Mobile-First Indexing from Google

Google has announced the introduction of their new mobile-first indexing system.

This new update is an extension of their current system and doesn’t change how Google ranks content, but rather how they search for content on each individual site. The majority of Internet usage is through mobile devices; Google’s mobile-first indexing will mean that mobile-friendly content will now be prioritised in searches.

What does this update mean?

Effectively, mobile-friendly content will now be used to rank pages on a site before desktop only pages. Previously, this has only been the case for mobile only searches (to guide these users to mobile-friendly content), but it is now being rolled out for desktop searches too.

The update means that if your site separate mobile and desktop versions of the same page, you might see some changes to the information shown from your Google hits, such as your entry snippet.

What is mobile-friendly content?

Simply put, mobile-friendly content (or responsive content) is content which adapts to display properly on mobile devices, such as phones and tablets. This allows people to view the page without any unnecessary zooming or horizontal scrolling, no matter which device they are viewing it on.

How will the update affect you?

It is important to remember that this change is to how information is gathered by Google, not how it is ranked; stronger content will still rank more highly than weaker content. All pages on a website will still be trawled and measured, but mobile friendly pages will be represented first in Google’s rankings.

What this ultimately means is that pages which aren’t mobile friendly will begin to suffer in their Google ranking, as responsive pages are prioritised ahead of them moving forward.

How can I avoid being negatively affected?

The best way to guarantee that your website will not be affected by these changes is to have fully responsive content throughout. This way, all your content will continue to be indexed in the same way as before.

If you think your website might be at risk then get in touch with us today; one of our team will be able to help you. All our Totalsolutions and Practice Track Online websites are fully mobile responsive as standard. And don’t forget, all our existing website customers are entitled to a free website redesign every two years, so if your site needs an update get in touch today.