Mobile is changing the world. Today, everyone has smartphones with them, constantly communicating and looking for information. In many countries, the number of smartphones has surpassed the number of personal computers; having a mobile-friendly website has become a critical part of having an online presence.
If you haven't made your website mobile-friendly, you should. The majority of users coming to your site are likely to be using a mobile device.
- If you don't know if your website is mobile-friendly, take the Mobile Friendly Test now.
- If you used content management software like Wordpress to build your website, check out our guide to customizing your website software.
- If you"re technical enough to do it yourself, check out our Mobile SEO Guide.
Why make a website mobile-friendly?
If not mobile-friendly, a site can be difficult to view and use on a mobile device. A non-mobile-friendly site requires users to pinch or zoom in order to read the content. Users find this a frustrating experience and are likely to abandon the site. Alternatively, the mobile-friendly version is readable and immediately usable.How much does it cost to build a site for mobile devices?
It varies. For example, here are some of the possibilities:
- Going mobile can be free if you can select a responsive template or theme for your website. A responsive template or theme adapts the display to the visitor no matter if they are using a desktop, tablet, or mobile phone.
- Going mobile can be free if you have the technical skills to build your mobile site. Check out Web Fundamentals.
- Going mobile will likely cost time and money if you need to hire a developer. Furthermore, if your website was created several years ago, a new developer might recommend starting from scratch (so you"ll be paying for a complete makeover). This is because there are new web development techniques and themes (or page templates) that may make it more efficient to re-do -- rather than modify -- your site. This is especially the case for sites:
- Built with Flash
- Using outdated e-commerce platforms
The good news is that if you start from scratch there may be an existing template or theme that you can utilize. You may be able to reuse your existing content which can hopefully save time and money.
For your projects, you probably have long noticed that the number of mobile users is constantly growing. For some, the trend is less noticeable, and in some projects this figure increases by 2 times or more every year. According to LiveInternet, more than 50% of traffic on the RuNet now comes from mobile devices. By the way, many readers of this blog have long been complaining that there is no mobile version:) which will, of course, be fixed in the near future.
This fact of mobilization cannot be ignored by search platforms either. Gradually, they give advantages in mobile search to those sites that are adapted to users’ devices.
At first, Google gave sites a mark in snippets that they would be displayed correctly on mobile phones.
Google has also created a tool to help webmasters check whether the site is displayed correctly on mobile devices Oh:
https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/mobile-friendly/
On April 21, Google launched a new algorithm, in the West it was called Mobilegeddon. Now, successfully passing the Mobile Friendly test is one of the SEO factors taken into account by Google. So far, there have been no significant changes in the issuance, but you can prepare now.
How to make a website responsive from Google's point of view? The secret is simple - you need to assign a task to your programmers/layout designers. Well, if you don’t have time to wait, then... you can use MobileCheat :)
In fact, this is an untested technology, it is unknown what it will lead to in the future, so use it only at your own peril and risk. At a minimum, a series of tests can be carried out here.
How to Bypass Google Test Using MobileCheat
There are only two things you need to do:
1. Add the viewport meta tag to the code.
2. Deny the robot access to CSS files or the folder where they are located via robots.txt
For example, this is how my blog passes the default test:
When closing the CSS, the picture changes:
It seems that nothing has changed on the site, but the test results are completely different. By the way, on some sites I like to disable CSS to make them easier to view and use 🙂 therefore, this is a completely justified scheme. But it is presented for informational purposes only.
What do you think about this? Will Google count this as a response move with a knight, or has it thought through everything in advance and will immediately checkmate the site? 🙂
SEO news for April 2015 -google mobile friendly
The spring of this year brought two changes in the ranking of sites from the largest search engines Yandex and Google. I recently wrote about one that will start working in the near future. Today we'll see what Google has in store for us.
April 21, 2015Google launched the algorithm "Mobile-Friendly."Scope – mobile search and sites that are not adapted for smartphones will be lowered in Google results.
The fact that it’s time for everyone to adapt websites could be noticed when receiving letters from the service google. If you track your sites in Webmaster and Analytex, then you have had time to correct this omission.
I especially note that the new “mobile friendly” algorithm is unambiguous. It only applies to mobile search results, i.e. only for smartphones. Has nothing to do with computers and tablets.
It will also not affect requests related to the company’s brand or website.
Mobile friendly has a lot of analysis factors and you can find out what exactly does not meet the requirements on special pages.
How to check the mobile version of a website in Google services
“Checking ease of viewing on mobile devices” - https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/mobile-friendly/
PageSpeed Insights tool to check page loading speed on various devices:
https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
Example result from Google “mobile friendly test”:
Check in webmaster tools https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/mobile-usability
The report screenshot shows a sharp decrease in errors after site adaptation:
Webmaster reports can detect the problem for groups of pages and analyze an individual page.
In Google Webmaster, in the “Crawling” tab - View as Googlebot"It is possible to add mobile site pages to the index. To do this, select the type “Mobile: Smartphone”
Common mistakes when making search engine optimization for mobile devices
Why you need to adapt your website
Of course, you can ignore smartphone users, but according to various studies, the share of traffic from these devices is increasing every year. And if your project is tailored for an English-speaking audience, you will lose even more due to more active users in other countries.
It can be concluded thatSEO optimization has been supplemented with another mandatory item, and if it is necessary to examine the friendliness of the site for mobile devices.
In this light, they will be very useful, which take into account new algorithms for both Runet and Burzhunet.
Also when developing a website and searching for a theme for anycmsthe degree of adaptability must be taken into account. For WordPress and Drupal, I have already found quick solutions without changing the themes used, which I will write about separately.
Yes, as a note, Google recommends opening style files and site themes for your bot. This is for those who want to get a positive result in Google mobile testing services. Therefore, it makes sense to review the robots. WordPress usually closed these files. I have not yet analyzed this point on other cms.
On February 26, 2015, a message appeared on the webmaster blog: “Ranking results in mobile search will be changed on April 21.” We were talking about a new algorithm - mobile-friendly. We wrote more about this earlier.
Let me briefly remind you what kind of algorithm this is - mobile-friendly.
A site is either mobile-friendly or it is not, there is no third choice.
Google's new algorithm allows mobile-friendly websites to rank higher in mobile searches.
Its idea is simple: smartphone users should see sites in search results that are convenient for viewing on mobile devices. It is logical, convenient and correct.
You can check whether your site is convenient for viewing on mobile devices.
3 Important Facts You Should Know About the New Algorithm
1. The algorithm affects search results in all languages around the world.
2. Mobile-friendly evaluates individual pages, not the entire site. If only some pages on your website are mobile-friendly, they have a good chance of ranking best places in the issue.
3. Google checks pages for mobile friendliness in real time. That is, on average, it takes from 3 to 72 hours from the moment the site is adjusted until changes are made to the information about the friendliness of this site in the Google webmaster. Large sites and deeply nested pages will, of course, require more time.
Almost a month has passed since April 21 since Google announced the launch of the algorithm. Let's see what has changed since then.
Desktop results were not affected
Some kind of algorithm-related change mobile-friendly in the desktop search results, we didn’t notice. This means that from computers, tablets, etc. the output remained unchanged, and the algorithm, as expected, did not have any effect on it. The changes are related only to issuance on mobile smartphones.
There are no global changes in mobile search results yet
At a conference in Munich Zineb Ait Bahaji(Zineb Ait Bahajji), a specialist in Google's search quality department, said that the impact of the mobile-friendly algorithm on the search results will be stronger than Penguin and Panda.
In fact, we have not yet noticed anything like this in mobile Russian-language search results. There is some movement in mobile search results after the algorithm was launched, roughly estimated at around 5-8%, but not a global “mobile geddon” as many expected. We won’t undertake to announce the exact numbers yet, we are still studying and analyzing =)
The further from first place, the more different the mobile and desktop versions are
While it is clearly noticeable that many more sites marked “For mobile” have appeared (most likely, webmasters, in anticipation of the launch of the new algorithm, simply began to adapt their sites), they occupy better places. The sites that are most relevant to the query still rank first, even if they are not optimized for mobile.
If we compare desktop and mobile results today for the request “buy a spring for a car”:
The first 3 positions are identical, and in 4th place in the mobile search results is the site vlad-springs.com. And the further from the first page, the greater the difference in results.
A similar picture can be observed for the vast majority of requests.
In the TOP 10 mobile search results, if there is any subsidence on some sites, it is insignificant. But the further into the forest from the first place, the greater the difference.
Google's Webmaster Blog states that mobile search results will change gradually, and that a variety of ranking signals are still being used.
Perhaps that is why we have not noticed any major shuffles in the search results, and everything is still to come. One thing is for sure: if the site is adapted for mobile devices, then it has every chance to take slightly better positions.
What's behind the hill?
A similar picture is observed by our colleagues in English-language mobile search, although judging by the study, the changes affected English-language mobile search results more strongly.
1. Website dict.cc
2. boxofficemojo.com
According to Google, all of these pages are not optimized for mobile.
Whereas for sites adapted for mobile, the picture is exactly the opposite:
3.encyclopedia.com
As you can see from the screenshots, mobile traffic has fallen for sites that are not optimized for mobile, while for sites that are friendly it has increased.
Want to get traffic from Google? Make your website mobile-friendly!
If now it’s not so scary that your site is not optimized for mobile (if the traffic from mobile was small). Soon, your website will most likely be supplanted by competitors in mobile search, and mobile traffic will only be in your dreams.
You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to understand that optimizing a website for mobile devices is becoming more and more important.
How to make your website mobile-friendly?
You can learn how to make your website convenient for viewing on mobile devices by attending our free webinar The main trend of 2015: communications with “mobile” consumers. At the webinar we will analyze which is better: a mobile website or mobile app, how to improve mobility without making mistakes in SEO.
P.S. According to Ericsson research, the number of smartphone users will increase by 2.2 times by 2019, and mobile traffic will grow by 6 times.
P.P.S. Bing has also started labeling sites optimized for mobile devices as mobile-friendly.
P.P.P.S. Zineb Ait Bahaji believes that about 50% of all searches on Google come from mobile devices.
Mobile search is one of the key trends of the future, but, surprisingly, this innovation came as a surprise to many site owners, despite the fact that Google has repeatedly stated that search on mobile devices is a priority direction for development.
And now the moment of truth has come: Google announced changes that will significantly affect all mobile searches from April 21, 2015. So Google Search will begin to rank higher those sites that are adapted for mobile devices.
It's safe to say that the new ranking factor is great news for the mobile search audience, which is growing larger every day.
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Consequently, Google's algorithms have adapted to the new interaction model, and mobile users will soon receive the most relevant and timely results in search results.
Who will be affected by changes in mobile search?
Google's innovation may help small sites move up in search results, but for large online players, 6 weeks is too short a period of time to make all the necessary changes, and no one knows the scale of the consequences after April 21st. Such uncertainty does not add to optimism, given the search giant’s specific approach to motivation.
Against the backdrop of mass hysteria and a flurry of letters from web agencies to their clients with the message that their sites now vitally need adaptive design or a mobile version, such news for participants could become a driver for the accelerated adaptation of Internet resources for mobile devices, then today, given economic realities and the speed of reaction of most companies to changes, the answer should be expected to be approximately the following: “Thank you! We already heard something similar 5 years ago. We are still thinking.”
Thus, the changes will affect everyone to one degree or another. But not everyone will respond to them. Let's now figure out what data needs to be collected and analyzed first in order to understand what exactly the news from Google is for you - an opportunity or a threat?
Assess the competition in mobile search
For some this is obvious, for others it is not: if your competitors do not have a mobile version of the site or a responsive design, then you will not lose positions in search results. And vice versa: if your resource is the only one who ignored mobile platforms, then traffic from phones and tablets will go to competitors.
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Take a look at the search terms that visitors use to find your site on mobile devices. It is better to collect data from using Google Webmaster Tools, it provides the most detailed information about key queries, their frequency and CTR: https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/
Select Search Traffic - Search Queries - Filter - Search: Mobile.
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When you see queries from mobile devices, check the top search phrases for competition, namely search results search query competitor sites and whether they have a mobile version. A simple table in Google Docs or Excel will help you make a comparative analysis, capture the main aspects and draw conclusions.
Test your site and make it mobile friendly
If, instead of a possible increase in traffic, you find a risk of losing it, study the recommendations from Google. Not only beginners, but also experienced webmasters will find here useful information on creating web pages that will be convenient to view on mobile devices.
Checking the site for mobile-friendly
Check whether your pages are user-friendly for smartphone and tablet users. Modify the site if necessary.
CMS setup
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This describes how to configure the site for different types of devices, ensure access search engine to these settings and avoid common mistakes.
Page loading speed
Be sure to ensure that mobile-friendly pages render quickly. Users get annoyed if they have to wait a long time for content to load.