On April 21, 2015, many website owners braced themselves as Google released its Mobilegeddon update. It was Déjà vu - December 31st, 1999 (Y2K) all over again for some people. Many marketers scrounged around to get their websites mobile-friendly, as if their world was going to end. Don’t get us wrong, at Maximize Studio, we were concerned, but not worried. We have been proponents of building mobile-friendly websites from the very beginning and never took it lightly.
Our philosophy is simple. Give your Web visitors what they want and everything will fall into place. In other words, build it right the first time. A visitor should be able to view a website from any device, whether it’s a PC or Smartphone, effortlessly.
The Impact: It may seem like the aftermath was like a small noise at the end of a parade. In reality, the impact was relatively major. Nearly 40 percent of the top websites have failed to meet Google's mobile-friendly requirements, according to experts.
The overall purpose of the mobile-friendly update wasn’t designed to punish website owners (as some people believed), it was designed to enhance mobile users’ viewing experience. If your website is mobile-friendly, and a large percentage of your visitors are mobile users, that’s a feather in your cap. Web visitors are less likely to abandon a website that is easy to navigate from a Smartphone.
However, if your website isn’t mobile-friendly, your site may drop in ranking. Plus, web visitors are more likely to abandon a website that’s difficult to view from a small mobile device. The good news? It is fixable. If your website isn’t mobile-friendly, here are a few tips to get your website up-to-speed.
● Make sure you have a responsive web design. If you have a separate hosted mobile version of your website, don’t panic. Google is only concerned that your mobile users’ browsing experience is phenomenal.
● View each page of your website from a mobile device to make sure navigation is a breeze. Don’t assume that because your homepage is mobile-friendly your entire website is the same.
● Make sure Google’s ‘mobile bots’ can crawl your website. Remember, if Google doesn’t see it, no one else will.
There’s more…
● Avoid using flash. Flash software and mobile is like oil and water - they don’t mix.
● Use a text size and font that is readable. This will keep zooming to a minimum.
● Prevent zooming and scrolling horizontally by making sure the viewport fits the screen properly.
● Ensure your links are spread out apart so users can tap the link they desire.
That’s not all...
Having a mobile-friendly website doesn’t guarantee you won’t get hit with a penalty. To help reduce the chances of getting penalized by Google, we highly recommend the following.
● Only build links from high-quality, relevant websites.
● Avoid thin or duplicate content. Your content should educate and add value to your readers.
● Create content that is unique and valuable. Content that’s valuable is more likely to generate natural links.
● Avoid keyword stuffing. Your keywords should blend in with your content.
Regardless of what industry your business is in... whether you’re promoting a product or service, having a mobile-friendly website is no longer optional.
Do you need help building a responsive website design for a new or existing website? We can help. Call Maximize Studio today for a consultation at: (866) 213-2352 or contact us online.