Just in case you missed it - Google's new mobile algorithm
UPDATE: Google's Mobile Algorithm
At the onset of February, Google announced that they will be using mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal in driving search results to users. This update will take place on April 21st. In the announcement, Google’s Webmaster Central Blog states:
“Starting April 21, we will be expanding our use of mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal. This change will affect mobile searches in all languages worldwide and will have a significant impact in our search results. Consequently, users will find it easier to get relevant, high quality search results that are optimized for their devices.”
Details of the Change
The above statement means mobile-friendly and mobile-responsive sites will earn better positioning in Google’s mobile search engine results, but most importantly, sites that are not optimized for mobile will see less mobile, organic traffic. This and subsequent updates that will follow strongly signal that Google will not only be protective of the quality of the results it serves across devices but the quality of those experiences as well. More and more people access the web on mobile devices, and it is Google’s pledge to return what is relevant and user-friendly to searchers.
Google has created a series of tools to help identify the mobile readiness of a site and also the steps needed to remediate any existing mobile site issues. One such resource is the Mobile-Friendly Test tool now available. Try it here: https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/mobile-friendly/
Google may have announced the update early, but it hasn’t exactly been forthcoming with details. Here is what is known today:
- Responsive design does not have a ranking benefit.
- Googlebot must be allowed to crawl CSS & JavaScript to pass the "mobile-friendly" test.
- Mobile friendliness is determined at the page level – not sitewide.
- Tablets will not be affected by this update.
- Google is currently working on a dedicated mobile index. What This Means for You
Google has been telling webmasters to prepare for mobile for years.Thanks to this announcement of the Mobile Search update, many webmasters now have a compelling reason to take action.
For sites that already utilize a mobile responsive technology, there are still many elements of a mobile site that should be optimized to take full advantage of this mobile search update. Even with technology that adapts sites to mobile screen dimensions, there are still areas in a mobile sites code that should be enhanced to best suit the mobile search crawlers.
The search specialists at eBay Enterprise can assist with a Mobile Readiness review to identify any issues and maximize any opportunities to perform well in today’s mobile search landscape.For further information on the update to Google's Mobile Algorithm and how it relates to your affiliate program, be sure to reach out to publisher-support@pepperjamnetwork.com. We are happy to assist our valued publishers and look forward to hearing from you.
Recent Comments
8
Thank you for the updates. I just checked the links and... my site is responsive but 2 pages aren't!! Now I'm not sure what to do. Change themes? I'm too much of a novice. I didn't quite understand the instructions to fix them
Don,
Great catch! Thank you for unselfishly sharing with the WA community. I know that you are excited about getting up to your cabin at 9500 ft. as my wife and I are equally excited to return to our summer home in Estes but at only 8500. Baking is a challenge as we have also learned coming from Missouri. Keep in touch and thanks for your research.
Rick