In March 2015 the web industry went into meltdown on hearing Google are changing the rules effective 21st of April 2015.
As of the 21st of April 2015 ALL websites MUST be RESPONSIVE to mobile phones and iPads. Those websites which are not will be penalised by Google and may well lose their current ranking on Google’s local search results. Google published this upcoming feature on the official Google Webmaster Central Blog on the 26th of February 2015.
My main concern is that the ranking change only applies to “mobile” search results, not “PC” ranking results. Google did say when they announced the mobile-friendly ranking algorithm that this would have a “significant impact” on the mobile search results. This is key, it is only impacting the mobile results and even so, it will have more of an impact than Panda or Penguin.
What I find interesting is
- Google advertising (Adwords) on mobile devices is generating significantly less revenue for google coffers so I keep asking myself why are they pushing something that will affect it’s bottom line?
I believe there are web sites that should only be viewed on a PC for all sorts of reasons.
- Image Galleries – I have a couple myself and don’t want some turkey straining to see a dick sized image that was meant to be seen much larger in detail
- Video – same reason. size
- Content – it concerns me greatly that not everyone will use mobile devices and yet Google is telling everyone, our content must be mobile-friendly.
Google is helping web site owners but my concerns remain.
- Guide to Mobile-Friendly Sites
- Google – Customizing Content
- Mobile-Friendly Test
- Google Announcement (below)
- Usability Report
Finding more mobile-friendly search results
Posted: Thursday, February 26, 2015
When it comes to search on mobile devices, users should get the most relevant and timely results, no matter if the information lives on mobile-friendly web pages or apps. As more people use mobile devices to access the internet, our algorithms have to adapt to these usage patterns. In the past, we’ve made updates to ensure a site is configured properly and viewable on modern devices. We’ve made it easier for users to find mobile-friendly web pages and we’ve introduced App Indexing to surface useful content from apps. Today, we’re announcing two important changes to help users discover more mobile-friendly content:
1. More mobile-friendly websites in search results
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.
To get help with making a mobile-friendly site, check out our guide to mobile-friendly sites. If you’re a webmaster, you can get ready for this change by using the following tools to see how Googlebot views your pages:
If you want to test a few pages, you can use the Mobile-Friendly Test.
If you have a site, you can use your Webmaster Tools account to get a full list of mobile usability issues across your site using the Mobile Usability Report.
2. More relevant app content in search results
Starting today, we will begin to use information from indexed apps as a factor in ranking for signed-in users who have the app installed. As a result, we may now surface content from indexed apps more prominently in search. To find out how to implement App Indexing, which allows us to surface this information in search results, have a look at our step-by-step guide on the developer site.
If you have questions about either mobile-friendly websites or app indexing, we’re always happy to chat in our Webmaster Help Forum.
Posted by Takaki Makino, Chaesang Jung, and Doantam Phan | Source