I know that it’s a strange first post title, but this year 4/20 is not just time for celebration for us cannabis smokers. Google is implementing some major changes to its search rankings algorithm to favor mobile-friendly websites. This is a major search rankings update and you can expect a lot of changes to be rolled out over the coming months.
WHAT GOOGLE SAYS:
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.
You can read the full post here: Google Mobile Update
WHY THE CHANGE?
The switch to mobile-friendliness was a long time coming. With the recent surge in mobile internet use, it was necessary for Google to filter out sites which do not provide a good user experience. Over the past few years I have seen my traffic take a dramatic swing from desktop to mobile users. Looking back, our web analytics demonstrate this trend perfectly. Three years ago, our mobile user rate was as low as 7%; today it is over 60%.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT?
Mobile Test of StonerThings.com
Get Mobile-Friendly. There’s not much more you can do but update your site’s design to ensure it is mobile-friendly. If you’re not sure, run your site through Google’s mobile-friendly test. If you pass, you’ve got nothing to worry about. If you fail, however, you will need to responsively redesign your website to be mobile compliant.
If you use a CRM like WordPress, making the change is much easier. Head over to Theme Forest and you can search for and install a new website template in a matter of minutes. Otherwise, you will need to spend some time evaluating your future digital marketing efforts and either create a new responsive HTML site or start the upgrade process to a CRM.