Enter mobile-first indexing. Mobile-first does not mean mobile-only. Your desktop site will site factor in (for those who don't have a mobile or responsive site). Not having a mobile experience will negatively impact the ranking of your site. SEO. Conversion rates. And much more.

In the past, the desktop version of your site was considered the main version with your mobile site being a by-product. With responsive design, your desktop and mobile sites should be fairly identical. This is good news because, for now, it may not have a profound impact on your ranking.      

 Even with a responsive website, you need to focus on page speed and load time. Mobile search continues to grow year over year. Did you know that statistically, most users will abandon (bounce) from a mobile site if it doesn't load in 3 seconds? Currently, the average mobile site takes 15 seconds to load. You can see the dilemma.

Slow websites kill your organic SEO because they adversely affect your conversion and bounce rates. Google, in its ongoing quest for relevancy in search results, takes into account how users interact with your page.  Are they viewing your homepage and leaving (bouncing)?  If so, it's hurting the practice.

Your conversion rates drop 7% for every second your website takes to load. That means if you're spending thousands on paid search in AdWords or Facebook, and your website is slow, you could be wasting money reaching traffic that never sees your website because the user isn't going to wait for it to load. What a bummer!

As we push into the future, mobile web usage is going to continue to skyrocket. Google updates their algorithm hundreds of times every year. It's important to stay ahead of the curve as much as you possibly can. Here is how you can prepare best for the future:

If you have a responsive site, and the content matches the content on your desktop site, you need to focus on page speed, user experience, and load time.

If you have a Google AMP site or a separate mobile site, you need to ensure your mobile version has the same content that the desktop site does. This could be a lot of work, so be prepared. As far as Google AMP, I always warn dentists that, while this is a viable "quick-fix" you must realize that Google AMP is a separate instance of your site that is hosted by Google.

Should Google ever decide to do away with AMP, as they have with Google +, you will be back to square one. It's much more advantageous to build an optimized site with page speed and user experience already factored in and controlled by your existing URL structure.

You could be losing money—BIG TIME—by missing out on opportunities to convert site visitors to patients.  If your website is too slow, it’s costing you money.  If your website is costing you money, it’s not good for business.  You need to maximize the ROI on your marketing dollars.

 

We can help you do that, with a beautiful practice website that has ultra-fast page speed and lots of value to your prospects.  Let’s talk about how we can turn your website into a significant income-producing engine.