Facebook and Twitter know this; that's why their websites feature "responsive" design that lets users scan them quickly and easily. The major news sites know this, and so do a growing number of independent schools. And that's why your school's website needs to be responsive as well.
To summarize, responsive websites adapt to any device or screen size. They are user-friendly and easy to navigate, and they're fast becoming essential as mobile internet usage soars. As one school's admissions director tells writer Donna Davis in the next Net Assets, "Being responsive is like breathing air; you have to do it." The article continues: "In 2014, mobile devices accounted for 55 percent of internet usage in the United States." That's an increase of 394 percent for smart phones since 2010, and a whopping 1,721 percent for tablets.
Business officers are every bit as busy as parents and other web users, and we've seen this shift at NBOA.org as well. Consider these statistics:
- In June of 2014, 12 percent of visits to NBOA.org were from mobile devices. 487 visits came from smartphones.
- In June of 2015, 22 percent of visits to NBOA.org were from mobile devices. Smartphone visits alone nearly tripled, to 1,627.
So I'll get straight to my point: In preparation for the busy school year just ahead, NBOA yesterday rolled out the responsive version of NBOA.org. I invite you to check it out—more importantly, to use it—from your phone or tablet computer. No more pinching to zoom in on text, no more squinting to find just the forum conversation or magazine article or toolkit item you need.
Just as NBOA is striving to improve the experience for business officers, your school's website should continually strive to improve its engagement with families. I encourage you to invest in making your site responsive.
