The search community has noticed a rise in mobile first inclusion notices from Google Search Console on platforms like Twitter and Facebook. There’s strong anecdotal evidence suggesting a significant update to Google’s mobile first index.
Many people are reporting an unprecedented number of email alerts from Google Search Console indicating that the sites they monitor have been migrated to Google’s Mobile First Index.
Is this a Google Algorithm Update?
No, this should not be considered a Google Algorithm Update. This is a mobile index update, suggesting that the index is expanding in size. A Google Update typically refers to changes in the ranking algorithm. What the search marketing community may be observing is a modification in the index that Google starts with for the ranking process. The noticeable change is that more websites have been added to Google’s mobile first index.
Is a Major Google Update Coming?
Google usually does not announce forthcoming updates as it regularly updates its algorithm almost daily. It is possible that Google might choose to update and re-rank the mobile index once it attains a specific threshold, but this remains speculative at this stage.
What is Happening with Google’s Mobile First Index?
Dave Davies from Beanstalk Internet Marketing provided some insight, suggesting:
"I think it’s either their final or close-to-final big push. If sites aren’t carried over after this batch, they’ll likely want to investigate the reasons why. The technology they are using will be the main aspect I focus on. It’s just a guess, but this seems too substantial to be anything different."
Search Industry on Google Search Console Notices
Site audit expert Alan Bleiweiss of Alan Bleiweiss Consulting tweeted that he had received almost 36 notices from Google Search Console, humorously noting, "Madness! It’s madness, I tell you!"
Gianluca Fiorelli tweeted an observation:
“It seems that Google decided to push the Mobile-First indexing button… practically every site I follow in search Console is now mobile-first.”
Jennifer Holzman chimed in with a tweet:
“Judging by the amount of GSC emails I have in my inbox… Mobile First Indexing is heeeeerrrreeeee”
Dave Davies questioned:
“Is it just (me) or is there a ton of sites moving to the mobile-first index right now?”
Search Marketer Bill Hartzer noted he received notices for HTTP versions of sites verified in GSC.
Official Google Response
As of this writing, there is no official statement regarding the current situation. The facts at this moment indicate that Google has seemingly increased the size of their mobile first index. What follows remains uncertain.
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