To have the best user experience, we need to shift to a mobile way of thinking. Google know this fact, which is why they are changing to a mobile-first indexing. Now, is the time to change that mode of thinking and think mobile!

Worried that you don’t have enough time? Don’t fear. Google itself is taking a slow approach to rolling out the changes. On the Official Google Webmaster Central Blog, the company announced the long awaited roll out.

Mobile-First Indexing Begins

What is mobile-first indexing? Basically, it is indexing the mobile site instead of a desktop site. For those using a responsive site, the change will have little impact, but for those who have a streamlined mobile site, this change could have a large impact on how your site is seen by Google.

…our crawling, indexing, and ranking systems have typically used the desktop version of a page’s content, which may cause issues for mobile searchers when that version is vastly different from the mobile version. Mobile-first indexing means that we’ll use the mobile version of the page for indexing and ranking,…

If you are not prepared for this change, then your SEO strategy could be hindered. Luckily, most sites do not have a streamlined mobile site anymore, but there are some that still do. It is these sites that need to make sure the targeted keywords and content are well represented on a mobile site.

How It Will Be Used

In the article, Google stresses that mobile-first indexing isn’t about ranking. So, if you don’t have a mobile site or a poor one, you don’t have to worry about your ranking. The blog states,

Sites that are not in this initial wave don’t need to panic. Mobile-first indexing is about how we gather content, not about how content is ranked. Content gathered by mobile-first indexing has no ranking advantage over mobile content that’s not yet gathered this way or desktop content.

However, I will not be surprised if this changes in the future as we continue our shift to mobile devices whether this next quote is a hint or not.

Having said that, we continue to encourage webmasters to make their content mobile-friendly. We do evaluate all content in our index — whether it is desktop or mobile — to determine how mobile-friendly it is.

Next Steps to Take

As I mentioned earlier, if you have a responsive site or a mobile site, you do not have make any significant changes at the moment. For those that have desktop only websites, you may want to consider changing to a responsive site. With a responsive site, you will still only have one site to update.

There are other steps that you can take to make sure that you are creating mobile-friendly content.

• Increase your page speed. Use a CDN (content delivery network) and compress images.
• Consider the using AMP, or Accelerated Mobile Pages, to increase page speed for mobile
• Use easy-to-read content with short paragraphs, bullets and sub-headings.
• Have a clickable phone number on your website to allow visitors to call you.
• Avoid flash elements.
• Use a larger font.

While these steps are not all inclusive, they will go a long way in making your site more mobile-friendly.

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I don’t mean having a mobile or responsive site; I want you to think about how people use a phone or tablet to find and navigate through your website. With mobile-first indexing and Google’s emphasis on mobile devices, we need to think mobile when developing search and SEO strategies.

In a mobile-first world, page speed, ease of navigation, voice search and the ability to connect will only become more important.

Upcoming Google Algorithm Changes

When Google’s Nathan Johns was addressing SMX West recently, he let the audience know that a key algorithm update would be rolling out soon. Already a ranking a factor, page will speed will have a larger focus when this change is released. It may not seem like much of a change, but it will make a large impact in a mobile-first world.

Images slow your site down, even with today’s internet speeds, and for a while now, we have compressing images and using smaller file sizes to help. That step is not enough, however; instead, we need to look at reducing the number of images and scripts that load, which isn’t just deleting a photo or two off a page.

Do you have a large slider? Not only does the image take time to load, but also the script needed to run the slider takes time. Add that script in with the one needed to track your visitors for analytics and the one that allows social sharing and the one for your CDN. Now, the browser is loading various different aspects both on and off the page.

Minifying scripts will need to have a larger emphasis in your SEO strategy. The more bells and whistles that we add to site, the more we are slowing it down. There are several programs available that can help you minify your scripts, especially if you are using a CMS such as WordPress.

You only have seven seconds before most people will abandon the page, and we even less patient on a mobile device. Search engines know this fact. That reason is why page speed will be important in a mobile first index.

Prepare for Voice Search

Not only is Google preparing to emphasize page speed, but it is also looking at voice search. While the use of voice search is reaching its toddler years, its adoption rate with users is growing significantly. As the technology improves, we are growing more comfortable using Siri, Cortana or Alexa to help us search the internet.

How the search engines will factor this area into the search results is still a gray area. Johns even mentioned that there isn’t much data that he could share about specific voice search usage except that it was growing. Bing, on the other hand, has been more open about their research on voice search, but even with them, you can’t get specific keyword data about voice search usage although they do recommend using modified broad-match keywords in your keyword mix in a PPC campaign.

Even with the search engines still catching up to the growth, voice search shouldn’t be neglected. One day it will be the primary way we search on the phone, and the key difference is we ask a digital assistant questions or give her simple commands. Therefore, an emphasis on longer-tail keywords is important when thinking mobile.

How to Think Mobile

Thinking mobile is easier than you think as you already use your phone to view and search on the internet. When you view your site on your phone, how does it look? Is it friendly? Can you find information easily? Is your mobile site a scaled down version of your desktop site with missing information? Is there too much information to sort through?

Answering those questions is a great start at revamping your SEO strategy whether you have a mobile specific site or a responsive one. Use your answers as a road map to begin your mobile first optimizations. Make a list of your pain points as they are your customer’s pain points with the mobile site too. Then, you can begin to tackle them.

Another step is to think about your own search queries. When we type one, we tend to short, but when speaking we use full sentences most of the time. Think about how you would search for your business and services with a digital assistant; would you use phrases like these:

• “Find licensed plumbers near me?”
• “Where can I find a auger to unclog my drain?”
• “What is the closest Thai Restaurant?”

If so, incorporate those queries to help you as your plan your SEO strategy.

Steps to Get Ready for a Mobile-First World

There are a few things you can do to help you now.

• If you are not using a CDN (Content Distribution Network), look into using one for your images at the least. A service like Cloudflare will help you cache your site to make it act like a more static page to load faster. There are WordPress plugins that will do the same. A cached page will load significantly faster.
• Consider a responsive site, instead of a mobile-specific site. With a responsive site, your website will scale to the size of the screen, allowing you to have one site for all devices.
• If you are neglecting a mobile site, stop doing so.
• Streamline your site. Most visitors scan your site. Use bullet points or lists as much as possible. Try to do more with less.
• Use graphics smartly and sparingly. Avoid content in images as much as possible. A useful info graphic is ok once in a while.
• Use social media for your business. While it doesn’t help with rankings, it does provide links back to your site to help you get more traffic. Plus, we primarily use social media on our phones.

Get the Help You Need

Are you overwhelmed in keeping your SEO strategy up-to-date? Do you find you don’t have enough time to focus on SEO like you should? Get the help you need today so you can focus on your business. Use the contact form in the side bar to contact us today!

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Effective Ad Extensions

There are several extensions that you can use to provide more useful information to your target audience. Here are a few that everyone should be using.

• Site links – These allow you to give links to website pages that provide more information about your product or services.
• Callout Extensions – With callouts you can five more information about a specific product or service.
• Location Extensions – This one provides a link to your location on a map.
• Review Extensions –  Display your review rating in the ad.
• Call Extensions – It gives a clickable phone number for patrons to call.
• Structured Snippets – This extension allows you to showcase a sale, discount or offers for your products or services.

Effective Holiday Uses

Give your customers more information about your holiday offers and products. Below are suggestions you can use to give more useful information to your customers.

• Use call extensions and location extensions to help mobile users find your business. Make sure your site is mobile friendly.
• If you have a directions or location page on your website, make sure that it is a site link.
• Make sure holiday sales page or holiday gift ideas are one of your site links.
• Use call out extensions to advertise your sale and products. Be sure to use keywords to help the text stand out. For instance, you can mention that the sale runs through next Friday or if it is a flash sale, mention something such as “only a few hours left” or “offer ends today.”
• Highlight free services in a call out – “Free Gift Wrapping” or “Free Shipping”
• Show customers your range of products in a call out with text like “Hannukah Gifts” or “Advent Candles”
• If you have niche items, mention them in a call out.
• List business hours in an extension.
• If you have 5 star reviews, highlight it in an ad.

Are you looking to leverage ad extensions to reach holiday shoppers? Get the help you need. Contact Norton Writing & Digital Marketing, LLC to create a strong holiday advertising campaign.

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While Google can sometimes be cryptic, the company has been dropping a few hints at what the next search algorithm will contain. No one knows exact detail. There have been some clues though. In recent blogs and conferences, representatives are stressing a few main factors. You can bet on these items to be considerable factors in your site’s ranking.

Industry insiders noted this summer that a smaller update occurred unannounced. This one built on the previous update, providing a bit of a balance. There was a larger emphasis on content quality.

Why the new focus on quality? Isn’t quality already a factor? Yes, it is, but the goal now is to provide fast results that are extremely relevant. The best way to make sure this happens is to focus on quality. No one wants to click on spam or unrelated content, especially on a mobile device. If the search results are highly relevant, everyone wins.

Design for the Mobile First World

We need to be ready for the mobile first era. This mantra is one where Google gives clear, unambiguous direction. The next big update will get rid of the current two index systems: desktop and mobile. Instead, mobile site will be ranked first. On the webmaster’s blog, it states,

“…while our index will be built from mobile documents, we’re going to continue to build a great search experience for all users, whether they come from mobile or desktop devices.”

Any site that’s not mobile friendly will not get a top ranking. Use this tool to see if your site passes the test.

Do you have a mobile site? Don’t rely on it. Websites with a responsive design will reap a greater reward over m-dot sites. In fact, Google is pushing for responsive designs since many mobile sites are scaled down versions of the desktop site.

How Can You Prepare for the Update?

Avoid the surprise when the update rolls out.  Follow these steps to make sure you are ready for mobile first search.

1. Move to a Responsive Design. As mentioned earlier responsive designs are the preferred choice. These sites will scale to the user’s screen size, making them feel the same on a phone, tablet or desktop, creating a seamless user experience. If moving from a m-dot site to a responsive site, using 301 redirects is a must.
2. Use a Secure Site (https://). Now more than ever, users want a secure experience. Using this type of encryption allows for it. Remember to use 301 redirects to direct users to the new secure URL.
3. Help Your Site Load Faster. Google prefers you to use Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) or develop an app-like experience using Indexable Progressive Web Apps. If this type of programming is too costly for you, consider using a CDN (Content Delivery Network). Cloudfare offers a good one as well as security features. This process caches your page, allowing a lighter version to be served to user. You can cache just images or text, images and code. Ultimately, this should make the site load faster.
4. Make Sure All Elements Are Crawlable. This step should be central to any SEO strategy. Search engines cannot see certain elements such as text in images. Also, check to make sure areas are not blocked with robots.txt.
5. Develop Rich Content When Applicable. Using schema.org markup is essential. There are several plugins that provide this data for WordPress sites and other content management systems. For more information, view this guide.
6. Create Actionable Content. Anyone can find any kind of content on the web. How do you make your site stand out among the others? Answer the questions that prompt people to search in the first place. If you are providing a solution to a problem, you are creating quality content that people will use and share.

Mobile First Is Already Here

If you wait until the next update is announced to make these changes, you could be losing out on leads and customers. Think about your own behavior on a phone. We do not have patience to wait for a site to load. Instead, we click the back button and move on the next search result. The average person loses patience after three seconds. That’s not a lot of time. Because of this fact, making these changes is important not just for your SEO but for the user experience as well.

Are you looking to revamp you SEO efforts? Let us help you. Contact us today for a free quote on your SEO consulting needs. Call us today at 404-750-4352.

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Writing Tips for the Web

Some of the tips you will see in the video include:

• Writing to the search and answering a problem
• Creating relevant content
• Making the page easy to scan
• Using plain language
• Using keywords in headlines
• Forming content that fits the F pattern
• Using the rule of twos
• And many more

Writing for the Web

View our video guide to writing for the web.

Creating Web Content that Engages

When you follow the best practices in the video, you will be create content that the reader will interact with and share. Landing pages and websites that follow these guide convert better with readers that stay on the site longer. Whether you are revamping your website or forming a new landing page, these guidelines form the backbone of a successful approach.

Links to the Resources in the Video

• Jakob Nielsen is a GREAT resource for web research & best practices www.useit.com
• Plain Language Action & Information Network www.plainlanguage.gov
• http://www.copyblogger.com/

Let us help you write your website or landing page content. Contact us at 404-750-4352 for a quote on creating web content.

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