Starting April 21st, mobile-friendliness will become an increasingly significant Google ranking factor with the roll out of a new Google Update to search algorithms. Search is the most common starting point for mobile research – we know how important search and mobile are, and have for some time. Why are there still some people out there dragging their feet?
Mobile is close to surpassing desktop usage. Marketers need to address that consumers are “multiscreening”, accessing retail sites on mobile or desktop.
Back to Google. They release a lot of updates. Is this one a big deal? Yes. “This change will affect mobile searches in all languages worldwide and will have a significant impact in our search results” – straight from the horses’ mouth.
What should you do? Check if your website is mobile-friendly. If it’s not, you’ll need to make improvements. Or you may even need to completely re-think your website, if it hasn’t been updated for a while. For example, is it responsive? Would you benefit from having an app?
These are things that need to be seriously considered, and merit investment.
Here’s some food for thought…
Mobile websites turn visitors into customers
Whilst nearly 75% of users prefer a mobile-friendly site, 96% of consumers say they’ve encountered site that were clearly not designed for mobile devices. This is big opportunity for companies seeking to engage with mobile users.
- When they visited a mobile-friendly site, 74% of people say they’re more likely to return to that site in the future.
- 67% of mobile users say that when they visit a mobile-friendly site, they’re more likely to buy a product or service from that site.
About responsive design
Responsive design is a “write once, run everywhere” style of designing websites. Rather than building separate sites for each web and mobile device, responsive design creates a single website that intelligently adjusts its layout and features based on how it’s being viewed.
Chantal Yeung Dresner is the Digital Marketing Manager at Sans Frontiere. You can contact her at chantal@sansfrontiere.co.uk or call 01273 487800.
