With 25 percent of search clicks coming from mobile devices today and that number expected to steadily rise as more users switch from dumbphones to smartphones and tablets, it is important that you take a look at the overall layout, design and content of your website so that you can best determine how to fully optimize for mobile search. Below are a few examples of how you can improve your mobile SEO in hopes of gaining a few visitors and customers.
Optimize Your Site For Local SEO
This is the first and most obvious reason to optimize a mobile site. When someone is looking for the nearest men’s clothing shop or restaurant, they are not going to run home and look on their desktop, they are going to search for a location on their mobile phone. These users have a local intent when looking to buy, purchase, or visit. Using distinct local keywords in your site content as well as business listing pages will help for your page to appear at the top of the search engine results pages and in turn help drive in customers to your place of business.
Build a Site that Works Well and is Optimized for Multiple Devices
“According to Google Data from 2012, 61% of prospects say that if they don’t find what they’re looking for right away on a mobile site, they’ll quickly go to another site. “
With a variety of phones and tablets available in the marketplace today, it is important that you create a site that not only performs well on an iPhone or Android, but also on tablet screens as well. Responsive web design reads what device the website is going to be viewed on and formats the page to fit the corresponding device. This new design allows you to save time by only having to create one website template for all devices, mobile and desktop, and displays the website much faster than that of a website that is not mobile optimized.
Mobile Search is Not the Same as Desktop Search
Mobile and desktop search are about the same as the tortoise and the hare, one is built for speed and efficiency while the other is slow and takes in the scenery. When users are searching for a product on their mobile phone they want answers right away, this means abbreviating words and paraphrasing sentences. When a user is at their desktop searching they have a full keyboard at hand, ready to type out full sentences and words in order to get to where they want. Put both of these ways of searching into effect when considering site content and tagging, you will be reaching both types of customers, and in the end reap the benefits.
Overall it is important to remember that mobile SEO is not something that you should put on the back burner. With an estimated 45% of U.S. adults owning a smartphone and that number growing rapidly, it is important that you execute a mobile SEO plan for your website.
