Increasingly, the terms “SEO” and “mobile SEO” are becoming one and the same. With a majority of search engine traffic originating from mobile devices, most brands understand that reaching mobile users is paramount to optimal success. Especially since search engines like Google have begun penalizing websites that do not cater to mobile users, the pressure to perform is greater than ever.

With so much to analyze and consider, balancing your mobile SEO endeavors with that of other tasks can be difficult. In order to ensure you’re focusing on the right goals, let’s take a look at which factors are the most important elements in any mobile SEO strategy.

User Experience

Increasingly, search engines analyze just how easy it is for mobile users to use and navigate websites. Seeing as how most mobile users place a premium on ease of use when seeking information from their devices, search engines value this element immensely.

Above all else, ensuring that a mobile responsive design is implemented will go a long way toward improving user experience (in fact, a lack of mobile responsive design can nerf your search engine visibility). Even with this in place, you’ll want to carefully consider the placement of key elements on each page, as well as the formatting of content for optimal performance. This will ensure that hardly anybody becomes frustrated with your layout and subsequently leaves (pinging search engines with high bounce rates is a recipe for disaster).

Geographic Targeting

A very large segment of mobile searches are based around geographic intent. For example, those looking to purchase a product while on-the-go or those wanting to grab a bite to eat are looking for locally-relevant results. While not all businesses and brands may be catering to a specific geographic area, many find that by doing so, they can expand their bottom lines.

Whether you’re a small business in a particular city or an online service seeking to dominate in various markets, improving mobile SEO can be done by focusing on more specific audiences. One of the best ways in which to do this is to target audiences based on their location.

Content Optimization

The difference between a mobile screen and a desktop screen is pretty immense. Especially when combined with a mobile-responsive design, you should be very careful about the content you publish – and how it is formatted.

Optimizing for mobile SEO involves being more succinct in what you are saying, as well as formatting content to be easily read on smaller screens. Most people will naturally have shorter attention spans when using their mobile devices compared to desktop browsing, so your content must consider this. Not only do you want to be pinging search engines with optimized organic content, but paid campaigns should consider this as well.

Mobile SEO is – in many ways – no different than traditional SEO. The main elements are similar, but some of the more subjective aspects (such as user experience) require thinking like a mobile user rather than a desktop user. Now that you’re aware of what to consider when beginning any mobile SEO campaign, you can build both your website and its content in a way more conducive for mobile success.