Google Adds New Webmaster Guidelines - Rewrites Others

This month Google decided it was time to give their Webmaster Guidelines a fresh rewrite. At first glance there didn't seem to be anything mind blowing added but upon further reading we discovered that they did more than just clean up the formatting. They've also added a few entirely new guidelines, which we've outlined below.

Design your site for all device types and sizes, including desktops, tablets, and smartphones. Use the mobile friendly testing tool to test how well your pages work on mobile devices, and get feedback on what needs to be fixed.

Responsive Design is important. Got it. The only surprise here is that this is the first time it's been mentioned within these Guidelines. If you haven't shifted to a responsive design, you're not only falling behind but dangerously so.

Make your site's important content visible by default. Google is able to crawl HTML content hidden inside navigational elements such as tabs or expanding sections, however we consider this content less accessible to users, and believe that you should make your most important information visible in the default page view.

Seems straightforward enough that you'd want your 'most important information' visible on your default page view. This is also a nice clear statement about what content Googlebot is able to crawl and index.

If possible, secure your site's connections with HTTPS. Encrypting interactions between the user and your website is a good practice for communication on the web.

Shifting to a secure site is an obvious step if you haven't already. Google has been very clear about their desire to see all sites within their results as HTTPS. They have even gone so far as to reward the HTTPS sites and shame the ones that haven't shifted over. Seeing a push for secure in Google's official guidelines may be enough to push you forward with clients who have been hesitant in the past.

Ensure that your pages are useful for readers with visual impairments, for example...