Why Google Needs Promoting AMP In Mobile-Search Results?
AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages) is an online publishing format created by Google to boost page loading speed on mobiles. Also Google considers AMP as a factor in mobile search ranking. AMP is for mobile websites but it is surprising to know that users for which AMP is created prefer mobile-friendly pages over the fast loading accelerated pages.
The lightning symbol has no meaning
AMP is denoted by a lightning symbol but it is learned that it fails to attract users. Google Search users have little knowledge on AMP and it is the responsibility of the SEO community to educate Google users about advantages of AMP. People related to digital marketing know what AMP stands for but there is hardly anyone that thinks about what users know about AMP.
Is lack of knowledge deterring users from clicking on AMP pages?
A poll conducted by G-Squared Interactive in August 2016 delivered startling results. It is revealed that a significant number of Google Search users prefer mobile-friendly link over AMP results. Only 30% users voted for “both”. They said they don’t care about which link they are clicking. But serious users that are over 65% prefer mobile-friendly pages over AMP.
Only a small number of mobile users that is around 5% said that they choose AMP over mobile-friendly pages. And these users are well aware of the advantages of AMP.
Are AMP pages similar to mobile-friendly pages?
AMP stands for fast downloading pages and mobile-friendly stands for web pages that are designed for viewing on handheld devices including Smartphones and tablets. But users aren’t able to recognize AMP with the lightning symbol. Also, they aren’t ready to learn what the lightning symbol is about when they have the option to view mobile-friendly pages.
What is the way out of this situation?
Google is working on a solution to promote AMP in the mobile-search results. It is running a series of tests to find ways to make AMP visible and also to educate Google Search users on advantages of AMP. The process is to link the lightning symbol with AMP and providing a brief description of the AMP to encourage users to click on the lightning symbol.
Associating mobile-friendly with AMP is the best way to go and Google is seriously working on the ways that can highlight presence and importance of AMP in mobile-search results. Recently Twitter user Bary Adams posted a screenshot of the latest mobile-search feature promoting AMP. It is seen that the lightning symbol and AMP are placed closer and also a short description “AMP delivers a lightning-fast experience” is provided to educate users.
Conclusion
One thing that is clear from the survey is that people prefer mobile search over desktop search. It is a good indication for websites. Since Google prefers AMP over mobile-friendly design, it has taken the responsibility to improve the visibility of the AMP sites. It is learned that people want to know about AMP but they are unable to recognize AMP by its symbol.
