to help get you inspired today.