Non-Responsive Websites to Be Penalized by Google Starting April 21

March 26, 2015 | By:

Before we dive into Google’s latest algorithm, let’s go into what exactly it pertains to – responsive websites. In case you don’t know what a responsive site is, it’s when your site adapts to the layout of the device it’s being viewed on. Responsive websites don’t require users to resize the screen to read the content. They’re easy to navigate and read through, creating a better user experience.

If you have a website, you’ve likely heard how important it is for your site to be responsive. It’s more enjoyable for your site visitors and it’s an effective SEO tool as it decreases bounce rate, increases page load speed and avoids duplicate content.

Now, it’s even more important than ever for your site’s SEO to update to a responsive site. Beginning April 21st, Google will update its ranking algorithm to favor sites that are mobile-friendly, therefore, penalizing websites that are not responsive.

Here’s a quote from Google’s Q&A session describing, in part, what the algorithm will look for:

“As we mentioned in this particular change, you either have a mobile friendly page or not. It is based on the criteria we mentioned earlier, which are small font sizes, your tap targets/links to your buttons are too close together, readable content and your viewpoint. So if you have all of those and your site is mobile friendly then you benefit from the ranking change.”

On the flip side, if your website doesn’t have these elements, you will be seeing lower rankings.

If you’re not sure whether your site is mobile-friendly, try Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test here.

If your website doesn’t pass the Mobile-Friendly Test, get in touch with one of our experts. We’ll get your business a responsive site that Google’s algorithm will love.