A couple of months ago, Google announced they are going to change their algorithms to give priority to mobile-friendly websites when searching on a mobile device. They are implementing this in just 10 days time (April 21st, 2015).
I have to say that I don’t agree with their thinking on this. I feel that the results shown when searching should be the most relevant, not just sites which are optimised for mobile devices. The very site with the information I need may no longer be shown to me because they’ve not made that transition.
Yes, sites on mobiles are great when they are designed for mobiles, but content is king and if it means stretching and zooming to read the right info, so be it. But that’s not how Google feel about it.
Is this big brother dictating the internet? Maybe.
So, what does this mean for website owners? Well, responsive is the buzzword. This is a technique which adapts the design when viewed on different screen sizes. It means that you only have to write content once and, regardless of the screen displaying it, it will always show nice and clearly.
Google have a tool so you can check your site out. You’ll find it here.
Does your site pass the test? Pretty much all sites we build now, and over the last couple of years, have been responsive. Not because we saw this coming, but because they are better.
Sure, you can keep your site as it is but you need to be aware that you won’t be found on Google by people using their mobiles to search.