‘Mobilegeddon’ looming for businesses

Mobile phone

BUSINESSES across the North West are being warned of the potentially catastrophic consequences of ‘Mobilegeddon’.

The warning follows Google’s announcement it is about to administer major changes in its search results which will have a “significant impact” on websites not designed for mobile phones which take place in less than a month.

The move leaves little time for SMEs and entrepreneurs to make sure their websites don’t disappear from search results overnight.

From April 21, Google will prioritise results which are mobile optimised.

The update is being linked to a Google survey showed that 94% of people choose to use their mobile to get local information, and the vast majority of those searches take place at home or at work, where access to a desktop computer is likely to be available.

Although exact details of the new algorithm change are yet to be revealed, it is known that websites which, for example, have a ‘pinch and zoom’ function to read text are likely to be severely impacted or banished from mobile search results altogether.

Retail analyst at Manchester Business School Tarlok Teji said Google had a track record of making major changes to the way in which algorithms deal with search results.

“Many organisations which had geared up for Google searches have found themselves having to deal with changing criteria,” he said.

“The large companies have already made their websites mobile and tablet-friendly.

“For many smaller firms, the process of launching a website in the first place is a long process and now to make them accessible on mobile devices is an even bigger challenge, but they will have to do it.”

Peter Gunning, chief technology officer at new Manchester-based cross-media web studio nettl.com, which specialises in mobile optimisation services, said: “Some of our customers have been putting off a redesign because they’re just too busy, but with this dirty great deadline looming, Google is somewhat forcing their hands.

“In fairness to Google, they’re responding to what people want. If you search on your phone, and then go to a site where you need a magnifying glass to read the text, it’s a pain.
 
“I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve visited a website on my phone to get a contact phone number for a business and it turns out to be a picture of a phone number on some obscure webpage. You need to make it easy for visitors, or quite simply they won’t come back.”

Close