Google has finally released the Mobile First Index that it has been teasing for many months. While there hasn’t been an immediate shake-up in Google’s search results, the change is a clear indication of the direction that Google is moving in. That’s why we’ve put together a list of what the Mobile First Index means for your site’s SEO. Read on for the details.
User experience matters
In the past, many SEO experts took a two-pronged approach to their work. Some of their time would be spent on on-site optimisation, generally focussing around the content, and the rest of the time would be spent on link building. Google has made it clear that web design and user experience are just as important. If your site isn’t easy to use and navigate around, particularly on tablets and mobile devices, then its ranking will drop and you’ll receive fewer visitors from Google.
Google has been clear that it expects site owners to make their pages mobile friendly by using responsive web design, rather than creating a separate mobile version of their websites as was common a number of years ago.
The algorithm is getting cleverer
Google has said for years that the key to good SEO is creating a useful website that people want to use. However, people have spent a lot of time trying to game Google’s algorithm and discover tricks that allow them to improve the rankings of websites. It’s increasingly clear that Google now has the upper hand in this battle and website designers are going to have to spend their time writing useful content that users actually want if they’re going to attract visitors from Google. This should be good news for web users and the vast majority of site designers.
Google Mobile First Index and what it means for SEO – where to find out more
If all this talk of SEO is making your head spin and you don’t know where to start, then head on over to our SEO Analysis tool. It’s completely free of charge and will take a look at your site and give you a few actions you can take now to improve things.
If you’d like a little more advice then contact our friendly SEO team to discuss how we can help.
You can read more in our SEO Services section.
