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Responsive Web Design: 5 Valuable SEO Benefits

No matter which way you optimize your website for mobile, SEO should be a top priority in the process. As web entrepreneur Neil Patel says, “With mobile search becoming such a dramatic part of online search, it’s absolutely crucial that you optimize your site so that it is seen by searchers and engines.”

If you’ve already begun building a separate mobile website or app for your small business’ web presence, you know how much work it takes to keep everything consistent. Throw SEO into the mix, and you’ve got a pretty time consuming project on your hands.

For many website owners, responsive web design makes SEO optimization much easier.  This approach provides one adaptable website to fit multiple screen sizes. Instead of building separate smart phone, tablet, and e-reader websites, web developers use fluid grids, media queries, and flexible images to create one website to deliver content seamlessly across channels.  There’s only one CMS to update, and one website address to promote and share.  It’s simple, sleek execution.

Here are 5 more ways responsive web design can benefit your SEO efforts:

1. Google approves

Ultimately, search engines aim to offer the highest quality content to its visitors. From a mobile standpoint, Google deems responsive web design the “industry best practice”, favoring responsive sites in rankings because they provide optimal user experiences.  As a Google-approved practice, responsive web design improves a site’s Google search rankings right off the bat.

2. Less work

Responsive web design eliminates the work of creating separate SEO-optimized content for separate mobile sites and applications. Media queries, fluid grids, and flexible images ensure that your single set of responsive content fits to every screen size. The messages, updates, and information on the desktop version remains the same across tablets, smart phones, and e-reader devices.  Making changes to a single website CMS that affects every platform cuts the time spent on search engine optimization significantly.

3. Less cost

Site owners who implement a responsive web design approach invest in one set of content to suit all platforms. Alternatively, “all the effort you put in to your primary website won’t improve the rankings of your mobile website, where you have to start from scratch with your linking and content,” says The EWord CEO Al Mackin.

4. Less competition

“Making your site responsive now, while the topic is hot but largely unused, will get you noticed,” says SEOMoz.com contributor Kristina Kledzik. In a mobile search, Google favors responsive sites over others for the top spots. The majority of small business owners are just catching on to mobile optimization now, which leaves less competition for higher mobile rankings.

5. Users dig it

A responsive design maintains the same layout and content across screens, providing users with an experience consistent with your PC presence. “If you have a mobile site that has less content or looks significantly different than your regular site, you’ll frustrate return visitors who are looking for something they found on the desktop version,” says Kledzik.  With a responsive design, users know exactly where to go to find what they need.

Claim your top spot on mobile search rankings.  Contact Us today for a quote on a responsive website that leaves your competitors behind!

References
Kledzik, Kristina. “The SEO of Responsive Web Design.” 28 January 2013. SEOMoz.com
Mackin, Al. “Why responsive web design is good for SEO.” 14 December 2013. Thedrum.com
Patel, Neil. “How to Optimize Your Mobile Site for Search Engines.” 29 March 2012. Quicksprout.com

2 comments

10

  1. Tracy Morgan

    November 24, 2017

    I found the style of writing and the content very refreshing, with a really good vibe. Google wants to send visitors to the sites that they want to see. When searchers navigate to your site and immediately return to search engine results pages, Google makes a note that your site might not be the best choice for that search term and your website being not responsive can be one of the reasons.

  2. Real Estate SEO 101 - ListHub News ListHub News

    March 9, 2018

    […] 72% of buyers used a mobile website or tablet search device in their home search in 2016. Here are 4 valuable SEO benefits of mobile responsive […]

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