10 Ways a Mobile-First Index Impacts SEO

Mobile-first indexing is a major change in how Google crawls, indexes, and ranks websites. It means that Google will use the mobile version of your website as the primary source of content and signals for ranking purposes, instead of the desktop version. This reflects the growing trend of mobile usage and user behavior, as more and more people access the web through their smartphones and tablets.

If your website is not optimized for mobile devices, you may lose traffic, visibility, and conversions, as well as miss out on the opportunities that mobile offers. In this blog post, we will explore seven ways that mobile-first indexing impacts SEO, and how you can prepare your website for this change.

1. Content

Content is the most important factor for SEO, as it determines the relevance, quality, and value of your website for users and search engines. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your mobile content is equivalent to your desktop content, and that it provides a satisfying user experience.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• Content Parity: Make sure that your mobile content contains the same information, keywords, headings, images, videos, and structured data as your desktop content. Avoid hiding or removing content on mobile devices, as this may affect your rankings and user engagement.
  
  
• Content Format: Make sure that your mobile content is easy to read, scan, and navigate on smaller screens. Use short paragraphs, bullet points, subheadings, and clear calls to action. Use responsive design or dynamic serving to adjust your content layout and size according to the device and screen resolution.
  
  
• Content Speed: Make sure that your mobile content loads fast and does not affect your page speed and performance. Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights, Lighthouse, or WebPageTest to measure and optimize your mobile page speed. Use techniques like minifying code, compressing images, caching resources, and using a content delivery network (CDN) to improve your mobile page speed.

2. Metadata

Metadata is the information that describes your website and its pages for search engines and users. It includes elements like title tags, meta descriptions, canonical tags, and hreflang tags. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your mobile metadata is consistent with your desktop metadata, and that it follows the best practices for SEO.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• Title Tags: Make sure that your mobile title tags are descriptive, relevant, and unique for each page. Use your main keywords and modifiers, and keep them within 60 characters. Avoid using generic or duplicate title tags, as they may affect your click-through rate and rankings.
  
  
• Meta Descriptions: Make sure that your mobile meta descriptions are informative, compelling, and unique for each page. Use your secondary keywords and call to action, and keep them within 156 characters. Avoid using generic or duplicate meta descriptions, as they may affect your click-through rate and rankings.
  
  
• Canonical Tags: Make sure that your mobile canonical tags point to the correct version of your pages, and that they are consistent with your desktop canonical tags. Use canonical tags to avoid duplicate content issues and signal your preferred version to Google. Avoid using conflicting or incorrect canonical tags, as they may affect your indexation and rankings.
  
  
• Hreflang Tags: Make sure that your mobile hreflang tags indicate the correct language and region of your pages, and that they are consistent with your desktop hreflang tags. Use hreflang tags to target different audiences and markets, and to avoid content duplication issues. Avoid using conflicting or incorrect hreflang tags, as they may affect your visibility and rankings.

3. Links

Links are the connections between your website and other websites, and they are one of the main signals that Google uses to measure the authority, popularity, and trustworthiness of your website. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your mobile links are equivalent to your desktop links, and that they follow the best practices for SEO.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• Internal Links: Make sure that your mobile internal links are consistent with your desktop internal links, and that they point to the correct pages. Use internal links to create a clear and logical site structure, and to distribute link equity and authority across your pages. Avoid using broken or irrelevant internal links, as they may affect your user experience and crawlability.
  
  
• External Links: Make sure that your mobile external links are consistent with your desktop external links, and that they point to reputable and relevant websites. Use external links to provide additional value and information to your users, and to build relationships and trust with other websites. Avoid using spammy or low-quality external links, as they may affect your reputation and rankings.
  
  
• Backlinks: Make sure that your mobile backlinks are consistent with your desktop backlinks, and that they come from authoritative and relevant websites. Use backlinks to increase your visibility and credibility, and to drive traffic and conversions to your website. Avoid using unnatural or manipulative backlinks, as they may affect your penalties and rankings.

4. User Experience

User experience is the overall impression and satisfaction that your users have when interacting with your website. It includes factors like usability, accessibility, design, and functionality. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your mobile user experience is optimal and meets the expectations and needs of your users.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• Mobile-Friendliness: Make sure that your website is mobile-friendly and compatible with different devices and browsers. Use tools like Google Mobile-Friendly Test, Google Search Console, or Bing Webmaster Tools to check and improve your mobile-friendliness. Avoid using elements that are not supported or that may harm your mobile-friendliness, such as Flash, pop-ups, or interstitials.
  
  
• Mobile Usability: Make sure that your website is easy to use and navigate on mobile devices. Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights, Lighthouse, or WebPageTest to check and improve your mobile usability. Avoid using elements that may affect your mobile usability, such as small fonts, tiny buttons, or horizontal scrolling.
  
  
• Mobile Design: Make sure that your website is visually appealing and attractive on mobile devices. Use tools like Google Optimize, VWO, or Optimizely to test and improve your mobile design. Avoid using elements that may affect your mobile design, such as cluttered layout, inconsistent colors, or poor contrast.

5. Structured Data

Structured data is the information that you add to your website to help search engines understand and display your content better. It includes elements like schema.org markup, JSON-LD, or microdata. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your mobile structured data is equivalent to your desktop structured data, and that it follows the best practices for SEO.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• Structured Data Parity: Make sure that your mobile structured data contains the same information, types, and properties as your desktop structured data. Use structured data to enhance your appearance and visibility in search results, and to provide rich and relevant information to your users. Avoid using missing or incorrect structured data, as they may affect your indexation and rankings.
  
  
• Structured Data Format: Make sure that your mobile structured data is in a valid and supported format, such as JSON-LD, microdata, or RDFa. Use tools like Google Structured Data Testing Tool, Google Search Console, or Bing Webmaster Tools to check and validate your structured data. Avoid using unsupported or deprecated formats, such as microformats or data-vocabulary.org.
  
  
• Structured Data Implementation: Make sure that your mobile structured data is implemented correctly and consistently across your pages. Use tools like Google Data Highlighter, Schema App, or Merkle Schema Markup Generator to create and implement your structured data. Avoid using conflicting or redundant structured data, such as multiple types or properties for the same page.

6. AMP

AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages) is a framework that allows you to create fast and lightweight web pages for mobile devices. It includes elements like AMP HTML, AMP JS, and AMP Cache. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your AMP pages are equivalent to your non-AMP pages, and that they follow the best practices for SEO.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• AMP Parity: Make sure that your AMP pages contain the same content, metadata, and structured data as your non-AMP pages. Use AMP pages to improve your page speed and performance, and to provide a better user experience to your mobile users. Avoid using incomplete or outdated AMP pages, as they may affect your rankings and user engagement.
  
  
• AMP Format: Make sure that your AMP pages are in a valid and supported format, such as AMP HTML, AMP JS, and AMP Cache. Use tools like Google AMP Test, Google Search Console, or Bing Webmaster Tools to check and validate your AMP pages. Avoid using invalid or unsupported elements, such as custom JavaScript, external stylesheets, or iframes.
  
  
• AMP Implementation: Make sure that your AMP pages are implemented correctly and consistently across your website. Use tools like Google AMP Project, AMP by Example, or AMP for WordPress to create and implement your AMP pages. Avoid using incorrect or inconsistent elements, such as canonical tags, rel=amphtml tags, or amp-boilerplate code.

7. Analytics

Analytics is the process of collecting, analyzing, and reporting data and metrics about your website and its performance. It includes tools like Google Analytics, Google Search Console, or Bing Webmaster Tools. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your analytics are accurate and reliable, and that they reflect your mobile traffic and behavior.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• Analytics Setup: Make sure that your analytics tools are properly set up and configured for your website, and that they can track and measure your mobile data and metrics. Use tools like Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics Debugger, or Bing UET Tag Helper to check and verify your analytics setup. Avoid using incorrect or incomplete analytics setup, as they may affect your data quality and accuracy.
  
  
• Analytics Reports: Make sure that your analytics reports are relevant, comprehensive, and actionable, and that they can provide insights and recommendations for your website. Use tools like Google Analytics, Google Search Console, or Bing Webmaster Tools to access and customize your analytics reports. Avoid using irrelevant, incomplete, or misleading analytics reports, as they may affect your decision making and optimization.
  
  
• Analytics Optimization: Make sure that you use your analytics data and metrics to optimize your website and its performance, and to achieve your goals and objectives. Use tools like Google Optimize, VWO, or Optimizely to test and improve your website based on your analytics data and metrics. Avoid using outdated, inaccurate, or irrelevant analytics data and metrics, as they may affect your outcomes and results.

8. Security

Security is the protection of your website and its users from malicious attacks and threats. It includes elements like HTTPS, SSL certificates, and malware prevention. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your mobile security is equivalent to your desktop security, and that it follows the best practices for SEO.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• HTTPS. Make sure that your website uses HTTPS, which is a secure protocol that encrypts the data exchanged between your server and your users. Use tools like Google Search Console, Google Chrome, or SSL Server Test to check and improve your HTTPS implementation. Avoid using HTTP, which is an insecure protocol that exposes your data to potential hackers and eavesdroppers.
  
  
• SSL Certificates: Make sure that your website has a valid and trusted SSL certificate, which is a digital document that verifies the identity and authenticity of your website. Use tools like Google Search Console, Google Chrome, or SSL Server Test to check and validate your SSL certificate. Avoid using expired, self-signed, or untrusted SSL certificates, as they may affect your user experience and rankings.
  
  
• Malware Prevention: Make sure that your website is free from malware, which is a malicious software that can harm your website and its users. Use tools like Google Search Console, Google Safe Browsing, or Sucuri SiteCheck to check and remove any malware from your website. Avoid using infected, hacked, or compromised websites, as they may affect your reputation and penalties.

9. Social Media

Social media is the use of online platforms and networks to communicate and interact with your audience and customers. It includes elements like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your social media presence is consistent with your website, and that it follows the best practices for SEO.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• Social Media Profiles: Make sure that your social media profiles are complete, accurate, and up-to-date, and that they match your website information. Use social media profiles to showcase your brand identity, personality, and value proposition, and to link back to your website. Avoid using incomplete, inaccurate, or outdated social media profiles, as they may affect your user perception and trust.
  
  
• Social Media Content: Make sure that your social media content is relevant, engaging, and shareable, and that it reflects your website content. Use social media content to provide useful and valuable information, to entertain and educate your audience, and to drive traffic and conversions to your website. Avoid using irrelevant, boring, or spammy social media content, as they may affect your user engagement and retention.
  
  
• Social Media Signals: Make sure that your social media signals are positive, strong, and diverse, and that they indicate your website popularity and authority. Use social media signals to measure and improve your social media performance, to build relationships and trust with your audience and customers, and to influence your rankings and visibility. Avoid using negative, weak, or fake social media signals, as they may affect your reputation and rankings.

10. Voice Search

Voice search is the use of voice commands and queries to search the web and access information. It is driven by the rise of mobile devices, smart speakers, and digital assistants, such as Siri, Google Assistant, and Alexa. With mobile-first indexing, you need to ensure that your website is optimized for voice search, and that it follows the best practices for SEO.

Some of the things you need to consider are:

• Voice Search Keywords:. Make sure that your website uses voice search keywords, which are natural, conversational, and long-tail, and that they match your user intent and context. Use tools like Google Search Console, Google Trends, or Answer the Public to research and optimize your voice search keywords. Avoid using unnatural, formal, or short-tail keywords, as they may not match your user voice queries.
  
  
• Voice Search Content: Make sure that your website provides voice search content, which is clear, concise, and informative, and that it answers your user questions and needs. Use tools like Google Search Console, Google Analytics, or Google My Business to create and optimize your voice search content. Avoid using unclear, lengthy, or irrelevant content, as it may not satisfy your user voice queries.
  
  
• Voice Search Schema: Make sure that your website implements voice search schema, which is a structured data markup that helps search engines understand and display your content better for voice search. Use tools like Google Structured Data Testing Tool, Google Search Console, or Schema App to check and implement your voice search schema. Avoid using missing or incorrect voice search schema, as it may affect your indexation and rankings for voice search.

Conclusion

Mobile-first indexing is a major change in how Google crawls, indexes, and ranks websites. It means that you need to optimize your website for mobile devices, and to provide a satisfying user experience to your mobile users. To prepare your website for mobile-first indexing, you need to consider the following aspects: content, metadata, links, user experience, structured data, AMP, analytics, security, social media, and voice search. By following these tips and best practices, you can ensure that your website is ready for mobile-first indexing, and that you can benefit from the opportunities that mobile offers.

We hope that this blog post has provided you with some useful and practical information on mobile SEO. If you need help with your Mobile SEO strategy, you can Contact Us.