Everything you need to know about Google’s Mobile-First Index and SEO

In November 2016, Google announced the arrival of the Mobile First Index. While the American giant had always crawled the desktop version of our pages, it is now the mobile version that serves as its reference. Enough to shake up the world of SEO.

In this article, discover the real stakes of the Mobile First Index as well as the best practices to adopt.

What is Google’s Mobile First Index?

The “Mobile First Index” is an indexing method that lets Google analyze your website by exploring its mobile version rather than relying on its desktop version. Google’s new index is therefore primarily mobile, but it continues, in a secondary way, to take the desktop version into account. Make no mistake: there aren’t 2 indexes but just one!

Why this index?

Today more than ever, mobile reigns: the number of mobile connections is expected to surpass desktop connections by 2020. It therefore made sense for Google to adapt the way it indexes. Since most user queries are made on mobile and they are served mobile pages as results, it makes sense to rely on those same pages to judge their relevance. Ultimately, Google’s goal in creating the mobile first index is to preserve a high-quality mobile web, offering relevant content.

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The history of the Mobile First Index

November 4, 2016: Google’s official announcement well before the Mobile First Index went into effect, so that companies would not be caught off guard.

June 19, 2017: John Mueller announced that the mobile first index would be applied gradually to the sites that Google deemed ready. There would therefore not be a single release date for the index.

October 3, 2017: John Mueller revealed that the first live tests had begun on Google’s SERP. The goal of these tests: to identify sites that have a “fixed” mobile version of their content.

March 26, 2018: it was from this date that certain sites began to be indexed by Google’s Mobile First.

July 1, 2019: as of this date, every new site (which Google therefore doesn’t know) is automatically handled by the mobile first index.

How do you know if your site is handled by the mobile first index?

When mobile-oriented indexing has been activated on your site, you receive a message in your Google Search Console account:

You also receive the following message, which appears when you connect to your Search Console for the first time:

If you missed these messages, don’t panic! It is still possible to see which type of Google robot is used to crawl your pages by referring to the “coverage” report in your Search Console.

If you created your site after July 1, 2019, the question doesn’t even arise: it is automatically handled by the Mobile First Index.

Why adapt your website for mobile?

When we know that in many countries the number of mobile phones has surpassed the number of personal computers, and that about 50% of global connections are made via mobile, it seems obvious to bet on smartphones.

If the version of your site is not adapted to mobile devices, mobile users will see their user experience diminished: they will have to zoom or pinch the screen in the hope of finding what they need. Enough to feel frustrated and quickly leave your platform. So make sure you are compatible with mobile, which will allow mobile users to enjoy all the features of your website.

Does the Mobile First Index impact your SEO?

One of the crucial questions raised by the rollout of the mobile first index is that of SEO: is your ranking on Google’s SERP under threat?

A site that is not adapted to mobile has, as we have just seen, consequences on the user experience. But it can also have consequences on your SEO! With Mobile First, it is not the ranking criteria of Google’s algorithm that have changed, but rather the indexing method. You therefore don’t have to fear a direct impact on your ranking. However, keep in mind that your mobile pages are crawled as a priority and that this can have an indirect impact on your ranking. There are two main scenarios:

• Your website has no mobile-adapted version: you risk facing difficulties ranking in Google’s SERP, since only mobile-optimized sites can be!
• Your website has a mobile-adapted version: if you fail to meet certain requirements and the mobile version of your site is not fully “mobile friendly,” your ranking may also be impacted by the Mobile First Index.

Unless you already have a site that is perfectly compatible on mobile, it is therefore crucial to go “mobile first” if you don’t want to see your ranking drop.

How do you adapt to the Mobile First Index?

Adapting to the Mobile First Index means, above all, making sure your site is “mobile friendly.” The following tips will guide you in creating or improving your mobile site.

You already have a mobile version: what are the areas for improvement for the Mobile First Index?

• Make sure the mobile version of your website has the same content as the desktop version: ensure that the main content of your mobile version is equivalent to that of your desktop version. By “main content” we mean text, images and videos.

• Provide structured data on both versions of your site: don’t hesitate to test both versions of your website with the Search Console’s structured data testing tool.

• Make sure the metadata is identical on the desktop and mobile versions: your title and meta description tags must also be identical on both versions of your site.

• Verify both versions of your site in the Search Console: because the switch to mobile-oriented indexing can cause a data discrepancy, make sure you have access to the data and messages of both versions of your site by carrying out a verification in the Search Console.

• Check that your mobile version is readable by Googlebot: use the robot.txt tool to verify that your mobile version is accessible to Googlebot.

• Test your site’s mobile performance with Google Page Speed.

• Use lazy-loading and/or opt for a WPA site with AMP to significantly improve your site’s performance on mobile.

You don’t yet have a mobile-compatible site: opt for responsive design!

Having a responsive site means having a site whose design automatically adapts to the screen resolution. It is today the most effective method in terms of SEO. Responsive design saves you from offering two versions of your site (one mobile and the other desktop) and therefore from having separate URLs. In addition to having a single, unique URL, the metadata, backlinks and content of your page are identical. Your page’s download time is optimized and Googlebot’s crawling and indexing work is simplified.

Good to know

On a mobile or responsive version, your site’s loading time must be optimal. The ideal performance is estimated at 3 seconds. This criterion is decisive for your ranking in the Mobile First Index.

Conclusion

In this mobile-first world, the desktop version will have less and less value. So keep in mind that if the mobile compatibility criteria are not met, you risk seeing your ranking drop. If you did not previously have a “mobile friendly” version of your website, the Mobile First Index gives you a good reason to get started!