Google Plans to AMP Mobile Sites

It goes without saying that Google is the world’s most popular search engine, and the company recently announced for the first time mobile searches have surpassed desktop.When examining the numbers, you’d expect to see a drop in desktop searches, but this is not the case. In the last year, desktop searches have actually grown. However, the number of mobile searches has spiked at a tremendous clip. In fact, Google Search is currently the fourth-most popular app in the United States, surpassing the likes of Twitter, Pinterest, Snapchat, and Instagram.To address this shift, Google recently announced the rollout of Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP), which is expected to have a significant impact on web content and digital marketing professionals. At its core, AMP will significantly improve mobile experience and streamline the display of multimedia results.You may think that AMP won’t affect your site, but that’s not the case, especially if it’s rich with multimedia content. Pages with complex graphics are often sluggish when loading on mobile apps, which has big implications. Google claims that when a mobile page takes more than 10 seconds to load, bounce rates can be as high as 58%. Luckily, AMP hopes to improve this.For one, Google claims AMP will provide an estimated 85% improvement in performance. Secondly, visual search results – including animations, gifs, videos, and graphics – are now streamlined into a clean layout and cut down on long load times.“The Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) Project is an initiative to improve the mobile web and enhance the distribution ecosystem,” according to the Accelerated Mobile Pages Project. “If content is fast, flexible and beautiful, including compelling and effective ads, we can preserve the open web publishing model as well as the revenue streams so important to the sustainability of quality publishing.”Custom Website DevelopmentAt PBJ, we understand that Mobile User Experience is more than skin deep. Even the most visually engaging website loses its luster quickly if it’s difficult to navigate, hard to find, or thin on content. Almost anyone can build a website, but can they build a site that’s fully integrated with your marketing and servicing programs? Loads quick and plays nice with search engines? One that features the analytics and reporting you need to demonstrate maximum ROI? PBJ can – and does. And with mobile devices taking over our day-to-day interaction with the web, users are expecting exceptional mobile experiences.