With mobile search now starting to take over desktop in terms of the number of users, Google is now making steps to reach out to mobile users and improve their search experience. Recently, the company announced two significant changes to the functionality of their search algorithm. In this blog, we’ll provide an outline of the two changes that Google has made and offer insights into what these changes mean for website owners as they look to engage the mobile audience.

Mobile Friendly Websites to Appear Higher in Rankings

Beginning on April 21 of 2015, Google will be making mobile-friendliness an even more important ranking signal. While mobile-friendly sites have been boosted significantly in recent years with the evolution of Google’s Hummingbird and Penguin algorithms, this latest change is set to have a larger and more noticeable impact on rankings. The change will impact rankings in all languages worldwide. And it will allow users to more easily find relevant content within their own language, and optimize for their own personal device.

App Content to be featured in Rankings

Beginning immediately, Google will now be featuring information from indexed mobile applications within their search rankings. This means organizations with mobile apps will rank more highly for users who are signed into those apps during their search. It’s a search functionality tweak designed to bring the separate areas of search, mobile and mobile applications closer together to ensure a more seamless experience for the user.

Mobile search is now an important consideration within a comprehensive SEO strategy. This latest update from Google shows that companies ignoring mobile integration are set to lose out on ranking performance in 2015. To learn more on how to optimize your site for the mobile user, speak with our technology experts today!