It’s no surprise. Mobile dominates. In fact, 60% of all searches now occur on mobile devices. It’s where consumers are today, and most businesses have designed responsive apps and mobile sites to accommodate them. And this is not just a phenomenon for e-commerce. People are looking for service vendors too – lawyers, plumbers, and lawn care companies. But is having a responsive design/app enough? The short answer is “no.” Mobile SEO must be factored in too.

Google leads the Way

Throughout the rest of 2017, Google will be implementing its mobile-first index. And, ultimately, this will be its primary algorithm for searches. Google mobile SEO guidelines are becoming widely available, and any business looking to maintain its current customer base as well as grow that base, needs to take a look at those guidelines. In the meantime, here are three mobile SEO tips that you can incorporate right now.

How to Do Mobile SEO

• How are You representing Your Brand on Mobile?

When you designed your PC website, you took into account all of the tools and technology (often including a designer and developer), to make that website “pop.” It has served you well.

Now it is time to invest the same time, energy, and technology to develop your mobile site or app. The tools are there for you – use them or spend the money to have it done right. This will be your primary source for consumers who search, and you want it to load quickly, be easily navigated, and attract and engage. If anything, it should provide a user experience far better than your existing website.

• Keywords Still Rule

You will need to do some serious research here. The same keywords that desktop users may be using to conduct searches are not necessarily those that mobile users will type. On desktops, they are inclined to use lots of long-tailed keywords, because that’s easy. For example, students might enter a desktop query, “U.S. based essay writing services for college students.” The length of the search phrase gets in a number of keywords. On mobile devices, they are far more inclined to use shorter phrases if they are typing, such as, “Resumes Writing Services”, but also longer terms if they are searching with verbal commands through Siri or Google.

And, even as with desktop users, there are always contextual changes. 10 years ago, for example, the term “tea party” would have had a very different meaning than it does today. If you are a seller of tea, you would not want to use this keyword term today.

• Research the “New Requirements”

Google is very forthcoming about “requirements” and suggestions for mobile SEO. Study these. Incorporate what you can yourself and hire the expertise when you cannot.

• Structured Data

You may have eliminated markup language that slows down loads. But here’s the thing: Google uses it to help rank your site, and you should include these segments. This is a technical matter, so if you are not well versed, hire the expertise you need to get it right.

• Content Consistency

While the content you provide on mobile may be condensed, make sure that it is consistent with the content you have on your desktop website. Not to have that consistency confuses Google. If you need examples of good condensation, check out some travel/reservation websites. They do a great job of this.

Sometimes, to keep content consistent, you may have to add folders or tabs on your mobile app to gain consistency. Originally Google penalized a bit for this, but it has since changed its mind.

• Giving the User an Unobstructed View

It is common for a user to encounter a pop-up when he lands on a web page. He then must exit out of it to get to the content. If you do this on mobile, and you obstruct your user’s view, you do two things: you irritate the user who now must perform another function to get to your content, and you will face a penalty by Google. Leave the pop-ups on your desktop site.

Mobile SEO is far more than simply creating a responsive website. You have to consider user experience, keyword effectiveness, and the overall consistency in representation of your brand. Add to that a design that is engaging and compelling, and you may have some more work to do.