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Top priority: Mobile-friendly websites

Visit Top priority: Mobile-friendly websites


Mobile-friendly, responsive websites with updated content do not just happen. These projects require management support and prioritization. The best decision for promoting a department is to sponsor and sustain a responsive, mobile-friendly website.

Delivery of information and services to mobile devices is essential because the university’s intended audience is already mobile. A responsive website provides information and services anytime, anywhere and on any web-capable device. A separate mobile site is not necessary, reducing costs.

Visitors often form a first impression of a department from its website. A good website effectively communicates who you are and what you do, and can help build and maintain your reputation. To communicate an organization’s overall mission and specific initiatives, you need a website that is useful to your viewers. An outmoded, mobile-unfriendly site with poor navigation or stale content speaks more powerfully in a negative way than you might realize.

Focus on user needs

When redesigning your website, understand your audience by answering these questions:

  • Who are you currently serving through your website? Who are you trying to reach?
  • What they are looking for? What do you want to tell them?
  • What tasks do they want to accomplish?

Review current site statistics or conduct user surveys to determine what information is most important.

  • What are the most visited pages? Where do visitors spend the most time?
  • What are the top search words and phrases?

Assess overall site navigation. Make sure important pages are easily found. Shorten long navigation links.

Based on site statistics, prioritize the display order of information on mobile devices. Important content should appear “above the fold.” Secondary items can be concealed in menus or tabs.

Evaluate pages to see what needs to be updated, added or deleted. Review site contents at least annually and refresh or archive pages as needed.

Cut unnecessary verbiage. Ensure content is written using words familiar to the intended audience and information can easily be found via search.