Google Warn of Impending Mobile Search Algorithm Update

The latest update to Google’s mobile search algorithm will only further heighten the importance of having a mobile-friendly site.

Planning for Google’s algorithm updates should form an integral part of your digital marketing strategy. Penguins and Pandas have never been so important.

Given that you now need to add the tech giant’s mobile search algorithm into the mix, it’s natural to be concerned you may not have every angle covered.

Mobile Search Algorithm? What’s the Difference?

Since ‘Mobilegeddon’ was unleashed back in April 2015, Google’s mobile search results have been determined based upon whether or not a website is mobile-friendly. Websites that didn’t appropriately prepare for the changes saw a subsequent drop in the rankings when the algorithm was updated.

When you think about it, this is exactly how things should be. Google’s primary aim is to display the results most befitting to the user, so it’s only right that sites that display poorly on mobile devices should appear below tailored, mobile-friendly results.

Warning Pre-Empts Impending Update

Now, almost a year on, Google have begun issuing a warning to site owners whose websites still aren’t mobile-friendly. When they view search results on mobile for their site, they will now be met with a message below the meta description that reads “Your page is not mobile-friendly.” The text links to a Google help page. The warning displays to the site owner when Google is:

• Aware that the searcher is the owner of the site
• The site in question is not deemed to be mobile-friendly by Google

The message itself is primarily in place to provide a reminder of the impending updates Google plans to make to their Google search algorithm in May. Confirmed as an ongoing experiment by Google’s Jon Mueller, it is the company’s hope that the change will encourage further interest in going mobile-friendly.

Will I Be Affected?

This really depends on what sort of state your website is in. Given that over 75% of websites were deemed to be mobile-friendly by Google even prior to Mobilegeddon, it’s now fair to assume that that number is far higher - and that many sites will be covered ahead of the algorithm update.

If, though, you still haven’t taken the mobile plunge, you really should be making it a priority – particularly if you rely heavily on traffic from the search engines. Consider the following:

• A vast amount of traffic now comes from mobile devices
• If you fall down the rankings your traffic will decline
• If your competitors have optimised for mobile and you haven’t then they will enjoy more visibility than you
• If your site is difficult to navigate on mobile devices then you won’t be able to effectively communicate with your customers – and they will go elsewhere
• Showing an unwillingness to move with technological advances could harm the image of your brand

Bearing all this in mind, the move to mobile is now all but essential.

Help Is At Hand

If you do find yourself in need of assistance, we can guide you through the process. Not only can our experienced team can provide you a fully responsive website, they can also work to optimise it for searches on an ongoing basis with SEO management. To find out more, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.