Earlier this year, Google announced it would be making a significant change to the Google Search algorithm in order to favor mobile-friendly sites in search rankings. Google has been encouraging businesses for years to tailor website content and design for mobile devices, and is now making a push to reward sites that make it easy for mobile users to view and interact with website content.
The revised formula is scheduled to be released today, April 21st, and will favor sites that Google defines as mobile-friendly. A Google blog post explained, “When it comes to search on mobile devices, users should get the most relevant and timely results, no matter if the information lives on mobile-friendly Web pages or apps.”
The shift is not a surprise. During the last quarter of 2014, 29 percent of all US search requests, about 18.5 billion searches, were made from mobile devices – a number that continues to grow.
Google search ranking can significantly affect web traffic, and businesses who do optimize their sites and capitalize on this new change have an opportunity to increase their ranking, which could mean more website visitors and the potential for increased revenues.
This shift is being referred to as “Mobile-geddon,” as organizations worldwide will be making a universal push to update and optimize their sites in order to ensure that they benefit from the new algorithm, which is being reported as one of the most significant changes that Google has ever made to its mobile search rankings.
What does mobile-friendly mean, and how should businesses react to ensure that they are capitalizing on this new priority? The factors that affect the mobile-friendly aspect of websites have to do with how the content is delivered to the viewer on their mobile device. For example, content must load quickly and be easily accessible by scrolling up and down, without having to zoom in or out in order to see the full page.
To support businesses in making the necessary changes, Google has provided instructions, tips and a “Mobile-Friendly test” to ensure that sites are properly optimized for success.
SADA Systems, a Google Cloud Premier Partner and global leader in strategic IT and cloud solutions, has been building custom Google Sites since its launch in 2009. Contact us at [email protected] or visit our website to learn more about Google Sites design, development, and deployment.
