How to Stay Ahead in Google’s Mobile-First Era

Google will no longer index sites that are not mobile friendly. 

Over seven years from Google’s mobile-first indexing initiative began, it will now be implemented after July 5th, 2024.

John Mueller, Google’s Senior Search Analyst, has announced this week that if your website is inaccessible via mobile devices, Google will no longer index or rank your site, meaning your site will no longer appear in the SERPs.

As an experienced SEO Agency, we are here to help you adapt to this new change if you think your website may be affected. Here we’ve broken down the key steps you can take to ensure Google’s mobile-first indexing initiative doesn’t hinder your performance:

Mobile Responsiveness: Your website must be accessible on mobile devices and able to adapt to various different screen sizes and devices to be indexed by Google. Test your site across different mobile devices and browsers to ensure a consistent user experience.

Mobile-Friendly Design: Optimise your website design for mobile usability. This includes using readable fonts, appropriate call-to-action buttons and sizes, and an easy navigation menu that works well on different size devices and touch screen.

Page Loading Speed: Mobile users expect fast loading times so you must make sure you optimise your website’s performance. To do this, shrink image sizes, condense CSS and JavaScript files, and use browser caching.

Mobile SEO: Optimise your content for mobile search by focusing on relevant keywords and providing concise, easily digestible information. Use structured data markup to enhance your website’s visibility in mobile search results.

Avoid Pop Ups and Flash Content: Not only do intrusive pop ups often frustrate users on mobile, but flash content isn’t supported on many mobile devices. Avoid using flash elements and minimise the use of pop ups to provide a smoother browsing experience.

Google’s Mobile Friendly Test: Use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool to check if your website meets the criteria set by Google. This tool provides insights into any issues that need to be addressed to improve you website’s mobile compatibility.

By following these steps, you can ensure that your website remains accessible and visible in Google’s SERPs, maintaining its rankings and attracting valuable organic traffic from mobile users.

If you need further assistance or help in optimising your website for mobile, feel free to reach out to our team of SEO experts.