Google’s latest algorithm change went live on April 21st, prioritizing “mobile-friendly” web pages over those that are cumbersome to browse on mobile devices.
Fret not if you are just hearing about this! We’ve put together everything content marketers need to know about the rollout of the mobile-friendly update, and how it will impact your website’s mobile search rankings.
Why Should I Make My Website “Mobile-Friendly”?
Optimizing your brand’s web pages for smartphone usage was already beneficial for conversions. According to a report from Branding Brand, search accounted for nearly half (43%) of all smartphone traffic in Q1 2015, up 5% from the previous quarter.
Google’s algorithm change reinforces the significance of mobile search traffic. Google reports, for example, that 77% of mobile searches are done from home or work, places where desktop computers are likely present.
In many cases, users prefer to search on their phones simply because of the omnipresence of mobile devices. Mobile optimization is the best way to keep users interested in your brand and on your site on the go.
Research from Latitude, for example, found that a good mobile experience gave 61% of respondents a better opinion of a brand.
Google’s recent push for mobile optimization is motivated by lackluster growth in mobile standards across the web. After studying the mobile-friendliness of Fortune 500 brand websites, TechCrunch reports that only 52% met Google’s standards for “mobile-friendliness.”
Google’s mobile-friendly modifications to their search algorithm are an attempt to light the fire under brands to create a consistent web experience for their users. As Google noted on its Webmaster blog, the algorithm update will “[boost]the ranking of mobile-friendly pages on mobile search results” so that “searchers can more easily find high-quality and relevant results where text is readable without tapping or zooming, tap targets are spaced appropriately, and the page avoids unplayable content or horizontal scrolling.” In short, Google is rewarding sites that offer a better user experience for mobile searchers.
How Does Google Define “Mobile-Friendly”?
Google’s “mobile-friendly” standards require an interface that can be easily navigated by smartphone users. According to the Google Webmaster blog, a “mobile-friendly” website has the following specifications:
- Avoids software that is not common on mobile devices, like Flash
- Uses text that is readable without zooming
- Sizes content to the screen so users don’t have to scroll horizontally or zoom
- Places links far enough apart so that the correct one can be easily tapped
These standards are a good outline for building a solid mobile site, but Google recommends using a design strategy called “responsive web design” as a long-term solution.
With this technique you do not need to maintain separate mobile and desktop sites, just one version that can adapt to various screen sizes between phones, tablets, and desktop browsers. This creates a consistent and effective experience across all platforms for users while boosting mobile conversions.
How Can I Make Sure My Website Is “Mobile-Friendly”?
Luckily, the search giant has published an extensive set of guides for adapting your website to meet these mobile standards. Popular web platforms like WordPress, Blogger, Tumblr, and Drupa have individual guides for mobile optimization that should be particularly helpful for content marketers, UX designers, and webmasters.
Google has also provided a handy mobile-friendly test tool that will tell you how the search engine’s web crawlers see your mobile site. This includes a mobile screenshot and a clear test on to see if you meet the new criteria. We, of course, tested our own site — check out the preview below!
Summing Up
As users increasingly turn to smartphones for online tasks and searches, proper optimization on mobile is critical for content marketers. Even if your own website sees only a small percentage of traffic from mobile, don’t let that become a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you don’t offer a mobile-friendly site, your search engine results page rankings will only continue to languish, giving others a competitive advantage in the glut of traffic from mobile searches.