The shift from desktop computers to mobile will clearly impact how people search and react, and how customers find a business. Developing a new SEO strategy might be one of the ways to survive in the new mobile environment after building your mobile website.
Mobile search behavior. No matter how familiar you are to your smartphone, you will always type faster on a traditional keyboard. So the tendency on a mobile device is to type less. Some will also rely on auto-complete suggestions. As a result, your keyword strategy could become less effective. Let’s say the bathroom sink is clogged – on a desktop computer you will go ahead and type “how to unclog the bathroom sink” but mobile users are more likely to search for “clogged sink” or “unclog drain.” Shorter keywords and phrasings will become more relevant, making long-tail keywords less effective.
Voice search. Currently, Siri or Google Voice are not very effective search assistants. But things will evolve, pushing them and other similar applications to another level. Voice-generated searches are likely to be performed with a conversation voice rather than using the typical “search language”. Instead of thinking in search terms and writing “’drive shaft ‘67 Mustang refurbished,” I’m much likely to say, “Where can I find a refurbished drive shaft for a ’67 Mustang?”.
Mobile users want the short version and they want it now. Mobile searches point to immediate needs: book a travel, find a store, find a restaurant, send flowers, buy a book. The average mobile user is not going to engage in heavy research. If the current strategy is to provide rich, in-depth content that will gradually lead the visitor to make the purchase, it’s time to change the strategy for this will not work for an increasing number of searchers. A mobile user is not likely to stay on a page with lots and lots of resources, several links and a couple of videos. That page will feel “rich” on a desktop but it’s overwhelming on a mobile device.
