If you have used Google Search on your mobile phone and ended up going to a page that was clearly not designed for mobile devises, google feels your pain. Google has started to add the “mobile-friendly” label to their mobile search results. And I have to say, it is about time.
Here is an example of what the search results will look like:
Google determines if a page is “mobile-friendly” if it meets a selected group of criteria as seen (detected) by it’s Googlebot. The criteria are:
- Avoids software that is not common on mobile devices, like Flash
- Uses text that is readable without zooming
- Sizes content to the screen so users don’t have to scroll horizontally or zoom
- Places links far enough apart so that the correct one can be easily tapped
So how can you tell if your site will pass the test? Google has provided a Mobile Friendly Test you can use.
A quick word for those using the Winning Agent Pro theme that is built on the Genesis Framework. As you can see by the above image, we are fully compliant without any errors. When Carrie and I developed the theme, one of our first priorities was to ensure that it was not only mobile ready, but looked fantastic on a full array of mobile devices. We wanted your website to make you look not just good, but awesome!
So how important will this “mobile-friendly” Google thing be? I personally believe that sometime in the near future, if your site is not mobile friendly, you will not rank well, if at all, in mobile search. Now, this is my opinion, but it is based on not only sound reasoning, but Google’s own quote.
“We are also experimenting with using the mobile-friendly criteria as a ranking signal.”
So what does this mean for your website if it’s not mobile-friendly? The short answer is – make it mobile friendly, and soon. Why? Because for most websites, especially those built for client interaction, mobile traffic is nearing a third of total traffic. Include tablets, and you are nearing 50%. All of that traffic could cease to exist for you as Google begins to rank searches using the metric of “mobile-friendly”.
If your website isn’t mobile-friendly, the good news is we can do that for you with our newly enhanced special offer, which is at an incredible introductory price. Please take a look at how much it includes – you could be up and running in as little as 5 days!
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