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How to Optimize for Mobile SEO

Published on Wednesday, June 22, 2022

Optimizing for mobile is one of the most important things you can do as an ecommerce business. With roughly half of all website traffic coming from a mobile device, it’s clear that smartphones, tablets, and other handheld devices are very much here to stay.

While you may know about standard SEO practices, mobile SEO is centered around ensuring that your website is easily accessible and can be found by the search engine rankings.

Recognizing the sheer level of mobile users, Google takes this into account when it comes to their algorithms – in fact the number of mobile searches are actually outweighing the number of desktop searches and, of course, search engines are adapting to those needs.

If you want to stay ahead of the competition and keep your site where people can find it, these handy hints can help you to optimize for mobile SEO.

Keep it consistent

Mobile optimization shouldn’t be something that you consider as a standalone topic. The whole aim is to make your website and content the same on a mobile device as it is on the desktop.

Of course, there will be tweaks in your design and content strategy to accommodate this, but your site users should be able to do everything on the mobile site that they can do on a desktop. A consistent experience is key – not just for building brand trust but for climbing the mobile index rank. If you have separate URLs for your mobile and desktop, make sure that your metadata is the same.

Mobile-friendly web design

If users are landing on your site via a mobile device and it doesn’t fit neatly on the screen, this is going to prove problematic for your mobile SEO. For a site to be considered mobile-friendly, there should be no need for zooming in.

Your layout should be clear, concise, and your pages should load without issue. Check your site on mobile and keep an eye out for text crowding, images that don’t fit on the page, and other format issues, too. Google has a mobile usability tool to help you determine if your site is hitting the mark when it comes to mobile-friendly web design.

Create an easy-to-use menu

The menu bar on your mobile design should be clear and easy to navigate for a better user experience. The hamburger style menu is one of the most popular on mobile sites, and for good reason. Instantly recognizable, most users will know to click on the three horizontal bars in the top corner of the page to access the dropdown menu.

Be quick off the mark

One of the most important things you can do to optimize for mobile SEO is to make sure that your site is fast loading. Having a speedy loading site is essential for mobile users, as people tend to have less patience for loading when using a mobile.

This could be because they are already busy and on the go so they want their info fast. If it doesn’t load quickly enough, they will bounce and seek their answers elsewhere.

Be picky about pop-ups

Pop-ups are always a delicate topic. While many users get frustrated by them, there are times when popups do provide value. Any frustration that is being felt around pop-ups is going to be magnified on a mobile device.

The smaller screen, smaller keyboard, and absence of a mouse can make traditional pop up triggers harder to close. You can overcome this by choosing to use mobile friendly pop-ups that are designed to be clear and simple to shut down or follow. When using pop-ups (particularly on a mobile site), you should use them sparingly and only in places where they’re really necessary.

Look local

Users searching for local solutions are more popular on mobile, as people are more likely to be looking for real time answers.

Searches like “restaurants near me” or phrases that include terms like “around me”, “open now”, etc., have been found to show up more often by mobile users. It may help your mobile SEO performance if you work localized keywords into your content.

Consider your mobile content

When it comes to your content strategy, you shouldn’t overlook the importance of taking mobile content into consideration. Mobile-friendly content will need to make that first paragraph count as there’s a lot less space to make a great first impression.

Including summaries and bullet points are another good tactic with mobile content, as people are more likely to scan rather than savor when reading on the smaller screen. Images, videos, and well-placed CTAs are also necessary. Finally, don’t forget the importance of your metadata and title tags.

Think thumb-friendly

When it comes to clickable areas on your site and within your content, you should make sure that anything that requires the user to physically click is thumb friendly. People should be able to click on call to actions and other such pages without having to zoom in.

Optimize for social media

Mobile devices and social go hand in hand, so you should make sure you optimize your social media, too. A whopping 99% of social users will use their mobile tech to access social platforms. Ensure that your social channels are easily identifiable as being a part of your brand and that the right keywords and links are put in place.

Get ahead of the curve and prep your mobile site so it’s up and ready for voice search. Voice search statistics are much higher on mobiles than on desktops, as people are more likely to consider hands-free experiences when on a mobile device.

You can prep for this by using schema markup, using questions (with question marks) as subheadings in your content, and answering those questions in a clear, concise, and relevant manner.

If you need help optimizing your site for mobile SEO, reach out to our team for a consultation.

Brandee Johnson
Founder, CEO