December 24, 2013

Mobile search is definitely the hot topic in the world of SEO, with nearly all brands finding that a major fraction of all their searches are coming from mobile devices. Mobile SEO is a multi-faceted process, in which it is important to understand the differences in how people search on mobile devices as compared to desktops, and adopt techniques to ensure the site’s mobile content can be properly viewed and crawled by search engines. The following tips guide you on the essential elements of mobile SEO, and effective ways to increase conversion rates on your mobile site:

  • The most important aspect of mobile SEO is understanding how keyword search terms by mobile users differ from those of desktop users. Mobile users typically use shorter tail phrases and perform searches that are more local in nature. In addition to this, they are more likely to rely on Google’s Autocomplete to complete queries. It is important to take these factors into consideration when optimizing meta titles and descriptions for your website.
  • Considering that a vast majority of mobile users are likely to be connected to social media networks 24/7, it is a good idea to develop online content with a social-first, mobile-second approach.
  • Pressing a navigation link on a touch-screen device can be cumbersome, which is why you might want to consider a vertical menu for your mobile site.
  • Make sure that you actually develop an exclusive mobile site for your users, or adopt responsive web design, instead of requiring users to pinch and zoom on your desktop site.
  • Form-filling on mobile sites can be extremely cumbersome. Keeping form length on mobile sites to an absolute minimum by eliminating optional fields can help to significantly increase your conversion rates.
  • While you might get away with forcing registration on a desktop site, this is sure to backfire on a mobile site, where users are a lot less likely to put themselves through the hassle of filling out details, unless they absolutely have to.
  • Another way to increase conversion for mobile users is to offer quick payment options, to reduce the friction at checkout. You can do this by saving payment details of previous customers, and accepting quicker options like PayPal.
  • Considering that a large number of mobile users have local intent, you can boost conversions by offering in-store pickup.