It’s oft repeated, but there have been more Google search requests from mobile devices than traditional computers. That was something Google revealed in 2015!
Nearly 4 years later, the ramifications of that are coming to the fore.
As of July 1, Google is all set to make a major change to its website indexing: mobile sites will be indexed first for search.
In this article we break down the impact this can have on your website. Don’t worry, we’ll keep it simple!
Impact on current sites
- If you have responsive site, it means no difference for you.
- If your sites give users very different (dynamic) experiences, Google’s crawlers will prioritize the mobile site.
- If you rely on a desktop-only site, no difference (yes, you’ll continue to lose out to even simple mobile sites because of your usability.
- The biggest change is if you employ a desktop and distinct mobile site (for instance, ‘abc.com’ and ‘m.abc.com’. In this case, your mobile site will be crucial for your SEO ranking.
- Google will continue to prioritize its smartphone and tablet users.
- SEO on mobile websites will have to shift from long form text to cleverer methods.
- Website usability will have a greater impact on SEO rankings.
- Even current mobile websites can lose out if not optimized in accordance with the new update.
- Even if you are a B2B company with mostly desktop users, be prepared to see your SEO ranking slashed if you don’t have an excellent mobile site.