Google’s algorithm update to favour websites that are mobile-friendly can undoubtedly be justified by the market requirements and expectations concerning mobile consumption. Mobile is rapidly becoming the primary platform for accessing the internet. As a result, consumers are increasingly expecting businesses and retailers to provide a fast and convenient mobile experience. While previous experience has taught marketers that any shift in Google’s algorithm can be cause for concern, should fear of the search giant really be the motivating factor when making the switch to a mobile-friendly site? Could this change result in businesses jumping to make the switch to mobile friendly sites without really understanding why mobile is so important to their brands?
Given that 55% of consumers use their smartphones to make online purchases, most B2C brands should already be taking a “mobile-first” approach, at the very least have a mobile-friendly website. Marketers should make provisions to have their business’ website regularly tested and optimised for the latest requirements.
Due to the fact that B2C businesses are already reasonably well prepared for mobile, Google’s changes are much more likely to affect marketers operating in the B2B sector. Because of the nature of B2B retail, little attention has traditionally been paid to ensuring that websites are mobile friendly. There is a common belief that business decision makers would rarely make decisions based on mobile searches, as a result there seemed little incentive to optimise.
While there may be a grain of truth to this claim, we shouldn’t forget that those making the decisions are not necessarily the ones who are conducting the initial research. In many instances it is the younger generation, Generation Y, who are asked to develop an initial shortlist of potential retailers. In fact, according to Think With Google, nearly 50% of B2B research is conducted by Millennials. It is these Millennials that will judge a business for failing to deliver an adequate mobile site. As a result, poor mobile web design could ultimately act as a bottleneck between a B2B brand and its potential customers.
In addition to the growing role of Millienials as a potential “research bottleneck”, B2B marketers have also had a tendency to play-down mobile as a result of limited understanding and poor interpretation of website analytics.
For many B2B brands, it is common practice to look at overall traffic and, seeing a lower number of mobile conversions, assume that mobile is less important. However, in order to be certain, businesses must delve deeper into their analytics. As an example, if you inspect your website’s analytics reports and see a higher-than-average bounce rate from mobile devices, then it is probably safe to assume that the reason people are abandoning your site is precisely because of a poor mobile experience.
Google’s algorithm change sends a clear message – if you want to rank highly on Google’s search results pages, you need to provide a customer-friendly experience across all devices. If you’re working in a B2B environment, you may be thinking Google is making additional work for little impact on your bottom line. But those who can read between the lines will have realised the technology giant is drawing our attention to the significance of mobile.
If you’re a marketer from a Business-to-Business company, you shouldn’t underestimate the importance of mobile in your marketing strategy. You should test mobile-friendliness of your site using Google's own Guide for Mobile-Friendly Websites as well as inspect the bounce rate on your mobile reports. The results will provide clarity on whether you need to increase your mobile marketing focus.
By James Stout, Senior Manager, Technology and Developer Evangelism at EPiServer.
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