Internet search engines are no friends to Mobile sites. Look up any keyword or phrase on your favourite search engine and you’ll be faced with a mixture of normal and mobile web sites, with the latter using such a variation of naming conventions they may as well be invisible. This is a major obstacle for cell-phone owners trying to browse the web – and for mobile site owners trying to get traffic.

While modern smart phones offer bigger, touch-sensitive screens, the differences between PC and phone-based browsing will always be present. The only solution is to provide web sites that are designed specifically for phones. With this comes the need to separate normal sites from mobile sites in search results, making them easy to locate – much like restaurants highlighting vegetarian menu items with a green symbol.

This is where the problem arises. Many companies have chosen to use methods other than the standard .mobi domain type to identify their mobile sites. One popular alternative is the format “m.domain-name.com” which simply replaces “www” with “m” to signify mobile content. This veers from the standard practice of using a domain suffix such as .com or .org to describe the type of web site and its purpose, making mobile and normal sites indistinguishable to search engines.

The .mobi standard has been designed to fit into the normal naming conventions adopted by Internet authorities.

Companies should register their .mobi domain name as soon as possible, so as to make sure they are search engine friendly. Once sites adhere to the standard, search engines will follow suit with features that will make mobile search a pleasure.

Read the full article at the 2B Business blog.