What Is Mobile SEO: How To Do Mobile Search Engine Optimization?

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by Outranking
Updated On: January 18, 2023
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What Is Mobile SEO: How to Optimize Your Site for Mobile Search

What is mobile SEO?

Mobile SEO is the process of optimizing a website for mobile devices. Mobile devices have become increasingly popular, with over seven billion active users worldwide.

With such a large number of people using mobile devices to access the internet, it is important to make sure that your website is optimized for these users. Mobile SEO helps to ensure that your website can be easily found and accessed by mobile users.

example of optimizied website for mobile device

There are a number of best practices that you can follow to optimize your website for mobile devices. These include using a responsive design, optimizing your images and videos, and making sure your content is easily accessible on mobile devices.

Why is mobile SEO important?

Mobile searches have exceeded desktop searches

Mobile searches have now exceeded desktop searches worldwide.

This shift has major implications for businesses, both in terms of how they need to optimize their websites for search and how they need to think about their overall digital marketing strategy.

If you haven’t done so already, it’s time to make sure your website is optimized for mobile search results. This means making sure your site is responsive and that your content is easy to read and navigate on a smaller screen. You should also make sure you’re using the right SEO keywords and phrases for mobile search since this can be different than what people are searching on desktop computers. Finally, don’t forget about other important aspects of mobile SEO such as local search optimization and app indexing.

Mobile user experience is crucial for your brand

Mobile user experience (UX) refers to the way users interact with and experience a mobile app or website. It encompasses everything from how easy it is to navigate and use the app or site, to how satisfied users are with its overall performance.

In today’s mobile-first world, it’s more important than ever for businesses to focus on delivering a great UX. That’s because poor UX can lead to high levels of customer frustration, which can in turn lead to lost business and revenue.

There are a number of ways businesses can improve their mobile UX, including optimizing their site or app for different devices, ensuring that content is easy to read and navigate on smaller screens, and providing customers with an easy way to contact customer support if they need help.

Mobile site optimization impacts local search and voice search

More and more people are using their mobile devices to search for local businesses. In fact, 46% of all searches on Google are seeking local information.

With the rise of digital assistants like Siri and Alexa, voice search is also on the rise. And since people tend to use voice search on their mobile devices, it’s important to optimize for this type of search.

Google is now using a mobile-first index, which means that they are basing their rankings on the mobile version of your website. So if your website isn’t optimized for mobile devices, you could be at a disadvantage in the SERPs.

How to optimize your site for mobile search?

Implement responsive layout

A responsive layout is a design approach used to make web pages look good on all devices, from small phone screens to large desktop monitors.

There are three key ingredients to implementing a responsive layout:

  • Use media queries to target different devices.
  • Use fluid grids and layouts.
  • Use images that resize automatically.

Avoid using popups

Popups are those annoying little windows that pop up and block your view when you’re trying to read a web page. They’re often used by advertisers to try and get your attention, but they can also be used for legitimate purposes like showing additional information about a link or providing a form for signing up for a newsletter.

There are several reasons why you might want to avoid using popups on your website. First, they can be very intrusive and make it difficult for visitors to read the content on your page. Second, they can slow down your website’s performance, especially if you have multiple popups appearing at once. Finally, some popup blockers will actually prevent visitors from seeing any of the content on your page if you have popups enabled.

avoid using popups to improve mobile page load speed

If you want to avoid using popups on your website, there are a few alternatives you can use. One option is to use inline forms or links instead of popup windows. Another option is to use static images or videos instead of popup windows. Finally, you can try using other types of advertising such as banner ads or text links instead of popup windows.

Increase your website speed for mobile browsers

There are many ways to test website speed. One way is to use a tool like Google PageSpeed Insights. This tool will analyze your website and give you specific recommendations on how to improve your website speed.

There are many factors that can affect website speed, such as file size, images, videos, and code. To improve website speed, you can optimize your files, compress your images, and minify your code. You can also use a content delivery network (CDN) to deliver content faster.

Optimize your URL

A mobile-friendly URL is a URL that is designed to be easy to read and navigate on a mobile device. This can be accomplished by using a shorter and simpler URL, avoiding special characters, and using lowercase letters.

There are several ways to create a mobile-friendly URL. One way is to use a service such as goMobi which provides a mobile-optimized version of your website. Another way is to use a plugin such as WordPress Mobile Pack which allows you to create a separate mobile version of your website.

It is also advisable to have different URLs for your desktop and mobile website. That way, each URL is equipped with a different HTML code for every screen size.

different URLs for your desktop and mobile website

Optimize for voice search

Voice search is a technology that allows users to search the internet using their voice. This can be done through a voice-activated assistant, such as Siri or Google Assistant.

There are a few things you can do to optimize your site for voice search. First, make sure your site is mobile-friendly. Voice searchers are more likely to be using a mobile device than a desktop computer.

optimize your website for voice search for better user experience

Second, use natural language in your content. When people speak, they use different grammar than when they type. For example, someone might say “What’s the best Italian restaurant near me?” rather than “Italian restaurants near me.”

Third, use structured data to help search engines understand your content better. This can include things like schema markup and rich snippets. Finally, keep in mind that people often use voice search when they are looking for quick answers to simple questions. So make sure your content is concise and easy to understand.

How to check if your website is mobile SEO-friendly?

Perform Google Mobile Friendly test

The Google Mobile Friendly test is a tool that allows you to check if your website is mobile-friendly or not.

To test if your website is mobile-friendly, go to the Google Mobile Friendly test page and enter your website’s URL. Google will then analyze your website and tell you if it is mobile-friendly or not.

what is mobile seo - google mobile friendly test example

Use the Google Mobile Usability tool

The Google Mobile Usability Report is a tool that lets you see how mobile-friendly your website is.

How to use it:

  • Go to the Google Mobile Usability Report page.
  • Enter your website’s URL into the “Search Property” field and click “Analyze.”
  • Review the report to see if there are any issues with your website’s mobile usability.

FAQ about mobile SEO

Is mobile SEO the future of SEO?

Mobile devices are becoming increasingly popular and their usage is only going to continue to grow. This means that more and more people will be using them to search for information online.

However, mobile devices are not the only way people access the internet. There are still many people who use desktop computers and laptops.

Is voice search important for mobile search engine optimization?

Voice search is an important part of mobile SEO because it allows users to search with their voice rather than having to type a query. Voice searches are also more natural and can help save time. This means that your website will be able to rank higher and capture more traffic if it optimizes its content for voice search queries.