Why Mobile Matters to SEO for Business

There’s no denying it — the trend towards using smartphones and other mobile devices has dramatically altered the digital landscape and how people search for information online. In November 2016, Google took its mobile algorithm to the next level, implementing the first stages of the transition to mobile-first indexing. This will have a profound impact on businesses because traditional SEO techniques for desktops don’t automatically translate over to mobile.

As an experienced Atlanta SEO company will tell you, mobile is a key element of an effective SEO strategy designed to reach new customers online. Here’s what you need to know about SEO and your company’s mobile presence.

It’s Time for Your Company’s Website to be Mobile Responsive

If your business is still running a nonresponsive website, you’re already behind. If your customers can’t get the site to work correctly on their mobile screen, they’ll leave your website and find another one that works better. Google is also likely to penalize you in search results if your site isn’t mobile responsive.

Bear in mind that there’s a world of difference between a mobile website and a responsive website, especially as it affects your SEO strategy. A mobile website is technically separate from the desktop website and has been designed for viewing on mobile devices. A mobile version of your website may lack the SEO-rich pages featured on the desktop version. With Google’s latest algorithm shift to mobile-index first, missing interior pages on a mobile site may not be indexed, hurting your visibility in search rankings.

A responsive website, on the other hand, is a complete website that’s designed to scale to the user’s mobile device.

Bump Up Your Site Speed for Mobile

Just like users won’t stay on a site that doesn’t adjust to a mobile screen, they won’t wait around for a slow-loading page. Research suggests that, on average, a person will give a website two seconds to load before navigating away to search for another site.

This has even more relevance when it comes to mobile devices. It’s both a user experience issue and ranking factor for Google. Server response time, placement of stylesheets, and the size of data and image files are all behind the scenes issues that need to be addressed by your website developer to improve mobile page speed.

Optimize Your Website for Mobile SEO

Location is a critical component for traditional SEO, but it makes all the difference in mobile. With mobile search results, Google gives priority to local results. This makes sense because mobile users are on-the-go and searching for local businesses that will be easy for them to access with a phone call or visit.

Optimizing your website using geo-modified keywords and making sure your directory listings are up to date help improve mobile visibility and drive traffic to your business.

Blueprint specializes in winning SEO strategies to increase your company’s online visibility, both on desktops and mobile devices. Contact our SEO specialists today to make sure your website is visible in mobile search results and to customers.