Google hurting page rank for 'small font size' | Hacker News Reader

Google hurting page rank for 'small font size'

7 pointsgmac8 comments

Every couple of days at the moment I receive a message like this from the Google Webmaster Tools Team:

===

Fix mobile usability issues found on http://www.example.com/

To: webmaster of http://www.example.com/

Google systems have tested 5 pages from your site and found that 100% of them have critical mobile usability errors. The errors on these 5 pages severely affect how mobile users are able to experience your website. These pages will not be seen as mobile-friendly by Google Search, and will therefore be displayed and ranked appropriately for smartphone users.

===

I imagine others here are seeing these messages too. For me, they all refer to simple sites that look just fine on a mobile (e.g. http://mackerron.com). In every case, the 'critical mobile usability errors' detected are: Touch elements too close; Viewport not configured; Small font size.

I find these messages pretty obnoxious.

* As a web user, I want Google to find me the best hits for my search terms — not the hits that have big fonts and big buttons.

* Also as a web user, I generally hate it when websites serve a stupid big-text mobile version to me, usually missing important functionality (see also http://xkcd.com/869/). My iPhone is just great at displaying the real web, and has been since 2007. Even my £100 Moto G is pretty good at that.

So Google appears to be arm-twisting me as a web developer into crippling my sites, and at the same time downplaying other people's useful content for me because their developers haven't (or haven't yet) played ball.

If I were the Google Webmaster Tools Team, I might instead think of firing these sorts of messages at the smartphone OS developers down the hall, and smartphone manufacturers across the world, and tell them their damn smartphones have 'critical mobile usability errors'.

</rant>

Is anyone with me on this?

Starting April 21, Google will be using "mobile friendliness" as a ranking factor. These messages are to get webmasters ready for that change. I actually appreciate that they are sending these messages out, instead of just making the ranking change without giving webmasters a chance to fix the mobile related issues.

Source: http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.co.nz/2015/02/finding...

I fully support google on this. What use is your great content if I have to pinch and zoom to actually read it ? It's not hard to make your content responsive to the viewers screen size.

> It's not hard to make your content responsive to the viewers screen size.

There are dozens of screen configurations and at least four different browsers you need to prepare for. If it would be easy, people would do it. But when you factor in the time and effort, it's just not worth it. Unless, of course, you're a big company with hundreds of employees.

Don't forget the project management triangle. Quality, cheap and fast. Pick any two.

Um, quite a lot of use if it's the most relevant content for your question?

I'm not hostile to mobile users' needs, but I'd much rather have a mobile web of occasional pinch-to-zooming than one of annoyingly crippled large-text-fests.

Seems like this is controversial, though.

Doesn't seem that controversial here, everybody is in favor of Google's direction. I'm glad they're enforcing better web standards and quality across the board. We have to be mindful and not lazy about designing the web experience.

The site you mentioned probably won't be affected since you're likely not in direct serp competition with anyone else, so you can choose to ignore their advice if you want.

This is fucking brilliant news. It's kind of weird that Google hasn't already been penalising websites for stupid small fonts or stupid bad contrast -- both of which have some kind of legal implication (for some websites in some jurisdictions (disability discrimination laws)).

> So Google appears to be arm-twisting me as a web developer into crippling my sites

No, Google is forcing you to stop excluding people. People with disabilities tried asking nicely and web-devs and designers ignored them, so force is needed.

> * Also as a web user, I generally hate it when websites serve a stupid big-text mobile version

I'll just parrot what people have been saying to people with visual impairment for very many years: learn to zoom.

Changing everything just to satisfy a small group of people is never a good idea. Especially when the majority is affected in a bad way.

> I'll just parrot what people have been saying to people with visual impairment for very many years: learn to zoom.

You can't zoom out on mobile. You can only zoom in.

Yes, I got the same issue for one of my domains.

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