Google has announced its new mobile-focused algorithm, which will rank mobile-friendlier sites higher in searches.
Described by some as “Mobilegeddon”, this will signifigantly impact many small companies with either low quality mobile sites or no mobile sites at all, as their sites will appear lower in the search results. The impact o this change is affecting not only clicks but the decisions people make based on searches. On the other hand, this is good news for brands that have chosen a mobile-first strategy in marketing for their brands. Websites that do not meet Google’s standard of mobile-friendliness will be demoted in their search results.
What does this mean for marketing companies?
This new algorithm puts pressure on businesses to improve their mobile sites to stay competitive. The mobile sites will also have to adhere to Google’s criteria in order to appear higher in the searches, said online workplace Elance-oDesk.
The company offered data showing how companies are already doubling down on mobile since the announcement by Google:
- Globally, businesses spent 80% more per month hiring for Responsive Web Design.
- Spend also increased for other mobile related skills, including Mobile UI Design (87%) and WordPress Plugin (52%), which can be used to make websites more mobile-friendly.
- In Singapore, there was a 97% increase in money businesses spent on Drupal, a popular content management system.
- In Singapore, there was a 100% increase in the number of job posts requiring Bootstrap and a 47% increase in the number of posts requiring CSS, a web design programming language.
- In Singapore, freelancers earned significantly more for jobs with web design related skills, including Web Design (up 95%), JavaScript (up 63%) and CSS (up 49%) likely due to businesses updating their websites for the future of mobile.
*Based on compound monthly growth rate between January and March 2015.
Experts advise:
Siddharth Surana, GM, digital and performance marketing, APAC, Havas Media International said that the move will be a complete shakeup of mobile search results.
“Brands who have not made their websites mobile friendly will see a significant drop in their mobile search ranking especially for non-brand driven search queries over the next few weeks when this algorithm rolls out,” said Surana.
He added that Google had already made announcements earlier in February this year, allowing businesses enough time to work on a mobile-friendly site. “If visitors on website are important to a business – then it’s not about optimizing for mobile search but about giving the best user experience possible. We see this as a long pending moving that will force mobile laggards to think about the user,” he added.
Is your website ready?