The Proliferation of Mobile Devices
Cell Phones Matter!
More and more people use mobile devices to browse the web, shop online, and connect with businesses. As a result, mobile devices now contribute to over half of all internet traffic.
Therefore, businesses that wish to remain competitive in search can’t overlook the importance of ensuring their website is optimized for mobile devices.
Why Mobile Optimization Matters for SEO
Google’s Mobile-First Indexing Policy
Mobile website optimization is a fundamental part of a winning SEO plan. This is especially true since Google has stated that mobile-friendliness a vital component of their search engine ranking algorithm.
Google predominantly uses the mobile version of a site’s content, crawled with the smartphone agent, for indexing and ranking. This is called mobile-first indexing.
Optimizing your website for mobile devices can have a huge impact on your search engine rankings as a result of Google’s mobile-first indexing system. This is Google’s policy of using the mobile version of your website to determine your SEO search engine ranking as opposed to the desktop version.
Websites Optimized for Mobile Devices Have Better User Experiences
User experience is probably the most important factor for any type of website, whether it’s the mobile or desktop version. If the website is too slow, it’ll lead to a high bounce rate (users leaving quickly after landing on your website) which tells Google that users aren’t having the best experience on your website.
Thus, optimizing your website for mobile devices will have a positive influence on your SEO or search engine rankings.
If the mobile version of your website loads fast and functions well, the result will be longer time on site, lower abandonment rates, and higher interaction rates from users. These are important search engine ranking factors that infer a website’s relevance and influence.
Better User Experience Means Higher Search Engine Rankings
If your website is designed with mobile users in mind, you’ll have the best chance for higher rankings in Google, Bing, and other search engines. Take full advantage of every opportunity to achieve high search rankings because ranking higher in search will result in more quality traffic to your website, and thus, more potential customers.
Tips for Optimizing Your Website for Mobile Users
Work on Speeding up the Load Times of your web pages
Certain optimizations and updates can make the loading time faster for the mobile version of a website. Speeding up your website can be accomplished by optimizing images, shortening content, and making use of a responsive design.
Faster page speeds will not only enhance user experience on mobile devices, but also improve the website’s search engine ranking since page load speed is a major ranking factor for Google.
Use a Responsive Web Design
To ensure your website works on mobile devices, a responsive web design might be the best approach. A responsive website design is a type of website layout which automatically adjusts to the size of the screen it is being viewed on.
VizTV Media Services’ website uses a responsive design.
A responsive website design makes it easier for mobile users to use your website and for you or your webmaster to manage. Be advised, I wouldn’t turn over the keys entirely to a responsive theme because you may need to make minor tweaks for optimal performance on each particular class of mobile device.
Don’t Forget Image Optimization
Images can be a major source of slow page load times on mobile devices.
Optimize your images for mobile devices.
The process of image optimization entails reducing the file size of your images, using the right image file formats (JPEG, PNG, and GIF), and be sure to use descriptive, keyword-rich file names and alt text for obvious SEO benefits.
Pro Tip: Stick with JPEGs. Only use PNGs for images with transparent backgrounds and GIFs for animated images.
Minimize Content
Minimizing the content on your pages is also a good practice to optimize your website for mobile devices. I wouldn’t necessary cut down on the text content, but I would recommend making headlines and subheadings shorter so they won’t take up too much space on mobile screens.
I strongly recommend limiting the quantity of images and videos. If you have to keep the content, there are various ways to mitigate the impact on your page load speed.
Use Large, Easy-to-Click Buttons
Mobile users have to browse around your website using their fingers, which ain’t as easy as using a mouse. To make it easier for mobile users to navigate your site, use large, easy-to-click buttons and links. Also eliminate off-screen content or other content that kinda bleeds off-screen.
Need Help with Mobile Web Design & SEO?
Reach Out to VizTV Media Services. Tell Us About The Situation
Maximizing the functionality on your company’s website on mobile devices can give you an edge over your competitors. Since most companies haven’t optimized their websites for mobile devices, optimizing yours can help you to stand out from the crowd.
If you have questions about working with one of our website designers to optimize your mobile website or improving your local SEO, contact us today!
We’ll help you with optimizing each facet of your website for optimal use on mobile devices. Get started today! Call VizTV Media Services at 713-443-7578 or shoot us a message.
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