Are you trying to make your WordPress site work better on mobile phones?
Search engines like Google now focus on how well your site works on mobile devices first. If your site isn’t great for mobile users, it will hurt your search results.
In this article, we will talk about the best ways to make your WordPress site mobile-friendly. This will help improve your search rankings and how users interact with your site.
Why You Need a Mobile-Friendly WordPress Website
Each year, more people use their smartphones for searches. Over 55% of all web traffic worldwide comes from mobile devices. Mobile searches are even more popular in Asia and Africa.
Google uses mobile-first indexing, which means they look at your mobile site first when ranking your site. If your desktop site is perfect but your mobile site isn’t, your search rankings will suffer.
People spend up to 6 hours on their phones daily, giving your business many chances to attract visitors.
Making your site mobile-friendly can lead to:
- More purchases: 61% of consumers are more likely to buy from mobile-friendly sites, which is important for online stores.
- More impressions: Mobile searches get 85.8% more views than desktop searches, boosting brand awareness.
- Increased dwell time: Dwell time is how long users stay on your site. A good mobile experience can keep them longer.
A mobile-friendly website means your content fits perfectly on a mobile screen, so visitors can easily navigate without zooming in or out.
How to Check If Your Site Is Mobile-Friendly
To know if your site is mobile-friendly, use Google’s PageSpeed Insights tool. It analyzes your pages and gives scores for mobile and desktop, with tips to improve.
Open the tool, enter your website URL, and click ‘Analyze’. Look at the ‘Mobile’ tab to see your Core Web Vitals, which measure your site’s speed, interactivity, and visual stability. Google uses these as ranking factors.
Scroll to ‘Diagnose performance issues’ to see your mobile-friendliness score. Aim for a score between 90 and 100. PageSpeed Insights will offer suggestions for improvement.
Tips to Create a Mobile-Friendly Site
- Use a Mobile-Friendly WordPress Theme
Choose a mobile-responsive theme that adapts to different screen sizes. Go to Appearance » Themes in your dashboard, click ‘Add New Theme’, and search for ‘Responsive’. Install a responsive theme. Paid themes often offer more customization. SeedProd is a great option for building custom themes without coding.
- Create Mobile-Friendly Forms
Use mobile-responsive forms so they look good on any device. WPForms is a good plugin for this. Keep forms short and only ask for necessary information to avoid overwhelming mobile users.
- Prioritize Your Website Speed
Page load speed is crucial for mobile SEO. Use tools like Pingdom to test your site’s speed. Simplify your web design, resize and compress images, use a content delivery network (CDN), and keep WordPress up-to-date to improve speed. Choose fast hosting providers like SiteGround or Hostinger.
- Optimize for Mobile SERPs
Mobile search results differ from desktop results. Optimize your content for mobile SERPs and use schema markup to add rich snippets. Plugins like All in One SEO can help with this.
- Optimize for Local Search
Mobile users often search for local businesses. Use All in One SEO’s Local SEO feature to add your business locations and info. This helps your site show up in local search results.
- Use a Mobile-Responsive Navigation Menu
Make sure your navigation menu works well on mobile screens. Reduce the number of options and avoid intermediate pages. Plugins like Responsive Menu can help.
- Make Your Landing Pages Mobile-Responsive
Use a page builder that includes mobile-friendly settings, like SeedProd. It offers mobile-friendly templates and allows you to preview and edit the mobile version of your site.
- Avoid Intrusive Popups
Large popups can frustrate mobile users. Use subtle and mobile-friendly popups. OptinMonster is a good plugin for creating non-intrusive popups.
- Make Your Content Mobile-Friendly
Break text into small, readable paragraphs. Use headings and subheadings to help readers find what they need. Create a visual hierarchy and use white space to improve readability.
- Change Your CTA Button Placement and Size
Make CTA buttons easy to see and click on mobile screens. Keep them above the fold and maintain a size of around 10 millimeters by 10 millimeters.
- Make Important Information Easy to Find
Ensure visitors can easily find key information like contact details and business hours. Use videos, highlight best-selling products, and add FAQ sections.
Best Mobile-Responsive Plugins for WordPress
Ensure all plugins you use are mobile-responsive. Here are some recommendations:
- SeedProd: For creating themes and landing pages.
- WPForms: For creating forms.
- RafflePress: For running giveaways and contests.
- Smash Balloon: For displaying social media feeds.
- OptinMonster: For creating popups.
- PushEngage: For web push notifications.
- FunnelKit: For creating mobile-responsive sales funnels.
These plugins help add features to your site while ensuring it remains mobile-friendly.
