Google announces ranking demotion for non mobile friendly websites
‘Mobilegeddon’ phase 2 on the horizon in May.
In a recent announcement Google advised that websites which are not mobile friendly will be open to ranking demotion in the mobile search index in an update scheduled for May.
Whilst they also said that sites which have great content and are very popular could still rank well, in reality this isn’t many business websites.
Chances are that if your site is old and not optimised, the dentist near you in the search results with the modern, mobile-friendly site, could well jump ahead.
Why is Google boosting mobile-friendly websites?
A core principle at Google is to make the web better for users and to deliver the most relevant websites in response to search queries. One of the fundamentals of providing a good user experience is to ensure that the information on your website is easy to navigate and read on all devices, from mobile ‘phone browsers and tablets through to traditional desk-top screens. Old style websites which present information in a fixed format are frustrating for users as they stretch and scroll through screens trying to read the content – so not a good user experience, and one which Google is very aware of.
For the reasons above, over the last year or so, Google has been encouraging website owners to ensure that their sites are upgraded to provide the best user experience. This means a mobile-friendly format, typically using a technique called responsive design. This technique automatically adjusts the format of the information depending on the size of screen – so mobile ‘phone users would see larger text and a different layout compared to viewers using a desk-top browser.
Google first intimated ranking demotions for non-optimised sites a while back, but it now seems they are reinforcing the message with the recent announcement about May’s algorithm change to favour mobile friendly websites.
What does this mean for the dental community?
The dental website landscape is rather polarised – quite a lot of dentists understand the importance of a high-quality website with excellent information and using the responsive design mentioned above. However, there are equally as many at the other end of the scale, either with no website or a 6 year old version that fails to deliver any sort of decent user experience. There are also plenty of practices who updated their dental websites around 3 years ago and missed out on the responsive revolution. Irrespective of where you sit in the range, if your website is not mobile responsive, it really is time to act.
Make the transition easy
Whilst the responsive upgrade may sound daunting and awfully technical, there’s no need to worry. Here at Dental Media we were at the forefront of responsive website design and published the first version for dentists over three years ago – the first dental digital marketing company to do so. Simply get in touch on 01332 672548 and we’ll advise exactly what to do including a survey of your existing website where applicable. We’ll then guide you each step of the way as we create a beautiful new website for your practice to the latest standards.
With well over 40% of website users now searching via their mobile ‘phones, if you haven’t done so already, now is the time to move into the mobile marketing era. Failing to act puts you behind your competitors and under Google’s ranking spotlight too. Don’t be a victim of “Mobilegeddon” – call us today for no-obligation help and advice.