Get Elastic recently interviewed Larry Freed of customer experience analytics company Foresee on optimizing mobile sites for user experience. Highly insightful, we decided to condense the post into 5 key takeaways.

Next level design: Responsive design adapts a site to the device on which it is viewed and “assumes that different devices are using the site for the exact same reason.” The next level of design tailors each site for a unique device experience that prioritizes certain functions.

Key functions: Enabling straightforward functionality for the user’s most likely objective on each device–be it a login or accessing product information, is key.

User satisfaction: Don’t lose sight of what the “user wants to accomplish” on mobile for what the “organization wants the user to accomplish.”

Channel consistency: The mobile experience often bridges the online and physical store. Consequently, transparency and consistency in pricing and availability is critical.

Mobile sites vs. Apps: Applications cater to a frequent user, leading to a familiarity that increases satisfaction. Still, there are generally fewer committed app users than mobile site visitors, and site usability should be prioritized.