We all know that mobiles have dominated desktops in the consumption of the internet. The shift from desktops to mobiles has been slow but eventual. With this shift, it has become necessary for websites to be mobile-friendly.
It’s proclaimed that 47% of the visitors will never visit a website if they had a negative mobile experience.
Approximately one-third of the users get engaged when a video appears on the mobile phone than on the desktop.
With Google introducing AMP for enhanced mobile pages, it stands valid on its claim to provide a better user experience by improved traffic and retention of visitors.
What is AMP?
Accelerated Mobile Pages is a system that speeds the loading time on mobile devices. This technology, introduced in 2016, has to date been implemented in 2.6 billion pages.
40% of users abandon websites if they take more than three seconds to load. If the site doesn’t load in those three seconds, then how much ever you have put efforts on your website all goes in vain.
How Does AMP Work?
AMP works by creating different domain versions with a unique URL. This URL displays as default when users visit a website through mobile devices.
What Are The Benefits of AMP?
AMP can benefit your business by expanding its digital footprints in the following ways:
1. Faster Loading Mobile Pages:
The website will load instantly on mobile devices and get immediate access to online content.
2. Higher Ranking:
Since Google introduced AMP, it gives preference to AMP pages and gives them a higher rank. AMP is compulsory for prime news outlets to get their stories ranked in the first position.
3. Low Bounce Rate:
AMP aids in improved mobile performance and reduced loading time of the website, which, as a result, reduces its bounce rate.
4. Enhanced SEO:
There’s no need to customize web content; search engines can easily discover a web page.
5. Adjustment on Any Browser:
AMP pages can be customized and moulded into any browser type.
Drawbacks of AMP:
As every coin has two sides, AMP also has its share of the positive and negative sides. Some disadvantages of AMP are as follows:
1. AMP May Not Increase Site Traffic:
AMP content has a Google URL and resides in Google’s servers and will not directly increase the site traffic. It will not be the end of the world if the users don’t click through the AMP page. If your content reaches the first page of a Google search result, then it will help in building brand recognition if users engage with the content frequently.
2. Not So Good Analytics:
The analytics for AMPs are not satisfying at the moment. While you can track basic metrics like visitors and engagement, you won’t have much data to work with to improve visitors’ experience.
3. Problems in Coordination:
AMPs themselves load quickly, which results in the external content to lag. It causes an issue when it comes to hosting advertisements. Visitors will scroll past the ad even before it gets loaded, which kills the chance of any conversion.
What Are The New Updates In AMP?
AMP stories and email campaigns are likely to make the cut in the updates of AMP.
AMP Stories:
AMP is going to come out of the website realm and will make its mark on the social media marketing domain. AMP stories provide the content publishers with a format to deliver news and information in a visually rich appearance. It offers significant advertising opportunities for advertisers or publishers to reach a unique audience on the web.
Email Campaigns:
AMP is taking a leap to create dynamic email interaction as compared to static emails. The aim is to build utility within the email itself by letting the recipients respond in the email itself. It allows scrolling offers, view extra photos. The customers no longer need to download the site page, open a new tab or click on the link. The customers can do all these activities without leaving the email body.
AMP and Analytics:
AMP analytics allows to collect the following data:
- User data: client ID, timezone
- Page data: domain, page title
- Browser data: screen height, screen width, user agent
- Browsing data: referrer, unique page view ID
- Interaction data: number of impressions, clicks
- Event data
The technology of AMP is still underdeveloped, but its potential is remarkable. AMP technology, when combined with the overall digital marketing strategy, will make interaction exciting and beneficial for both the users and publishers.
Posted on Rukaiya Bharmal
April 8, 2020
