Mobile technology has no doubt become an enormous part of daily life. The introduction of smartphones has given the general public access to an amazing assortment of functions. Anything from sending family photos to conducting important business can be accomplished using a smartphone (or any compatible mobile tech). This has shaped both the civilian and professional world, from how we communicate to how we access data.
As a nonprofit organization, you might have noticed this. One of the most common ways to “talk” to the entire world is through a website and thanks to mobile technology, said site can be accessed anywhere. This also means a few things. One is that the site absolutely must be designed properly for mobile access, and the other is actual discovery of the webpage.
Whether nonprofit or no, the core principle remains the same: a mobile site must have SEO optimization for discovery. This is true for any webpage, but the importance of having a mobile friendly, properly designed site is paramount. That’s because a massive portion of the general public accesses the internet through their smartphones or tablets, some on a daily basis. It’s a large number you don’t want to miss out on, especially since nonprofits are heavily reliant on public support.
It’s also worth noting mobile SEO comes with its own “rules” of discovery. Any organization looking for much needed exposure will probably want listings on Google. However, Google has its own standards for implementing rank. For instance, when designing a mobile friendly website, a “responsive” design is recommended. It’s also one of requirements for getting a listing on the search engine. Therefore, it’s important to understand more than just code and design, it’s also about what big search engine’s like Google require.
This means there’s a whole list of things to design for when considering the mobile market. While creative design principles will remain the same (i.e. the goals you’re trying to reach as a nonprofit), the actual structure is different, and that’s what your nonprofit must prepare for. More so, it’s important to get your mobile site up and running as soon as possible. Don’t put it off for tomorrow or next week, make it today.
While the actual process of building a mobile friendly site takes some understanding, the quick list of things to do are as follows.
- Make sure you pick a proper mobile platform method (like responsive)
- Update code and/or purchase templates like WordPress themes
- Run tests to see if your mobile page is smooth and compatible with various devices
- Update your listing and make sure Google (or other search engines) “know” about your mobile site
- Verify you have a mobile site along with your regular site domain name
There’s a few more steps involved before your nonprofit finalizes everything, but these are key in getting things up and running. With this in mind, understand that mobile is only getting bigger, and major search engines like Google are adopting new SEO methods for them. Now, more than ever, having a mobile friendly site is critical.
