The mobile website experience has been very important for some time now, but the value of a solid mobile experience continues to rise. What exactly is the mobile site experience? Your site requires:

* Mobile operational: Can the site navigate without the need to zoom in or zoom out?

* Fast download: Will your site load before users are forced to click their search again?

* Easy to use: Can users get what they want?

A good mobile site experience is no longer a competitive advantage, it is essential to your search performance.

Mobile New Desktop

It is not surprising that since we are all connected to our phones, there are many searches from mobile devices. In early 2015, desktop traffic skipped over the mobile device’s path, and has not slowed down ever since. As of February 2021, mobile devices account for more than 54% of the world’s traffic. In 2015, 61% of mobile device users had more opportunities to contact a local business if their site was easy to use. Nowadays, if your site is not mobile, not only are you less likely to get leads, you are less likely to start searching.

From Mobile-Friendly to Mobile-First

Google has first shown that mobile experience has influenced search results with its mobile app reviews that began in April 2015. During this time, users began to see different search results on desktop and mobile devices to address users’ needs. Site content was number one, so sites with poor mobile functionality can still rank well, or be number one, without a user-friendly site.

To take it to the next level, Google began trying to target mobile indexes in 2016. That means Google is looking at the mobile version of the sites when it checks content to rate and appear on Google. In December 2018, half of the pages shown in the results were used in the first mobile directory. Prior to this change, Google was looking at a desktop version of the site when measuring content, but because most Google users now have access to Google mobile search, mobile information became a priority.

The default for new sites changed to the original mobile app in July 2019, but the change to existing sites was much faster. Switching the whole web to the first mobile phone call took years. By mid-2020, Google has announced that it is experiencing challenges from its original goal of placing mobile indexes across all sites on the web by September 2020. By the end of March 2021, Google’s release should be complete, and only desktop sites will be downgraded to Google.

Not sure if your site is easy to use? Check out Google’s Quick Help Check Tool.

Why Mobile Site Experience is the Best?

Having a mobile site is not enough. Instead, you should have a site specifically designed for mobile devices. Many things contribute to complete information on your mobile site:

Content is key

When mobile sites became popular, it was not uncommon to provide users with different or less mobile content compared to desktops to keep mobile sites simple. But with the complete release of mobile-first indexing, the content of your mobile site now needs to be prioritized.

Google’s John Mueller has made it clear that Google only identifies content contained in the mobile version of the site, and that desktop content will actually be ignored. Want your site content to be rated on Google Search? Make sure your mobile version of the site reflects the content, or Google will flash it to you.

If you use less content on your mobile site and your site makes the switch to the original mobile index, you may see a decline in performance or overall site performance, as Google no longer sees additional content on your desktop site. In fact, your mobile site is now the main text of your site, and you should treat it that way.

MOBILE-FIRST DESIGN

Mobile sites come in a variety of sizes and sizes. Both easy-to-use and responsive site designs are easily seen where one can use them from a mobile phone. The easy-to-use site works exactly the same on desktops and mobile devices. While you can easily click on items, only mobile sites are created by the mobile user. These sites meet Google’s standards and may take less time to build.

Responsive site layouts vary from site to site depending on the size of the browser or viewing tool. Responsive sites redesign the content of the desktop site to suit the needs of mobile device users because the behavior of mobile device users is different from that of desktop users. Responsive sites not only meet Google’s standards for mobile sites, but they also use their design to appeal to mobile users. With today’s globalization, many design teams have started to use an “advanced” approach to building websites, focusing on things like conversion rates.

Flash plug-ins, pop-ups, and hard-to-reach mobile devices can ruin your user site experience. Not sure if your mobile information is important? Smartphone users expect to receive instant information while using their Smartphone. If your site is uneven or very difficult to navigate, users are more likely to “back” and choose their competitors instead.

Core Web Vitals: Google’s Latest Ranking Factor

We’ve all done it – gotten frustrated by how long a site takes to load, and simply gave up. Google’s latest update looks at just that. Google’s Page Experience Update, coming in May 2021, pairs existing user experience metrics (mobile-friendliness, safe browsing, HTTPS, and intrusive interstitials) with new metrics called “Core Web Vitals.” Core Web Vitals metrics measure how long it takes to achieve three factors on your site: loading, interactivity, and visual stability. The measures of those factors are as follows:

1. LARGEST CONTENTFUL PAINT (LCP)

Largest Contentful Paint measures how long it takes for the largest content element (e.g., a banner image, video, contact form, etc.) on your page to become visible in the users’ viewport. Put simply, LCP measures how quickly your web page loads.

2. FIRST INPUT DELAY (FID)

First Input Delay measures how quickly users can interact with your website in their browser. Keeping your website’s code light by reducing third-party scripts will improve your site against FID.

3. CUMULATIVE LAYOUT SHIFT (CLS)

Cumulative Layout Shift measures the amount of visual change on your web page after a user starts interacting with it. The lower the score, the better the experience of your website visitors.

Core Web Vitals, combined with existing page experience metrics, will contribute to Google’s rankings to fulfill Google’s goal of helping users find the most relevant and quality sites for their queries.

Stand Out in SERPs

Mobile users often conduct localized searches on their devices, looking for “________ near me” and other similar queries. Google is constantly striving to deliver the most relevant results, so those localized queries can help bring you business. If your site isn’t optimized for mobile, you can be missing out on valuable leads that are likely to convert.

When optimizing your site for search, think like a mobile user. SEO elements like title tags and Meta descriptions should be optimized for what shows on mobile results, ensuring the most valuable information about your page isn’t cut off when viewed from the confined space on mobile. If you save a competitive differentiator, like offering 24/7 service, until the end, it is likely mobile users won’t even get to see it.

Once your mobile site experience is up to par, it’s important to remember that your mobile search strategy only begins with your site. Combining onsite optimization tactics like Meta data optimization and structured data use with local SEO efforts can really help your brand appearance on mobile devices.

Marketing with Mobile in Mind

From mobile-first, responsive site design to search engine optimization services, the team at TSDigitals is equipped to help improve your mobile site experience and drive results. Contact Now to discuss further