Will Your Website Be Affected By Google’s Mobile-First Indexing?

 Posted on June 26, 2019 in Changes with Google

Google is one of the companies that shape how people experience the internet, and every move that the company makes is closely scrutinized by everyone from major brands to owners of small websites. Keeping abreast of changes made by Google is essential for ensuring that your business can be found in online searches. One recent announcement by Google that will affect many websites is the announcement that mobile-first indexing will be used for new sites, and this may affect the search engine optimization (SEO) strategies used by a wide variety of businesses.

What Is Mobile-First Indexing?

When people perform a Google search, what is actually being searched is an “index” of all websites on the internet created on Google’s systems. This index includes a variety of information about a site and its relevance to people performing searches, including ranking factors that affect where it will show up in search results. Since so many people now use mobile devices to perform searches and view websites, Google now uses the mobile version of a website’s content in its index in many cases.

While Google still uses the desktop version of many websites in its index, its goal is to use the mobile version of sites as much as possible. Recently, Google announced that starting July 1, 2019, all new sites indexed by Google will use mobile-first indexing.

How Does This Affect My Site?

As Google continues to emphasize the mobile experience, this demonstrates the importance of making sure that a site looks good, functions properly, and provides useful information for people who access it on mobile devices. Any new sites that are being created should be sure to prioritize the mobile experience in order to ensure that they can be found in Google searches. For existing sites, including sites which are redesigned and relaunched after July 1, Google may still use the desktop version of the site in its index, but since mobile-friendliness is an important ranking factor in Google search, ensuring that a site works well for mobile users should be a priority.

Contact Our SEO Experts

At OVC, INC., we create responsively-designed websites that look and function great on every device, and we continually monitor our clients’ websites through tools like Google Search Console to uncover and address any issues that may affect a site’s search rankings. Our SEO strategists will work with you to determine the best ways to improve your site’s position in search results, and we will build a comprehensive digital marketing strategy that will help you utilize all the tools available to connect with your customers and build your business. To schedule a free website consultation, contact us today at 630-635-8000.

Sources:

https://webmasters.googleblog.com/2019/05/mobile-first-indexing-by-default-for.html

https://twitter.com/googlewmc/status/1007235832107945985?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1007235832107945985&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fsearchengineland.com%2Fgoogle-makes-some-clarifications-related-to-mobile-first-indexing-300199