Those of us managing paid media accounts might be neglecting strong insights which are available to improve our mobile sites. This is especially true when using Smart Bidding since device bidding is relatively hands-off compared to Manual CPC bidding. Google Ads updated their Test My Site tool earlier this year to include more custom recommendations for mobile site improvements.
While Google Ads account managers likely have little power to improve mobile site speed, mobile user experience directly impacts the performance of our marketing initiatives.
Mobile Speed Metrics
To begin, let’s review the mobile speed metrics available in the Google Ads UI. Once you’re in the Landing Pages view in Google Ads, you can see each of these metrics for your landing pages. The below example shows that several landing pages have less than a 7/10 on mobile speed score. While all of these pages are mobile-friendly, there are needed improvements to load times.
- Mobile speed score
- Measurement of mobile page load time on a scale from 1-10
- Mobile-friendly click rate
- Percentage of clicks going to what Google considers a mobile-friendly page
- Valid AMP click rate
- Percentage of clicks going to an AMP page
Test My Site Tool
To begin the testing process, enter the domain of your site on this Test My Site page. The tool then provides a rating and monthly trend. Below are the results for the website where we’re seeing 5/10 and 6/10 mobile speed scores. Advertising outside of the United States? Google provides a drop down for different countries and networks.
Building a full report using the tool is simple. The Test My Site tool next walks you through steps to benchmark your mobile site’s performance.
Comparing Against Competitor Mobile Site Speed:
Input domains of your top competitors to see how your site compares. Comparing this report to auction insights of the same domains can help in developing insights as to why certain competitors in the auction are able to spend significantly more than you.
Estimated Revenue Improvements:
The Test My Site tool even provides an estimated lift in annual revenue based on current site visitors, conversion rate and average order value. This estimate can help clients and colleagues understand how much a poor mobile site speed is impacting overall revenue.
Specific URL Recommendations:
I find this section of the tool most useful. Google provides specific recommendations for any URL on your domain. For example, the below recommendations are for the highest spending landing page in the Google account that currently has a 5/10 mobile speed score in Google Ads. Rather than ask a developer to improve mobile speed, provide these recommended mobile site updates to point them in the right direction.
Once you complete each report step, share with your clients or colleagues and begin making the recommended improvements.
Additional Mobile Testing Tool:
Mobile/Responsive Web Design Tester
This Chrome extension allows you to see what landing pages look like on specific mobile devices. Oftentimes, mobile user experience is an afterthought. Before utilizing new landing pages in your ads, preview the page using this tool. Better yet, do an audit of your top trafficked landing pages and identify opportunities for mobile site improvements.