With 60% of search queries coming from mobile devices and Google’s decision to go down the route of mobile-first indexing, 2017 will be the year that an error free mobile eCommerce website is a must. Whilst these changes apply to all websites, I am going to focus on Magento eCommerce sites. We’ve seen it with our client’s eCommerce solutions, more and more visits are coming from mobile devices and more people are carrying out purchases on mobile. Not having a well-designed & developed mobile solution will lose you sales and in 2017 will cost you Search Engine positioning. Our 6 steps below should give you the edge on your competitors and will help you get your Magento eCommerce website performing well on mobile devices and help ensure that the mobile SEO on your Magento store will reward your business.
What is mobile-first indexing?
In November Google broke the news that they would start taking a mobile-first approach to indexing the web. This change means that they would start indexing mobile versions of websites wherever available and not the desktop versions. The analysis of the mobile pages will determine how a site will rank in the search results on both mobile and desktop search queries. This change in their algorithms means that factors such as site speed, structured data, meta tags and accessibility will determine your websites rankings in Google across all devices.
1. Check that your Magento eCommerce website is mobile friendly
The first thing you need to do is check that your Magento eCommerce website is mobile friendly. It may (and should) have been designed using a responsive design but we have found many designers and agencies to be complacent and lazy when it comes to implementing a responsive design, especially if they have used an existing theme as the base of your project design. Yes, whilst a lot of Magento themes are responsive, not all elements work correctly on mobile devices and time should be taken to fix and optimise the design on a mobile device. There are paid tools and services such as moz.com that will be able to check for you but Google does also offer a mobile friendly test.
2. Run a mobile audit of your website
After you have carried out your mobile friendly test, having the site pass is great, essential but only the first step. There is more analysis to be done which is where a full website audit of your mobile Magento website is a perfect way to ensure that all your important pages and resources are accessible to Googlebot. An in-depth analysis will raise any flags if your resources (such as CSS, JavaScript, image files) are not accessible, if flash is being used, if load times are too high and if images need to be compressed.
3. Location is key
Mobile searches are even more location focused than desktop searchers. Google has said that 80% of “near me” searches come from mobile searches. Location relevance will vary depending on the business type, for example search results for Takeaways, Restaurants and Pharmacies will be more relevant local to the searcher than perhaps a search on a specific product brand. Setting up your Magento eCommerce website correctly for local search is crucial, even more so if you run a local business. The main things to consider are:
Register with Google My Business. It is free and easy to complete. Verify your business and make sure all your business details are correct. Complete the profile by adding a decent description for your business, select your categories and upload some photos.
The number of Google Reviews is a very important ranking signal in Google’s local search algorithm. Encourage your customers to leave reviews by offering incentives when they review your business and services. Reviews on other websites are important too so try and get customers to leave a review on your facebook page etc.
Schema markup can give your site a local ranking boost for your keywords. Check out the local section on schema.org as there are a number of categories you can use which will help with your local rankings.
4. Research your mobile keywords
Google has said that the keywords people use to search on mobile devices differ from desktop search queries. There are a number for reasons for this. Firstly, over 20% of mobile queries are voice searches. Secondly mobile searchers have more urgent needs in mind. Google calls these needs micro-moments and has categories them into 4 types:
5. Track your mobile rankings
In order to see the effect of all your efforts and hard work, keep track how your site is being ranked regularly. By checking your Magento eCoommerce website rankings you will be able to see what is working and what is not making a difference. Did your last blog article increase search visibility for your targeted keywords? Another important reason for keeping track of your rankings is to be able to catch downward trends sooner rather than later. Did your last link building campaign have a negative effect? Why are certain rankings dropping, are your competitors increasing their SEO focus? Catch the tends as soon as they start happening.
In conclusion
Carried out correctly mobile SEO will help you increase your organic search traffic and increase your sales. Ignoring mobile is sticking your head in the sand. It may sound like it’s a lot of hard work, or too difficult to implement but consult an expert. You will be surprised at what can be achieved and if your website has never really brought in much business, now is the time to invest and change things. There are exciting times ahead and with Google’s changes, playing fields are levelled a bit so there is no reason with the right advice, Inbound Marketing partner and development agency you can’t start seeing your sales increase.