Everyone’s talking about #mobilegeddon this week. Google’s latest algorithm change, innocently named the ‘mobile-friendly update’, has the SEO world in a spin.
But what does it really mean? Is your website about to plummet to the 119th page of Google? Should you panic and build a new site from scratch? Or should you stock up on bottled water and befriend that bearded guy with the ‘World is Ending’ sandwich board (he was right all along)?
Google’s mobile-friendly update
On April 21, Google launched the mobile-friendly update. The rollout will take a few days to a week. This update only affects mobile searches (not desktop and tablet searches). And the impact is this: Sites with a ‘mobile-friendly’ tag will show higher in smartphone search results.
Google is always updating its algorithms to benefit searchers. It ranks pages in an order that helps people find high-quality and relevant results. So now that more than 50% of all internet traffic is from mobile devices, it makes sense to help smartphone users by prioritising mobile-friendly pages in smartphone search results.
(Side note: Some commentators have observed that more ‘mobile-friendly’ tags have already appeared in Google SERPs since April 21. Whether this is because the new algorithm is kicking in, or because many site owners have quickly adjusted in anticipation of the change, it’s hard to say.)
What is the ‘mobile-friendly’ tag?
If your webpage is mobile-friendly, smartphone searchers will see a little ‘mobile-friendly’ tag in the Google search engine results. This indicates that your page displays and functions nicely on smartphones – users can read text without tapping or zooming, and navigate easily using the touchscreen.
The mobile-friendly tag has been active since November 2014, and you can read Google’s summary online. Here are some of the factors Google considers when assessing mobile-friendliness:
- Text that is readable without zooming
- Content that doesn’t require users to scroll or zoom
- Links far enough apart that you can tap them easily
- Software that is easily read by mobiles (i.e. not Flash)
What should you do?
Get that tag. For the love of all things digital, get that tag. It makes the difference between smartphone searchers seeing your page in their results, or only seeing a list of your mobile-friendly (but business-enemy) competitors and other ne’er-do-wells. How? Well first, check your site – you might even have it already.
Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test
Possibly the scariest thing you’ll do this year. Type your webpage address into Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test. It’s a simple YES/NO test (there’s no fifty shades of grey with Google). In seconds, you’ll see ‘Awesome! This page is mobile-friendly’ or ‘Not mobile-friendly’.
If your result is red, don’t panic – there’s no need to buy 200 cans of baked beans (yet). Type a few competitors’ webpages in, and see whether they pass – this doesn’t help your site, but could make you feel much better. Then, look at Google’s directions for how to improve the mobile-friendliness of your page. Ask your developer to address the key criteria, and make sure you’re avoiding any common mistakes made on mobile websites.
Note: The mobile-friendly tag is awarded on a page-by-page basis (not site-by-site). So if some of your pages are mobile-friendly, these will reap the benefits of the algorithm update straightaway. It also means that you can be strategic with your changes. Tackle your homepage first, then any pages that are more important for mobile searchers to find – like your contact page.
Mobiles are your website’s best friend
Having a mobile-friendly site is vital, but it’s also good to remember that Google uses over 200 factors to rank your webpage – especially quality content and a great user experience. So although the latest Google update may have pushed ‘mobile-friendly website’ to the top of your priority list, it’s important to view this in context and ensure that your website experience is beautiful for all users, all of the time.
Experience beautiful. Contact the friendly team at Frank Digital.
