Mobile Optimization – Why it Matters for Higher Education Websites

Mobile optimization has emerged in the digital age making dial-up Internet and slow loading websites a pain point of the past. In higher education specifically, mobile technology has played an increasingly greater role. It’s safe to say mobile devices have taken over the world.

With just a few clicks in the search engines, students can learn about your school, browse your programs, and decide whether or not they want to learn more. Mobile technology has made the student recruitment journey much more convenient with access to potential students just an arms reach away.

For forward-thinking schools and universities who understand the importance of having a mobile optimized website, they can enjoy the perks of increased ROI, sales, and brand visibility.

The Importance of Mobile Optimization Going Forward

Trends show that mobile smartphone usage has no signs of slowing down. Phone users in the United States are expected to skyrocket to 290 million users through 2024.* E-commerce sales in 2019 alone surpassed 3.5 trillion U.S. dollars.*

You may be asking yourself “what does this all mean for my educational institution?”. The answer is simple – without a mobile-optimized website you will lose market position, experience decreased enrollments and starts, along with lower brand recognition.

5 Ways Your “Mobile Un-friendly” Website is Hurting You

Here are 5 reasons why your higher education website can’t afford to not be mobile-friendly. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to reach your potential students!

1. Your Website is the First Impression of Your School to Students – For educational institutions, their websites are the first impression a student has of your school. Make it count! When your website is mobile optimized and delivers an excellent user experience, key conversion points such as “apply now” and “contact us” become much more prominent. Studies conducted by the Pew Research Center, shows 30% of all smartphone owners have used their mobile device to look up information on educational content or to take a class online.*
2. Without a Fast, Mobile-Friendly Website, Students Will Abandon You – Let’s face it, people want fast results. In the digital world every second counts. If your site takes more than 4 seconds to load you could lose upward of 40% of users.
   With the use of mobile devices, people are used to instant gratification. If your page doesn’t load instantly, users will press the back button leading to your competitor websites in the search results. The ability to abandon your site is just a click away. Therefore, to nurture conversions and build brand engagement, you need to implement mobile optimization.
3. Poor Navigation Helps Your Competitors Beat You Out – Your website navigation gives users the ability to build confidence in your brand. When your audience can scan your website easily this leads to greater sales. Research shows the value proposition of a web page should be clearly communicated within 10 seconds. If your website fails to guide users in this time frame your competitors will be the go-to solution. No one wants that!
4. Google Favors Websites Optimized for Mobile – It’s no secret that Google is continually improving its organic search platform. Effective as of March 2021, Google will enable mobile-first indexing by default for all sites in search.
   It’s important to note, mobile-first indexing is already a ranking factor on Google but this update will impact it on a larger scale. This means if your website renders properly on mobile, has SEO strategized content, engages users, and is fast-loading you will gain preference in the search engines. With mobile optimization, schools can leverage increased traffic to meet their enrollment goals per cycle.
5. You Will Forfeit The Opportunity to Connect with Your Prospects- An important component to higher education recruitment is the ability to story tell. Students want to know how your program can help them overcome the challenges they face. The ability to hear success stories from former students, alumni, and school administration has the power to influence like no other form of communication. Students want to know they have the opportunity to “become” whatever career profession they desire. Therefore, the messaging of your website has to build the confidence of your potential students. However, if your site is unresponsive you lose out on the opportunity to nurture conversions thus losing your ability to become the hero.

We Can Help Your Higher Education Site for Mobile Mobile Optimization

Don’t lose out on the opportunity to connect with your students. Having a mobile-optimized website makes your school or university discoverable. When your site is mobile responsive and user friendly you can streamline the student conversion cycle to have increased enrollments and starts. Learn how Edufficient can help you remain competitive and deliver a seamless experience for potential students. Contact us to learn more about our digital marketing packages.

Sources:

** Statista
* Pew Research Center
* * Google