I was recently asked to provide an answer to a question about what SEOs should focus on in 2016. My response was:
- Mobile
- Mobile
- Mobile
(Not necessarily in that order.)
Mobile is big and it’s only getting bigger. While I don’t think mobile devices will ever fully replace desktop (or laptop) computers, there is already a merging of devices going on with laptops that also work as tablets. I’m sure more of that will come.
When it comes to mobile marketing, the device being used is itself pretty irrelevant. It’s all about functionality for the size of the screen being used. I’ve seen websites go “mobile first” when in reality they went “mobile only.” That’s fine if 100% of your audience is on a mobile device, but it’s a big fat whopping fail if not.
The thing to keep in mind is that smaller screens affect what your web site visitors can see and what they can do. Going mobile just means accomodating them for the screen size in which they see your site. It’s really no different than what every developer should already be doing for desktop sites, except now there are more screen sizes to consider.
Because mobile is only going to grow, its time to start employing a real mobile first philosophy. That doesn’t mean ignoring desktop visitors, it just means you planning for a future of all people on all devices, with mobile likely being the preferred device.