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In a post on Google’s official blog, Google announced the addition of mobile-friendly factors to their ranking algorithm. How will this change affect the rankings of your web pages and what do you have to do to benefit from this change?

What exactly has Google announced?

Starting on 21 April 2015, Google will be using mobile friendly factors in the ranking algorithm for mobile search results. The official post reads:

“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.”

In addition, Google has started to use information from indexed apps as a factor in ranking for signed-in users who have the app installed. As a result, Google may now surface content from indexed apps more prominently in search.

What do you have to do now?

It is important to make sure that your web pages are mobile-friendly. Fortunately, Google has made this a bit easier as they have created a tool for this that is available here. Just enter the URL of your website (website address) and click the “Analyze” button. If your website passes the test, you will see something like this:

responsive test

If your website fails the test then you have to adjust the design of your web pages. Instead of creating a separate website for mobile devices, which has little to recommend it, you could use responsive web design for your web pages.

Being mobile-friendly alone is not the answer to SEO

A website that currently does not have high search rankings won’t get high rankings just because it is mobile-friendly. There are many more things that Google wants to find on your web pages, all of which we can help you with.

Call us today on 01273 328877, or leave a comment below to find out more about our responsive web design and SEO services.