Mobile Search And SEO

by Eugene Coscodan⁽¹⁾
http://www.reliablenetworks.co.uk/

Over the past few years, mobile web usage has considerably increased to the point that web developers and designers can no longer afford to ignore it. In wealthy countries, the shift is being fueled by faster mobile broadband connections and cheaper data service. However, a large increase has also been seen in developing nations where people have skipped over buying PCs and gone straight to mobile.

Unfortunately, the mobile arena introduces a layer of complexity that can be difficult for developers to accommodate. Mobile development is more than cross-browser, it should be cross-platform. The vast number of mobile devices makes thorough testing a practical impossibility, leaving developers nostalgic for the days when they only had to support legacy browsers.

Earlier this month Google announced Go Mo, clearly labeled as "a Google Initiative", as though it represents the official Google position on the value of mobile content and mobile sites. But what is the official Google stance on mobile sites, search and SEO? Will having mobile content help in search results?

Many people will claim that Google has offered an official position on mobile search and SEO, but they don't realize that someone else in Google has offered a different, sometimes even contradictory, position on the subject. Here are some comments available on web.

Mobile duplicate content & mobile URLs: Engineers recommend using a mobile URL for testing purposes with URL redirects for Googlebot mobile for the mobile site and Googlebot for the desktop site. Google has been consistent about: mobile content is not duplicate content, and if you redirect it to the appropriate bot you won't be seen as cloaking.

Redirecting mobile content: another recommendation is to redirect feature phone users to mobile sites through redirects.

Redirecting traditional mobile content but not smartphone traffic: there is a big distinction between smartphone traffic and traditional mobile traffic that wasn't made before.

Redirecting smartphone traffic to mobile sites and tablet users to desktop experience: it's reasonable to drive Android users to your mobile site, but that you should direct Android tablet users to your desktop content, and smartphone users to your mobile content.

Providing a fast, relevant and simple mobile user experience: google focuses on making a fast, relevant and simple mobile user experience, and that's why they're poised to excel at mobile search.

Mobile ranking algorithms: Google has ways of presenting content that they think is more relevant to mobile users for certain queries than desktop users. Separate tests confirmed that mobile smartphone ranking differs from desktop rankings. Yet it's unclear whether having mobile optimized content is actually a ranking factor in mobile search.

Building mobile specific content rather than transcoding desktop experience.

Eugene Coscodan is a SEO Strategist working at Reliable Networks. He is interested in Internet marketing, Internet technology, web development, and computer security. If you'd like to connect with him, contact Reliable Networks.

Article submitted Thursday, December 01, 2011 & read 139 times.

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