Smartphone searches continue to surpass desktop searches. Currently 60% of global mobile consumers use their mobile device as their primary or exclusive Internet source. Mobile optimization is becoming key to any business or law firm’s success.
In 2015 Google launched its mobile-friendly algorithm, designed to benefit mobile-friendly pages in Google’s mobile search results. This update left many business owners (and law firms) anxious about their website’s visibility in search engine result pages (SERPs). Understanding responsive design (and how to use it) is a good place to start. To ensure your site is still reaching mobile searchers!
Cell Phones are Your Friends!
There are no gray areas in Google’s algorithm—either your website is mobile-friendly or it isn’t. Mobile-friendly, law firm sites will be rewarded with more visibility on SERPs and higher keyword rankings. Not only from mobile searches, but also desktop searches. If your website is not optimized for smartphone searches and has not been hurt yet, experts say it is only a matter of time.
If you’re concerned about your firm, Google offers its mobile-friendly test to determine the mobile-friendliness of its pages.
Why are Bounce Rates So High?
Bounces occur when a site visitor clicks away without interacting with your site at all. If you’re rates are high, determine where the disinterested parties are coming from. Paid ads and organic visitors should be looking for different things from your firm. And depending which type of customer is bouncing away, Kirkpatrick Creative suggests different methods for keeping those prospects interested! As always, the answer is in your data!
Preparing for the Future
According to the same Mobility Report, by 2020, 70% of the world’s population will be using smartphones.
Mobile users are relying on their smartphones for directions, comparing prices, reading reviews, and looking for discounts and promotions. This “comparison shopping” mentality is applied to services as well as products. Sites like Angie’s List and Yelp! center on service-provider rankings — law firms are no exception. Firms that fail to keep up with mobile trends are losing prospective clients if they are not having a good user experience.
Optimize Your Website for Mobile with Responsive Design
Mobile devices are changing everything from how websites are built to how businesses markets their brands. Web pages must be designed to respond to all audiences, searches, and devices.
Responsive design aims at effectively responding to each user’s mobile device by adapting page elements such as resolution, size, and layout. When establishing how to optimize your website for mobile, it is important to consider how your website can provide a better user experience and encourage visitors to engage with your website’s content. Responsive design centers on making your website deliver exactly what each individual customer is looking for in the simplest, most direct ways.
A responsive website design is the best way to increase engagement, readability, and functionality on your website so that your business can expand its online presence and evolve with the future of mobile searches. Mobile optimization is the key to succeeding in today’s online environment!
If you have any thoughts, questions or concerns about your website’s mobile optimization, contact Kirkpatrick Creative today!