March 12, 2015

Potential Google Slow Label on Mobile Searches

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Michael Jenkins
Michael Jenkins

CEO - Shout Agency
[email protected]

Overview

Recent reports of change to Google’s mobile algorithm have been reported. One of the first potential leaks is the sighting of a new Google Slow Label on mobile searches.
The label, still in beta, does much to help searchers avoid sites that load slowly on mobile devices. With 60% of Google searches now being done on mobile devices, it is more important than ever for webmasters to ensure smartphones and tablets can quickly load site content.
Furthermore, this slow label might be an indication of a widening of the slow site penalty Google from their 2010 algorithm update.
That penalty focused on the 3 second rule. Repeated studies have shown that most users click off a site within 3 seconds if a site does not load on their desktop.
While mobile coverage varies, smartphone and tablet users now expect the same levels of speed once reserved only for powerful and landlocked devices.
Therefore, it is important to keep tabs on your website speed over mobile devices.

3 Quick Steps to Improve Your Mobile Site Speed

Step 1: Test your page speed.

Fortunately, we have two tools to help us test our mobile speed page.
• Google PageSpeed Insights
• Pingdom Tools
Between these two tools, you can determine why your current site speed is slow.

Step 2: Follow the recommendations from Google PageSpeed Insights and Pingdom Tools.

These two tools provide you with specific instructions to fix your site speed. Most problems boil down to three issues: hosting speed, images, and plugins.
Many people do not have a plan that fits the number of visitors they have on their site. Therefore, it is critical to have a solid hosting plan.
Additionally, if you have too many images and plugins loading on a mobile page it could significantly reduce the load time.
Use caching (WP Super Cache) and Content Delivery Networks (Amazon S3 and DropBox) to reduce the load time on your mobile site.

Step 3: Ensure your website is mobile responsive.

Websites generally with the slowest mobile loading speed are the ones that are not optimized for mobile search traffic. This means your company needs to have a mobile responsive website.
If you do not know what you are doing, then you need to speak with a web developer. Let us know if we can help you at Shout Web Agency.

Final Thoughts

It is too early to tell what the new policies will be for Google mobile slow label. The fact that it is hard for marketers to find the information, indicates that it is definitely still in beta at Google. We will find out later in the month when Google is expected to publicize their new algorithm changes.
Keep an eye out for any changes that do occur, and follow the steps below to ensure that you do not have to worry when they do roll out the changes to their mobile speed policy.
Just out of curiosity, how did you rank on the speed tests on Google and Pingdom? Let us know in the comment section below.

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        As Founder and Director of Shout Web Strategy, Michael Jenkins is at the forefront of digital marketing. Since it’s inception in 2009, Shout has built a strong reputation as one of Australia’s leading strategic SEO agencies, assisting online businesses to formulate, implement and track successful marketing strategies. Michael is a respected thought leader and digital strategist, specialising in online strategy, corporate SEO, Google retargeting, email and conversion rate optimisation, and online reputation management. Follow Michael on Google+, connect with him through LinkedIn or visit the Shout Web Strategy website.

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