Did you know that by 2019 an estimated 67.1% of the population worldwide will own a mobile phone? (Statistica). This truly signals the importance of mobile, and Google have been aware of this for some time.
Ok, so mobile has been a gradual process for Google but one that has been on the cards for a long time. We all saw it coming with the introduction of Google's Mobile Friendly algorithm back in April 2015 and the infamous "Mobilegeddon" that never really lived up to its name. But now, Google is really bringing out the big guns and we should all be paying attention.
We've already discussed the importance of a mobile optimised website, but what's happening to web browsers? How is search changing for mobile first?
How does mobile impact browsers and search?
Back in 2016, Greg Sterling reported on Search Engine Land that nearly 60% of search queries globally were from mobile devices, which has continued to rise. It's time to really focus our attention on emerging trends and what they mean for search.
Voice Search and SEO
Back in May 2016, Jennifer Slegg reported that 20% of all mobile search queries were voice queries, and it's predicted that by 2020 this will increase to a whopping 50% of all searches, according to ComScore. This growth is inevitable as we see more virtual assistants entering homes around the world. Hello Alexa!
What does this mean for search?
With a variety of voice assistants now penetrating the market (Google Home, Amazon Echo, Google Voice and more), it's leading to an increase in conversational search queries. This will have an impact on content and the types of keywords that we're using.
We are starting to see an increase in the number of question based search phrases and long tail keywords, and there's certainly a growing trend in personalised search emerging.
What should we do?
Start targeting conversational search terms for example, if you were searching for a city break on your computer, you might type "2018 city break deals". But you wouldn't say this to a travel agent would you? And the same goes for Alexa, if you were to vocally express what you were looking for it might be something more like "show me some city break deals for 2018".
Top tips for voice search
- Take the time to think beyond the robotic computerised search terms and think, what's natural?
- Consider the user journey and their intent to help identify useful search terms.
- Review relevant question based searches and long tailed keywords.
Featured snippets
What are featured snippets?
Featured snippets are available in Google Search results to help users easily find content they are looking for, essentially offering quick fire answers. You may have noticed these in a block at the top of your search results, they take many different forms including paragraph, list and table, but always appear above organic search results, known as "position 0".
Where does featured snippets information come from?
Google explains that "The summary is a snippet extracted programmatically from what a visitor sees on your web page". Google assesses the user's search query and hunts down what it believes is the most relevant answer to show. We believe that this answer is based on not just content and keywords, but click through rates (CTR) and level of engagement from past users.
Why are featured snippets so important to mobile?
This "position 0" is why featured snippets are so important to search on mobile devices. Users on mobile devices are less likely to pass the second page of the search results, which is why it's super important to have content appear in prime position.
How do you get a featured snippet and appear in position 0?
- Choose the right content to work on, naturally it should lend itself to Q&A based content.
- Provide the best answer
- Summarise in a single paragraph, in approximately 40 - 55 words
- You can then expand on this further down the page
- Use a data mining tool to establish relevant / popular keywords
- Review the potential of your keywords - search volume, competitiveness, etc
- Review content structure
- Use a table or a list if you feel it's the best way to deliver content
- Optimum table size: 2.5 columns and 3.6 rows
- Optimum list length: 5 - 8 items
- Use H1, H2, H3 tags to reiterate importance and hierarchy to search engines
- Use a table or a list if you feel it's the best way to deliver content
- Ensure clean code and tagging
- Positive user engagement signals
- Benchmark your current performance for content using Google Search Console, Google Analytics
- Review CTR and user engagement ongoing
Once you have optimised your content, you should review keyword ranking and search visibility using a tool like SEOmonitor or SEMrush.
Local Search
Did you know that nearly one third of mobile searches are location based queries? And that 76% of location searches result in a same day store visit. This just proves how important location is, especially for local businesses.
Back in 2014, there was a new algorithm launched by Google, called Google Pigeon which revolved around local search. I go into this in more detail in my blog on Google Pigeon & Local SEO, but essentially its aim was to enhance the relevance of local search queries.
Ok, so how do we geographically target users based on their search results?
- Make sure you have a mobile optimised or responsive website
- Get your NAP (name, address, phone number) information clearly displayed on your website
- Make sure you're using targeted keywords
- Include location and relevant keywords
- Consider using structured markup to flag key information to search engines
- Claim and optimise your business listings on Google and Bing, this will help users find you in search results and on Google maps
- Ensure that all location details are consistent on your website, business listings and referral sites
- Google reviews are a great way to assist local search results. Reviews help build trust among users and will demonstrate a high level of relevance and engagement to search engines.
- By carrying out the above, you'll earn a better chance of appearing in the Local Pack in Google search results, which is an instant bonus
Conclusion
So what have we learnt from all of this? We've learnt that now is the time to think mobile first. With mobile users continuing to grow, it's a massive player in the digital field and we can only expect to see more of this in the strive to offer optimum convenience to the end user. Whether this be through voice search, featured snippets or local search, it's here and it's time to commit to a mobile first approach.
If you're interested in mobile search but don't know where to start, give us a call. We'd be happy to help.
