All the talk these days in the search engine marketing field has to do with Google’s April 21 mobile-friendly algorithm update.
One of the details that is often overlooked is that while this Google update will be big, it will only affect mobile search rankings.
What Are Mobile Search Rankings?
When you search Google, Google looks at what type of device you are using. If you are searching from a computer it shows you one set of search results. If you are searching from a phone or tablet it shows you a different set of search results.
The mobile-friendly update will only affect searches done from phones and tablets.
Why Does Mobile Search Matter?
For several reasons…
1) About half of all searches are currently done from mobile devices. If your website is not mobile-friendly, it will lose visibility in about half of all searches.
2) If you periodically check your search rankings yourself from a computer, you won’t notice a drop in your mobile rankings. If your website is not mobile-friendly and it gets penalized by Google, you might never know.
Checking Mobile Search Rankings
If you want to see how Google’s mobile-friendly update affects you, you’ll need to start checking search results both a computer and a mobile device.
We at OurChurch.Com provide monthly search ranking reports to our search marketing clients. This month we’ve added mobile search results to our reports. So, if we provide search marketing services for your organization, you’ll being seeing this in your next report which will be sent out before Google’s April 21 mobile update.
If you’re not monitoring your search rankings or doing it manually, this is a good time to consider search engine marketing, monitoring and management for your church, school, ministry or business. Contact us if you’d like to talk more about it.
Co-founder & CEO, OurChurch.Com
Paul has been the CEO of OurChurch.Com since its founding in 1996, combining his passion for faith and technology to lead the organization.
An accomplished writer, Paul has authored over 2,000 articles on faith and technology, featured on platforms like ChurchLeaders.com, The JoyFM, and his personal blog, LiveIntentionally.org.
Beyond his professional achievements, Paul serves as an elder at Journey Community Church and is deeply engaged in his community through his involvement with the Florida Sheriffs Youth Ranch and the Safety Harbor Chamber of Commerce. He is a contributing author of the book Outspoken! Conversations on Church Communication.
3 Comments
Nice post as usual Paul! Mobile-friendly become one critical point of SEO Ranking Factors when google update this issue.
Yep, but on only in mobile search rankings, an important distinction.
Many webmasters changed their websites but it seems that Google hasn't put much weight on it in the rankings yet. The effect seems to be small and very fewer.