How does mobile-first indexing affect SEO?
Posted: Mon Dec 23, 2024 4:58 am
Google recently revealed its ongoing efforts to make the web better reflect how we search for things online. This time, it’s focusing on searches made via mobile devices. But there’s a lot of confusion about what mobile-first indexing means and how it will affect how your customers find your business. So let’s start with some basics:
Google is one of the most popular mobile apps
48% of shoppers use smartphones to start a search, making mobile the dominant platform.
Google accounts for 96% of mobile search traffic, followed by Yahoo at 2% and Bing at 1%.
51% of all digital ad budgets in 2016 were spent on mobile devices.
80% of social media time is spent on a mobile device.
57% of users say they won't recommend a company with a poorly designed mobile website.
Mobile-first indexing means that the mobile version of your website will become the baseline for how Google determines rankings and how they appear in results. Mobile-first will push the mobile version of any website to the top of the indexing process. So does this mean you have to change your website? If it’s already mobile-friendly, is it good enough for Google?
Short answer: yes. If you’ve already optimized your site for both mobile and desktop using responsive website design, you’re already ahead of the curve and shouldn’t, in theory, have any problems in the future.
However, if you have two separate websites, such as your desktop site and m.sitename.com as your mobile site, Google will likely rank your mobile site higher in search results, even if it isn’t optimized in the same way as your desktop version. This mobile-first ranking can be a problem if you’re not prepared for it.
How do I make my website compatible with mobile-first indexing?
To get started, you’ll want to take a look at a number of factors, including rankings, traffic, and how people are currently using your site. If you already have a mobile site, now’s the time to make some adjustments to speed things up, ensure your design elements are optimized, and address other issues related to mobile responsive design.
If you have a mobile site and a desktop site architects mailing list and they have different content, focus your efforts on the mobile site. Take the time to optimize images, content, internal and external links, and compress images and code to ensure that your mobile site is more optimized than your desktop site. However, at some point, you may want to consider switching to a responsive website so that you don’t have to deal with two sites, canonical errors on pages, redirects, etc. – all of which can negatively impact your website in search and user experience.
How to improve mobile-first indexing?
Here are the top three things we recommend focusing on to help your mobile-first indexing:
Page speed
Google appreciates a fast website, especially on mobile, but also on desktop. The longer it takes to load, the more likely people are to bounce from your page. Focus on eliminating extra code, minifying code, and compressing images.
Internal Links
This is important because you’re not only telling Google which pages you consider important, but also what content they’re linked to. Use your services, products, and blog pages to link to relevant pages in your content. To keep things straight, consider creating a cross-reference dictionary to help you understand which keyword groups can be used for which pages.
Strong Content
Useful on-page content is important to your visitors and to Google. But don’t forget about impactful images marked with image alt tags and targeting the right keywords for the right pages and posts. Consider using short- and medium-tail keywords for your services, products, and other top navigation pages, while your blog posts can target long-tail keywords and keywords used to answer user questions.
Still feeling a little lost in the Google woods? As web design and search engine optimization experts, we’re here to help you find your way. Contact us today to get started on your mobile-friendly website plan or to hone your search engine optimization strategies.
Google is one of the most popular mobile apps
48% of shoppers use smartphones to start a search, making mobile the dominant platform.
Google accounts for 96% of mobile search traffic, followed by Yahoo at 2% and Bing at 1%.
51% of all digital ad budgets in 2016 were spent on mobile devices.
80% of social media time is spent on a mobile device.
57% of users say they won't recommend a company with a poorly designed mobile website.
Mobile-first indexing means that the mobile version of your website will become the baseline for how Google determines rankings and how they appear in results. Mobile-first will push the mobile version of any website to the top of the indexing process. So does this mean you have to change your website? If it’s already mobile-friendly, is it good enough for Google?
Short answer: yes. If you’ve already optimized your site for both mobile and desktop using responsive website design, you’re already ahead of the curve and shouldn’t, in theory, have any problems in the future.
However, if you have two separate websites, such as your desktop site and m.sitename.com as your mobile site, Google will likely rank your mobile site higher in search results, even if it isn’t optimized in the same way as your desktop version. This mobile-first ranking can be a problem if you’re not prepared for it.
How do I make my website compatible with mobile-first indexing?
To get started, you’ll want to take a look at a number of factors, including rankings, traffic, and how people are currently using your site. If you already have a mobile site, now’s the time to make some adjustments to speed things up, ensure your design elements are optimized, and address other issues related to mobile responsive design.
If you have a mobile site and a desktop site architects mailing list and they have different content, focus your efforts on the mobile site. Take the time to optimize images, content, internal and external links, and compress images and code to ensure that your mobile site is more optimized than your desktop site. However, at some point, you may want to consider switching to a responsive website so that you don’t have to deal with two sites, canonical errors on pages, redirects, etc. – all of which can negatively impact your website in search and user experience.
How to improve mobile-first indexing?
Here are the top three things we recommend focusing on to help your mobile-first indexing:
Page speed
Google appreciates a fast website, especially on mobile, but also on desktop. The longer it takes to load, the more likely people are to bounce from your page. Focus on eliminating extra code, minifying code, and compressing images.
Internal Links
This is important because you’re not only telling Google which pages you consider important, but also what content they’re linked to. Use your services, products, and blog pages to link to relevant pages in your content. To keep things straight, consider creating a cross-reference dictionary to help you understand which keyword groups can be used for which pages.
Strong Content
Useful on-page content is important to your visitors and to Google. But don’t forget about impactful images marked with image alt tags and targeting the right keywords for the right pages and posts. Consider using short- and medium-tail keywords for your services, products, and other top navigation pages, while your blog posts can target long-tail keywords and keywords used to answer user questions.
Still feeling a little lost in the Google woods? As web design and search engine optimization experts, we’re here to help you find your way. Contact us today to get started on your mobile-friendly website plan or to hone your search engine optimization strategies.