Recently, Google created a stir when they announced a change to their mobile search algorithm.

How folks reacted to the news seemed to center on whether or not their website is already mobile-friendly or not. Either way you look at it, it’s no longer good enough to have a website that looks the same no matter what you are using to view it. You must present content to your audience that is formatted for the device they are using.

And frankly that’s how it should be. Does anybody enjoy pinching websites to get them to appear smaller or larger on their smartphone?

Here are 5 facts on how Google’s new mobile search algorithm will affect your website:

1. Affects only search rankings on mobile devices; not those made from laptops and desktop computers.
2. One bad egg won’t hurt your entire site. The mobile search update applies to individual pages, not the entire website.
3. It’s never too late to make that change. Once a page is mobile-friendly, a Googlebot for smartphones will naturally re-crawl and index the page.
4. Linking to a site that is not mobile-friendly won’t hurt your own page’s ranking, but it may make for a less-than-preferable experience for your audience.
5. Don’t let your site statistics paint the wrong picture. Your site statistics may lead you to believe you don’t need to worry about mobile visitors. The stats may be lying, though, as the lack of a mobile site may be driving visitors away. More and more each year, audiences are moving to mobile.

To learn more about responsive websites and making your website mobile-friendly visit wlion.com/responsive.

Editor’s note: As of the writing of this post, search engine Bing is now reporting that they too will be following suit with a change to their search algorithm to give mobile-friendly websites an edge in search rankings.

Having a responsive website is no longer a luxury. It’s time to get mobile!