In April 2015, Google made an important update to its algorithm in the way it displays website results on a mobile device. Basically, if your website doesn’t have a mobile ver- sion (tablet, smartphone, etc.) or is not “responsive,” Google will not have your website appear when a user is searching on a mobile device. That’s a big deal for your church.
In the Web industry they coined this update as “Mobilegeddon.” Now as scary as that sounds, there’s still light at the end of the tunnel.
Websites can be designed to be responsive—meaning your site will adapt to any device and screen size it’s being viewed with. It’s not as hard or as expensive as you think to transition a standard website to a responsive one.
How can you tell if your website is mobile-friendly? Google has a handy tool that you can use for free that will grade your site for mobile-friendliness. Check it out at www. google.com/webmasters/tools/mobile-friendly.
Why is it important for your site to be mobile-friendly? In 2014 mobile device usage surpassed desktop browsing for the first time and will only continue to grow. Now more than ever, people are using smartphones and tablets to access important information—like finding a church in their area or accessing church events and volunteer opportunities.
So if it’s been awhile since you’ve updated your website, now is a great time to refresh it with an easy-to-update backend management. Contact the South Dakota Synod office for resources and ideas or contact 5 J Design for more information.
Examples of a responsive church website.
(The same website viewed on two different devices.)
About Five J Design
Five J Design has worked with the synod on several proj- ects and with ELCA congregations to bring affordable design solutions to the table without compromising any design or Web development standards. For more informa- tion, visit its website at www.5jdesign.com, send an email to highfive@5jdesign.com, or call at 605-368-1852.
