With the increasing popularity of Cell phones, Phablets, and Tablet PCs, it is no surprise that in 2014 mobile usage surpassed desktops for internet use. Mobile based marketing has become an important factor for any business hoping to target a wide range on consumers. While your business may already have an established online presence, it is important to have a Mobile Site that is optimized for mobile usage. Otherwise, you are missing out on a quickly expanding consumer market!
Still not convinced you need Mobile Optimization? Google recently announced websites will be penalized if they aren’t mobile friendly. Even if you do have a mobile site, if your Mobile SEO isn’t implemented correctly, you will see a decrease in your rankings. It is also important to consider the variety of interment enabled electronics that are being used by an increasing number of consumers. Not only do you have to be optimized for cell phone usage, but also Smart devices such as TVs and watches as well as iPods and similar devices.
“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.” – Google
So what steps should a business take to remain relevant on the go:
1. Go Mobile
The first step is ensuring your company has a mobile website. While there are different options, Google recommends the use of Responsive Web Design. Responsive Web Sites ensure your website is viewable on any screen type. This includes cell phones, televisions, tablets, gaming devices, etc. Responsive web sites automatically resize content depending on the users screen size.
2. Implement Mobile Optimization
Keep in mind that a mobile site should be a smaller version of your desktop site. Ensure you continue to follow the best SEO Practices including quality content, links, images, etc. You must also implement optimization practices that are specific to mobile.
Nothing is more annoying then trying to navigate a website from a mobile device and your thumbs get in the way! Help your clients out by ensuring your design is accommodating to touch screen usage. Avoid using small content and try to incorporate touch screen friendly actions, such as the ability to swipe between content items.
When developing keywords and other meta data for your mobile site, remember a mobile screen is smaller than a desktop screen. It is important you implement quality keywords as there is limited space on search engine result pages (SERP).
Mobile devices also allow the perfect opportunity for call to actions items. How amazing is it that a client can search for your business, press one button, and their phone automatically dials your company’s number?! It is important to ensure your mobile site incorporates call to actions in a user friendly manner.
Also remember to incorporate your social media. Many users engage with social media through mobile devices. This allows the perfect opportunity to gain more likes, shares, and followers. Your mobile website should serve as a one stop shop for everything related to your company. You may even want to consider creating an APP!
3. Test Your Results
There is no denying that mobile usage will continue to increase. Every company needs to remain in line with the current trends. Google offers a Mobile Friendly Test that allows you to check if your current site is mobile friendly. There are also an array of tools that allow you to track how successful your current mobile marketing plan is.
Of course, incorporating mobile optimization can be very time consuming. There are so many different factors to consider in deciding what will work best for your company. In some cases, it may call for a total website redesign. Lucky for you, there are professionals who specialize in doing just that. NEXT! Ad Agency offers online reputation management that will set your business apart from it’s competitors. They also offer responsive web sites and specialize in mobile optimization.
Contact NEXT! Ad Agency today to ensure your business is mobile optimized and prepared for the Google algorithm change. Don’t get let your business get left behind.
