According to Google’s latest report, there are now 4.7% more mobile-friendly websites than just several months ago. This isn’t a very large number, which leads us to believe that a lot of small businesses are not aware of the ramifications to their search results, or they just haven’t heard about it.
Here’s a quick synopsis for those of you who haven’t heard about “mobilegeaddon”:
Starting last month, on April 21, 2015, Google placed a new mobile-friendly algorithm which is expected to boost mobile-friendly website pages. Of course, when something goes up, something else either stays behind or goes down. Website pages that aren’t mobile-friendly can expect a “downgrade,” if you will, on their search performance on mobile devices. And, although large businesses are affected, it’s expected that small businesses will get hit the hardest.
But if this short synopsis isn’t enough to make you think about your website, here are three more reasons:
Why make your website mobile-friendly?
Mobile use has taken over desktop use
As of 2015, mobile has become a fixed Internet access according to Smart Insights. But what’s more important is how we are using mobile devices when it relates to interaction with our businesses. For example according to highervisibility.com:
- Over 50% of all mobile searches lead to a purchase
- 70% of mobile search activity leads to an action within the hour of the search
- 50% of millennials use smartphones when searching for products or services
- Users spend more time on mobile devices than on TV
Consumer user experience
The truth is that Google’s number one concern is user experience. Mobile use has been increasing so rapidly during the last few years that the shift is logical—if consumers have a good user experience, they will search more online. Let’s face it—pinching our phone screens to zoom in on tiny little copy isn’t very user-friendly.
Websites are today’s main corporate image builder
When it comes to sales, self-image matters. We all can understand that, right? Well, our website is our corporate self-image. It is the most public of all of our marketing tools—being accessed 24/7, from anywhere in the world. The reality is that we can’t hand out enough business cards to keep the business going, plus every time we give one out, the first thing the prospect will do is check us out online. Looking dated online is like wearing a 1970s business suit—who wants to do business with that guy?
While mobile-friendly ranking currently only affects search results on mobile devices, nobody knows if that will remain the same for a prolonged period of time. Google dropped this big shift on consumers with a short two-month warning—very little time for any business to rectify. Maybe it was a warning shot.
Take the mobile-friendly Google test here. It takes a few seconds.