iPhones, Galaxy S3's - Australians love their smartphones! 

A simple definition of a smartphone is a phone (or tablet) that enables you to connect to the internet. And in Australia, lots of people have smartphones. In fact, according to an article I read recently in AdNews*, "Australians are online, mobile and are world leaders in terms of use and consumption."

Jason Pellegrino is Google's head of mobile ads, and he shared some other compelling statistics.

• 60% of Australians have a smartphone.
• Every month, 1-2% of the Australian population gets its first smartphone.
• Two thirds of Australian smartphone users will connect to the internet every day.
• In-store, 25% of people change their mind [about a purchase] because they used a smartphone.
• Australians are 10% more likely (than people in the UK) to do a local search on their phone, and then take action on that search.

The implication for churches? We need to ensure our websites can be viewed adequately on a smartphone. It's not enough to assume that everyone is using a laptop or desktop computer - more and more people want to view information on their phones.

The question is: how does your church's website appear when viewed on a smartphone? Go on, take a look!

The goal is to ensure that the key information is easily accessible. At the very least, this means, location, service times and contact details. If this information isn't available, you're not serving the increasing number of people with smartphones.

I realise that most readers here aren't technical, but do care about more people coming to church and hearing the life-saving news of the gospel. You don't need to know how to make your website mobile-friendly, but you do need to encourage the person in charge of the church's website to make this a priority.

* These statistics were on pages 11 and 26 of the 29 June edition of the magazine.