By Anne Roos, Content Development
Make the most of your digital identity for improved SEO appeal and connection with target audiences!
The Scenario:
You’ve spent countless of dollars and hours getting your gorgeous website up-and-running just the way you like it. It looks great on your office desktop and your business laptop. Then, something fishy happens: You’re on the road and you receive an email, “I can’t see anything on your website beyond your homepage.” Or, “I click to subscribe to your newsletter, and nothing happens.” Or, even worse, you check your web stats and discover that you have few online sales because customers are abandoning their shopping carts.
Hmmm. Your website looks fine on Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and other browsers. But when you pick up your smartphone or tablet, your website doesn’t appear, it looks terrible, or it doesn’t work.
The Hard Facts:
- Google’s research found that 61% of mobile device users are unlikely to return to a mobile site that they have trouble accessing, and 40% will go to a competitor’s site instead.
- Conversation rates for smartphones are up by 64% compared to conversion rates for desktops. (“Conversions” are when website visitors complete an action, such as subscribing to a newsletter.) (Source: CMS Report)
- 57% of mobile users respond that they do not recommend businesses with poorly designed mobile websites. (Source: CMS Report)
In the end, when you aren’t visible, barely visible, or give a poor impression of your business on digital devices, you’re missing out on business. New customers can’t find you, and your existing customers quietly jump ship and go to your competition.
These hard facts are reflected in Google’s mobile algorithms. Mobile friendliness figures significantly in Google determines website rankings. Therefore, even if a customer is surfing on a desktop or laptop, your site may not be visible in search engine results if it isn’t mobile friendly.
The Solution:
Enhance your SEO (search engine optimization) and your digital identity (online brand awareness) by going mobile. This does not mean that you need to trash your current website and start all over again!
Research your website’s mobile friendliness.
Check how each page is viewed on a mobile device, looking at it on both tablets and smartphones. Verify that META information is entered on each page to enable the Google bots to find your site. View each individual page of your site, confirming that navigation is working. Click on all actionable buttons to confirm they are in working order.
Use the fast and easy Google Mobile-Friendly Test Page for a free analysis. Just plug in a URL and go. Better yet, receive a free website health assessment to delve into mobile-ready issues and other website hiccups that may be stunting your online competitive edge.
Hold off on making tweaks to your website until you have the whole story about your website’s performance.
Think about how your customers use mobile.
How does it fit into their lives? Which devices are they using? Think of how your website information can be adapted to the small screen. Take advantage of geolocation technologies, such as GPS-enabled apps, to increase engagement with local customers and discover where your customers roam. Mobile-ready websites are about design as much as they are about creating content that is viewable and actionable across all devices.
Reconsider your website content.
On small, mobile screens, your website copy needs to be clear and actionable. Simplify navigation. Avoid Flash and JavaScript to ensure graphics appear as clear on smartphones as they do on desktops. Ensure font size and style are easily readable on both the big and small screens. Post contact info prominently on every page—Make it easy for mobile customers to get in touch with you. When
On small, mobile screens, your website copy needs to be clear and actionable. Simplify navigation. Avoid Flash and JavaScript to ensure graphics appear as clear on smartphones as they do on desktops. Ensure font size and style are easily readable on both the big and small screens. Post contact info prominently on every page—Make it easy for mobile customers to get in touch with you. When design isn’t in your wheelhouse, rely on a professional to get it right the first time.
Satisfy the Google mobile requirements first, and continue to reshape content.
Get a WordPress or an HTML-5 mobile plugin if you aren’t ready to update your existing website.
Many website themes are viewable on all devices. This doesn’t necessarily mean that they look good, though. Before your new or refurbished website goes live, view it on as many devices as possible, and then make final adjustments. Once your site is launched, review your online listings.
Update your SEO strategy
Websites are not “set it and forget it”. They are dynamic because customers’ tastes change and your competition changes. Create a game plan for the use of social media marketing with the hottest keyword phrases that turn on your customers. Regular monitoring of your website’s performance puts you apart from your competitors, and together with social media marketing, develops your digital identity niche. Best of all, it increases your profits, because your audience can find your business wherever they roam.
Here at Moore than SEO, we specialize in website and content development that satisfies Google’s best practices and increases brand identification and reputation. Not mobile-friendly? Get started by contacting us at 559-978-4096 for your complimentary website health assessment.
