Mobile Friendliness is Becoming a Ranking Signal
On April 21, 2015, Google will officially make mobile friendliness a ranking signal. As a result, they say it will significantly impact search results and will affect mobile searches in all languages worldwide.
The main reason for this update is the growth in mobile device use. People are using their mobile devices to access the internet and Google’s search algorithms need to adapt to this trend. In making mobile friendliness a signal, it will help the search engine users discover more mobile enabled content.
Prior to this update, a mobile site’s ability to rank was associated with the same desktop version of the website. If it was of high quality and relevance, then it was ranked well in mobile search. However, the desktop version of a site may be difficult to use on a mobile device. If a user has to pinch and zoom to read content, the quality of the user experience decreases drastically.
A mobile friendly site will be immediately useable and the content will be readable without modification. With 94% of people in the US searching for local information on their phones, having a mobile friendly site is becoming increasingly important.
It is important to note that this update being made on April 21st pertains to mobile search only.
Be Prepared for Mobile Search
To get ready for this update, check your website to see if Google considers it to be mobile friendly. Enter your URL into their Mobile-Friendly Test and hit Analyze. If you get the green light, you are good to go!
If you get the red, you’ve got some work to do.
In addition, you can also check the Mobility Usability Report in Google Webmaster Tools. Here you’ll be given a full breakdown of the usability issues Google found with your site. From there you can begin to fix each issue and move towards having a mobile friendly site.
If you run into some roadblocks or need some guidance along the way, let us know. We’ll help get you on track for mobile search.