Riding the Google Tide

As new digital practices wash in and old digital practices wash out, Google makes another big announcement that will shake up the way organic search listings were ranked. As announced by Google:

“Starting April 21, we will be expanding our use of mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal”

So what does this new wave of information mean?

It means that whether your website is mobile-friendly or not will have a ‘significant impact’ on where you appear in the Google search engine when people are searching online.

To say there are a multitude of different ways to improve your search engine ranking would be an understatement. Long gone are the days when you could cheat your way to the top of a Google search engine by clumsily chucking in a load of keywords and vigorously linking yourself to other websites. Now, along with its customer’s online behavior, Google has become sharper and more sophisticated in how it evaluates and ranks your website online.

Google’s algorithms now take into account more than dozens of different factors when deciding what your value is as a website. As of the 21st April – having a responsive, mobile friendly build is one of them; and a significant one at that. The role of Keyword Research for SEO is very much significant to bringing the website visitbility more on SERP.

But why bother with all of this… Is trying to push your website to the top of Google search really worth all the fuss?

Well a study conducted by Optify shows that first three organic results in Google get the best CTR. (1.result: 36.4%; 2.result: 12,5%; 3.result: 9,5%).

If user are searching for keywords that relate to your business then the majority of them will probably not even get as far as noticing your website unless you are up there alongside the SEO* savvy websites. So the decision is yours… should it be you up there getting the better bit for CTR share from your would-be devoted customers, or are you happy to let you competitors have them?

You may feel like strangling Google sometimes with all the hoops they make you jump through to reach the top of the search engine. Though webmasters have notified that it will only affect mobile searches; it will still affect a big chunk of the overall traffic to the website. Worldwide internet usage on mobile devices is already overtaking desktop in some countries and in the UAE already 50% of online traffic is accessed through mobile devices (according to We Are Social).

So it make sense. And at the end of the day Google wants to offer the best experience to its users; so their aim is to deliver the most relevant search options to the users. Equally you should want to have the best website for your customers, and if they’re viewing your website on a mobile then you need to make sure that your website is mobile friendly.

Fear not though… I’m not going to send this tidal wave of information your way and then leave you to drown. Help is always at hand and Orange are more than happy to be of service!

If you want to know if your website is mobile friendly, or if it’s search engine optimization in general, we are currently offering a complimentary Search Engine Optimization Analysis; we run a strict ‘service with a smile’ only policy here at Orange!

So please feel welcome to get in touch and find out how you can surf that Google tidal wave. But be prepared for an exciting ride – the current can change at any minute… we all need to keep on our toes if we’re riding the digital surf board.

*Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

The process of improving the visibility of a website or web page in search engines – often referred to as “natural,” “organic,” or “earned” results.