Mythbusting Google’s “Mobilegeddon"

Back in December, we published an article called “Another Google Game-Changer: How Going Mobile Friendly Will Boost Your Search Visibility” that addressed the new “mobile friendly” designation that the search engine was adding to websites that had been optimized for mobile devices.

At the time, Google said that they saw “these labels as a first step in helping mobile users to have a better mobile web experience.” They went on to say, “we are also experimenting with using the mobile-friendly criteria as a ranking signal.” Many people speculated that it would only be a matter of time before Google started rewarding sites that were mobile friendly, and thereby penalizing those that were not. That day has come.

In a recent announcement, Google clarified their intentions for this mobile friendly label, stating that “starting April 21, we will be expanding our use of mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal. This change will affect mobile searches in all languages worldwide and will have a significant impact in our search results.”

If your site is not mobile friendly, Google has been quite clear in the fact that that site will no longer be given the same consideration that sites that are responsive and mobile friendly will be given. If you haven’t yet made multi-device support a priority on your website, now is the time to do so!

In prestigious company

Creating mobile friendly websites that are built with a responsive approach is not a new idea. The article that introduced this term to the industry was published in 2010 and it has been a best practice for years with Google recommending it as their preferred solution for multi-device support for quite some time. Still, even though responsive web design has been an important part of the Web industry for a while, there are many companies that have not yet implemented these best practices on their own site. If you are one of the companies that has thus far eschewed this approach to multi-device support, rest assured that you are in prestigious company.

A recent article by TechCrunch found that 44% of websites for Fortune 500 companies failed when using the Google PageSpeed Insights API. This tool shows if a site is, indeed, mobile friendly. The findings of this report show that the failure to go responsive is not always due to financial reasons. The prestigious companies on the Fortune 500 list can certainly afford to redesign their websites to add a mobile-friendly experience. So why haven’t they done so then? Oftentimes, when a company fails to go responsive and create a site with an optimized experience for all screens and devices, it is because they do not fully understand the importance or benefits of doing so.

Mobile expectations

Google’s changes to their algorithm show that they expect more from websites and the experience they deliver to mobile devices. This makes sense, because web users as a whole have begun to expect more from mobile websites.

A short time ago, Google conducted a survey of website users and their opinions on the mobile web experience. They found that “72 percent of mobile users say it’s important to them that websites are mobile-friendly, yet 96 percent have visited a site that doesn’t work well on their device.”

The survey, and resulting report, went on to state that “users are five times more likely to abandon the task they are trying to complete if the site isn’t optimized for mobile use, with 79 percent saying they will go back to search and try to find another site to meet their needs.”

As these numbers show, the expectations for mobile websites are rising and the patience to deal with non-mobile friendly sites is greatly diminishing. Because of this, the “do nothing” approach to multi-device support is simply no longer an option.

The “do nothing” approach

The “do nothing” approach to mobile web support is pretty easy to accomplish, because, as the name suggests, you do nothing to your website and allow a layout that was intended for large screen, desktop monitors to display on all devices and screen sizes – mobile included. Before the rise in popularity of mobile devices, this is how all websites were built. As such, when people first began using those mobile devices to access websites, they accepted the fact that sites were difficult to use on those devices. They had to “pinch and zoom” to read content or tap links that were meant to be clicked with a mouse, not touched with a finger. Once responsive design took hold, however, and as more and more sites integrated this approach and improved their mobile experience, expectations from customers were raised.

In short order, the “do nothing” approach went from an unfortunate, yet acceptable, solution to a sign that your site was behind the times. Now, with Google’s changes to their search algorithm and their clear stance that the “do nothing” approach is no longer acceptable, this approach will not only show you are behind, it will also hurt your site’s overall SEO. If you have not yet made your site mobile friendly, and you are not planning to do so now, expect that your site will fall further and further behind the times and lower and lower in Google’s search engine rankings.

The case for mobile-friendly

Google’s algorithm changes are the final piece that many companies may have needed to finally take the steps to make their site mobile friendly – but maintaining quality rankings is not the only reason to use this approach. There are a number of benefits to going responsive on your website, including:

Customer service – since customers expect a website that works well on all devices, from desktops to tablets to phones and beyond, by delivering a quality experience on all these devices, you present a better overall customer service experience

Business development / customer retention – as the Google report shows, customers who visit a site on a mobile device and find it not optimized for that device are likely to leave the site and seek out an alternative for the products or services the need. This is lost business for you! A site that works well on all devices ensures that the traffic you get is the traffic you keep!

Content consistency – with a responsive website, you have 1 website to maintain and manage, as opposed to separate sites for mobile versus desktop users. That one site will dynamically reflow its layout based on a user’s screen size. This means that while the look of the site may adjust for different users, the content will remain the same, ensuring that the right message is always delivered regardless of the device being used to access the website

Take the leap.

Expect search engine rankings to change dramatically after April 21st as Google begins using mobile friendless as ranking criteria. If you are not ready for this change, speak to your web or marketing team immediately and get the ball rolling on plans that will bring mobile support to your website and have your business ready for the increasing mobile-centric future of the Web.

How Warby Parker Conquered Social Media (And You Can Too)

Warby Parker is an eyewear company on a mission. In 2010, co-founders Neil Blumenthal, Dave Gilboa, Jeff Raider and Andy Hunt set out to revolutionize their niche by creating boutique-quality, classically crafted eyewear at a revolutionary price point.

Today, they sell frames and lenses together for a flat low price of $95. Not only do they produce a high-quality, affordable product, but they also do so with a conscience: for every pair of glasses sold, a pair is given to someone in need.

It’s an indisputably great concept. But how did they skyrocket to success so quickly? Well, they had a little help – from the community of followers and evangelists they’ve cultivated through their activities on key social media networks, specifically Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

While their business model may be unique, their approach to community building offers great lessons in social engagement that you can implement to fast-track the growth of your business:

Facebook

How they did it: Warby Parker is currently just shy of 100,000 followers and still growing daily. The strength of their appeal on Facebook lies in their prolific use of images through status updates, albums and user engagement campaigns.

Since the arrival of the Facebook timeline, images are more important than ever. According to Facebook Marketing, “photos and videos get 120% and 100% more engagement respectively.”

How you can do it: The equation is simple: more images means more interaction, so it’s time to get visual.

Here are a few simple ways you can amp up your use of photos and videos on Facebook:

Attending an event? Snap a photo or video and post it to your page. For greater convenience, install the Facebook Pages app on your smartphone so you can share on the spot without needing to be near a computer.

Published a new blog post? Share the photo you used in the post, then caption it with a catchy hook followed by “Read more here:” and the URL.

Just released a new collection of products? Create an album featuring a photo for each new item in your link along with a quick description and a link to your e-commerce site to drive sales.

Twitter

How they did it: With nearly 28,000 followers to date on Twitter, Warby Parker (@WarbyParker) has a well-branded page and a strong team of community-builders behind their tweets. One of their strongest assets is their consistency in responding to customers, potential customers and fans.

Take a quick peek at their Twitter page, and you’ll instantly notice an unending list of tweets in direct response to another Twitter user. According to Carol Rozwell, vice president and analyst at Gartner, “The dissatisfaction stemming from failure to respond via social channels can lead to up to a 15 percent increase in churn rate for existing customers.”

While it’s impossible and impractical for a growing company to respond to every mention on Twitter, it’s an important practice to engage as much as possible with the community. From my own personal experience I can say that I’m much more likely to be a loyal customer of and an evangelist for a company, product or service that responds to me than one that doesn’t. Not surprisingly, my personal choice of eyewear is, in fact, Warby Parker, and much of that has to do with the responsiveness and excellent customer service they provide through Twitter.

How you can do it: Responsiveness is the name of the game. You should try to over-serve your customers at every turn.

The most efficient way to do this is to assign a specific person — ideally a customer service specialist who is also socially savvy themselves — to monitor your Twitter feed on a daily basis. By delegating the task to one person, you can ensure that your responses are consistent, timely and safeguard the value and reputation of your brand. With the pace at which the social media world moves, if a comment or concern from a follower lingers for even a few hours unanswered, people will take notice and will perceive that you have ignored their tweet.

One important cautionary note: if a follower brings up a problem, acknowledge it publicly, then resolve it privately via phone or email.

Pinterest

How they did it: Much like they’ve done with their Facebook presence, Warby Parker has used the power of images to connect with their customers on Pinterest. They currently have over 6,000 followers, 27 boards, 1,800 pins and more than 1,600 pin likes.

It’s worth noting that they are using Pinterest in exactly the right manner – not as a tool for shameless self-promotion but rather as a vehicle to provide greater value to their customers and to create an overall image for the brand that people gladly want to identify themselves with. For example, one of their boards is called “Jasper: A Vintage Outlook,” and simply features vintage-inspired images that echo the brand’s look and feel.

Another technique they use is cross-promotion. On their “Bespectacled Bloggers” page, they feature bloggers wearing Warby Parker frames. This serves to not only add credibility to the brand, but also to increase traffic to blogs that support Warby Parker. It’s a win-win.

How you can do it: Focus on providing value first and foremost, and allow promotion to happen organically as your followers take your great content and run with it.

Self-promotion need not be avoided completely; however, it’s important to do so in a tasteful fashion and not to let your social media sites be solely focused on you. This will allow you to generate a real community around your brand, product or service, because you’ll become a source rather than a salesperson.

Much like Warby Parker has done with their Pinterest page, think about the kind of things your consumers are interested in (other than your product), and provide valuable content based on that. People will be more inclined to engage with what you post when it’s valuable to them, rather than when they feel like they’re being sold something all the time.