You need a mobile site. That’s right; you heard me. I didn’t say that you should consider a mobile site; I said that you need a mobile site. If you are still thinking about developing your mobile strategy, it’s time to stop thinking and start doing. If you need some hard numbers to help convince you, here are some recent statistics published by Comscore and Morgan Stanley:

• By 2013, mobile Internet use will eclipse desktop Internet usage.
• It is estimated that by the end of 2013, 75% of phones in the US will be smart phones.
• 47% of mobile subscribers in the US are mobile media users . This means they are using their phones to access the Internet and are active users of mobile apps.
• 86% of mobile Internet users are using their devices while watching TV. They are constantly connected, using their mobile device to immediately access information that they see on TV.

Not only is mobile web use on the rise, but in addition the number of devices that are used to access the mobile web has grown exponentially in the last year. With the growth of eReaders and the release of iPad, and competing tablets, the term mobile has taken on a whole new meaning. Mobile now applies to a myriad of phones, as well as tablets that consumers use on the go.

Consumers are accessing the Internet in a very different way than they used to and you need to adapt.

So what does this all mean? Consumers are accessing the Internet in a very different way than they used to and you need to adapt. They rely on mobile sites to get information when it is most convenient to them. They expect a great Internet experience regardless of whether they are using their personal computer, browsing from their tablet, or getting quick bits of information from their smart phone.

Don’t let the idea of developing a mobile site overwhelm you. After you dive in, you’ll realize the many benefits that emerge as a result of “thinking mobile.”

1. Mobile forces you to focus

With smaller screens, mobile forces you to focus on presenting only the most important information in the most concise way possible. Simply put, you have to prioritize. This discipline will strengthen all of your marketing communications, regardless of medium.

2. Mobile extends your reach

Mobile is experiencing explosive growth. A large portion of the population is accessing the Internet from multiple devices on any given day. Creating your digital experiences to work seamlessly across devices with different screen sizes will influence decisions you make on all of your initiatives, mobile or otherwise.

3. Mobile fosters innovation

Mobile provides an opportunity to create innovative digital experiences in ways we could never accomplish using a traditional desktop website. This includes functionality like orientation and location awareness as well as multi-touch inputs and gestures. It’s easier to build these into your planning and simply remove them for desktop focused websites than it is to try and add them in as an afterthought.

There is a lot to consider developing a mobile site, but the point is that it is time to stop talking about it and start doing it. For all brands operating in the mobile space, knowing what your consumers expect from you on their mobile devices—and then exceeding that expectation—will be crucial to success. If they aren’t engaging with your brand on their mobile device, they are engaging with your competitor.