An open-source project by Google called Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) aims to speed up the loading of content and make it easier to read on mobile devices. Imagine it as a mobile-friendly upgrade. In AMP, Google intends to improve the mobile experience by enabling content like video to load instantly, as well as animations, graphics, and other rich content.
AMP is used by a number of major publishers, including, among others, Buzzfeed, Twitter, the Guardian, and The Huffington Post. A top stories carousel often appears at the top of Google searches, highlighting AMP-based articles related to the search query as a slider at the top of the search results.
What is AMP and how does it work?
Through the use of a stripped-down HTML version and the limitation of JavaScript, AMP allows content to load instantly. In this case, text-based content is prioritized, with additional content rendered once the rest of the page has been rendered.
A user doesn’t have to retrieve content from the publisher’s server each time they check out an AMP-enabled page because Google can cache and render them automatically. Pages will load immediately upon clicking. Only the resources above the fold are pre-rendered to reduce bandwidth and CPU usage when preloading AMP content.
Who needs AMP?
The original intent of AMP was to be used for news articles published online. In the “top stories” carousel of search results, mobile users are currently seeing this as the primary content. Today, AMP has been expanded to include recipes, travel glossary, entertainment sites, e-commerce sales, and ads in addition to news stories.
Anyone who wants to improve their online presence should look into AMP or Google Accelerated Mobile Pages. Mobile users and Google like websites that offer a good user experience, with fast page loading being a major factor.
Your SEO agency can provide you with advice on AMP implementation and may also be able to provide guidance if you’re unsure.
What is the impact of Google AMP on SEO?
It appears that Google does not consider AMP as a ranking factor. However, Google can use AMP in indirect ways to determine where pages rank in search results.
A page’s loading speed
If the page does not load quickly, most visitors will leave before reading the content. Great content is an essential part of any website. By loading quickly, a page gets read more frequently and the user might also visit other pages on the site, reducing the bounce rate.
It has been shown that page loading speed, view counts, bounce rates and search rankings are closely connected. Google rewards pages with faster page speeds, especially on mobile, and low bounce rates. It’s therefore likely that AMP pages will rank more highly in the long run than non-AMP pages.
Improved mobile visibility
The “live coverage” carousel was also released recently by Google after the success of its “top stories” carousel. Websites with AMP pages have a better chance of appearing above the fold on smaller screens, which is becoming increasingly difficult.
The AMP symbol is often visible on organic search results pages for AMP pages. Users will start to prefer results with this icon over typical mobile results in the long run since they realize the pages load faster. Click-through rates may therefore improve as a result of this.
