Google has announced that as of April 21st, mobile-friendliness will be a part of the search engine giant’s algorithm for determining result page rankings. In response to the growing number of internet users conducting searches with mobile devices, Google intends to improve user experience by favoring sites that are optimally structured for viewing on a mobile device, such as a smartphone or tablet. According to the official Google WebMaster’s blog, websites will earn a mobile-friendly tag beneath their SERP listing if they don’t require the use of horizontal scrolling, rely on mobile-compatible software, don’t require use of the zoom function, and have easily clickable links.

To meet these criteria, existing websites must be specifically outfitted for mobile viewing. Websites of all sizes, from e-commerce, to small business, to blogging sites, should take this algorithmic change seriously, this change will directly impact a site’s ranking. Not only will Google be less favorable to sites that aren’t mobile friendly, user experience is hindered when sites aren’t compatible, hurting site traffic and ranking even further.

With Google’s new algorithm, the best way to quickly and efficiently make a site suitable for mobile use is through the mobile site builder packages or mobile responsive-design services from a web hosting provider, says Danny Johananoff, Founder and CEO of web hosting comparison site Pickuphost.com. This also means that website owners seeking out new hosting companies should place high priority upon those with mobile site builder packages or conversion services.

According to Johananoff, creating a mobile-friendly site through a hosting provider is advantageous because:

It’s cost-effective. Hosting providers that offer these services typically cost less than hiring a professional design team to complete the backend work necessary for mobile-responsiveness or mobile site creation.
It can be user-implemented. Depending on a website’s level of complexity, websites can be created for mobile use by site owners themselves through easy-to-use builder applications.
Users can leverage customizable design templates for expedited launching. For those interested in building a mobile website from scratch, services offered from hosting providers make creating a well-designed mobile site simple.
However, not all hosting providers currently offer mobile site builders or mobile responsive services, and those that do may not offer the extent of services needed to earn Google’s mobile-friendly distinction. As Johananoff notes, site owners will need to do their due diligence to find the hosting provider with the right offerings.