Why do I need a mobile friendly website?

If you’ve read our previous articles, or really any web company’s, you’ll frequently hear experts telling your church or nonprofit to have a mobile friendly website.

As personal technology keeps advancing, tablets and smartphones aren’t going away any time soon. If you want your team’s website to be accessible it’s time to look into mobile optimization.

But what does a mobile friendly website mean? And what’s the reasoning behind it? We’ll try to explain it all down below.

What does a ‘mobile friendly website’ mean?

A mobile friendly website is a site that looks and operates the same way on any device—whether it’s a desktop computer, tablet, or smartphone. The design should adapt to fit any size screen.

Here’s an example of what our site looks like on a desktop versus a mobile device:

Elements of a mobile friendly website design:

Larger text sizes. You don’t want your users to have to zoom in!
Bigger buttons. Remember you’re designing for thumbs, not a mouse.
Increased speed. Fast websites keep users engaged.
Easy menu navigation. ‘Hamburger menus’ (the three horizontal lines as shown in the pictures above) are easy to click on mobile devices.

As you can see, the layouts are very similar, but each is designed differently for the device it’s displayed on. Web users will get relatively the same experience no matter what type of device they’re using.

So, why do I need a mobile friendly website?

1. There’s an Increase of Mobile Users

First up is the most important reason you should optimize your website for mobile devices—most of your web visitors will be using them! 

According to Statista, as of late 2022, the percentage of website traffic from mobile visitors falls at 59.16%.

If over half of your visitors will see your website on a mobile device, it’s important that you cater to them and give them a good website experience. No matter what device visitors are using to view your church or nonprofit’s website, you want them to be able to view and use it to its full potential.

2. It Improves User Experience

Most web users don’t want to fool with slow websites that are hard to navigate. If they can’t easily peruse your website and find the information they need, they’re likely to click away and look elsewhere.

A mobile friendly website can give your web visitors a stress-free scrolling experience. If they can easily read your text, view your photos, and switch between pages, they’re more likely to stay engaged and interact with your website and team.

3. A Mobile Friendly Website Can Boost SEO

Google and other search engines like mobile friendly websites, and they’re more likely to recommend your site if it’s optimized and responsive on all devices.

As of July 2018, Google implemented the “Speed Update.” Basically, they said that page speed would now be a factor in ranking websites on mobile searches.

So, if your website isn’t up to speed, Google and other search engines won’t rank your website as high or encourage users to view your site. If you want your church or nonprofit to do well in mobile searches, you need to have a mobile friendly website.

4. It Helps You Stay Competitive

If you don’t prioritize your website’s mobile view, somebody else will!

If your website is hard to read and navigate, users on mobile devices might just look elsewhere. They may go find another nonprofit or church website that loads quickly and is easy to use on their device.

Optimizing your website for mobile will keep users who find your website engaged. If they can easily and quickly find the information they need on your website, they’re more likely to stick around and interact with your church or nonprofit.

How do I make my site mobile friendly?

Before you can begin making improvements, it’s best to evaluate what you have. Put yourself in the shoes of your users by viewing your church or nonprofit’s website on a mobile device to see what works well and what doesn’t.

You can also use Google’s Mobile Friendly Test to see how well your site runs on mobile. You’ll have to test one webpage at a time, but it should give you a good idea of how your website is performing.

Once you have a good idea of what needs to be changed, you can start reorganizing your mobile design to cater to the needs of your users. Use larger text sizes, bigger buttons, and different menu navigation like we mentioned above.

Need Help?

Making a mobile friendly website isn’t always easy—especially when it comes to increasing your page loading speed or having to redesign your entire mobile layout.

Sometimes, it’s best to call in the professionals. If your church or nonprofit needs assistance with creating a more mobile friendly website, you’re in the right place! Get in touch with our team today. We can’t wait to serve you.