Most searches for local services happen on a phone. If your website is slow or hard to use on a small screen, visitors leave for a competitor.

Test your website

Open it on your own phone, on 4G, away from the office Wi-Fi. Count the seconds before you can read and tap. Also use Google's free PageSpeed Insights tool for a detailed diagnosis.

The most common causes

  • Images that are too heavy: a photo weighing several megabytes slows everything down.
  • Too many modules and plugins on websites built with certain tools.
  • Low-end hosting.
  • Videos and animations loaded as soon as the page opens.

Simple fixes

  • Compress images and use modern formats such as WebP.
  • Remove unnecessary plugins.
  • Use a content delivery network (CDN).
  • Load images only when they come into view.

The mobile experience

  • Buttons big enough for a thumb.
  • A tappable phone number.
  • Short forms.
  • No pop-up that covers the whole screen.

Why it matters for Google

Speed and the quality of the mobile experience are among the signals Google takes into account. A fast website is also a better-ranked website.