In part 1 of this mobile-first indexing post, we gave you a checklist of important items to ensure your site is fully mobile-ready.
In part 2 of this post, we answer some important questions about mobile-first indexing:
Is mobile-first indexing adding mobile pages to a separate mobile index?
With mobile-first indexing, there is only one index – the same one that Google uses.
Is the mobile-first index live and affecting my site now?
Google has carried out experiments using this approach to indexing on a small number of sites, but a wider rollout is likely to take a few years before a mobile-first only index is created. In the meantime, Google will be evaluating sites to determine their readiness and the company is taking a gradual approach to ensure site owners get their sites completely up-to-scratch for mobile users. As such, there is no current timeline of completion of this.
Will Google only use my mobile site to determine my rankings?
Mobile-first means that the mobile version will be regarded as the main version of your site when it comes to determining your rankings. That being said, there may be times when the desktop version is taken into consideration (for example, if you do not have a mobile version of a particular page). To avoid this from happening, your mobile site should not be launched until it is FULLY ready.
What if I don’t have a mobile version of my site?
If you don’t have a mobile version of your site and your desktop version is not mobile-friendly, your content can still be indexed, however, you may not rank as well in comparison to mobile-friendly websites. This could negatively impact your rankings on desktop search and mobile search, as your site will be perceived as one that offers a poor user experience when compared to other sites.