Google has announced two significant changes due to affect people that access its search engine on a mobile device.
Sites which are optimised for mobile devices could see a boost in rankings, and those which are not are in danger of dropping down the pecking order as Google moves to embrace something it describes as “mobile friendliness”.
Beginning on April 21, Google will expand the use of its mobile-friendliness worldwide and in multiple languages.
“When it comes to search on mobile devices, users should get the most relevant and timely results, no matter if the information lives on mobile-friendly web pages or apps,” said Google in its announcement.
Google also included information on resources that will enable website owners to prepare for the change and ensure their site is optimised for smartphones.
App indexing
In an effort to be at the forefront of technology, Google has also announced that it will start to take advantage of deep-linking technology, which points to specific pages within mobile apps.
In taking this approach, the internet giant will ensure that more relevant information from mobile applications will appear further up in its search results for signed-in users who have the app installed on a smartphone.
To help programmers navigate the change, Google included a step-by-step guide on its developer site, allowing individuals to find out how to implement app indexing.
“As more people use mobile devices to access the internet, our algorithms have to adapt to these usage patterns,” said Google.
“In the past, we’ve made updates to ensure a site is configured properly and viewable on modern devices. We’ve made it easier for users to find mobile-friendly web pages and we’ve introduced App Indexing to surface useful content from apps.”