Accelerated Mobile Pages or AMP, as it is popularly known, is an open source framework that speeds up the speed at which mobile pages load. The framework enables people who read your content on their mobile phones to quickly read it. This increases the number of people who read your content. The framework increases site loading speeds by removing elements that make web pages load slower on mobile. These elements include JavaScript and third-party scripts.
Importance of AMP in SEO
The obvious importance of this framework is that your mobile pages load faster. As a publisher and marketer, your content is visible to many people. Studies show that up to 40% of people will leave your site if it takes more than 3 seconds to load. Now, since your site will load quickly, the bounce rate will be low, so your content will be seen by many people.
Another importance of the AMP framework is that it can rank highly in search results. If you are interested in Google algorithms, you must know about Mobilegeddon algorithm. This is an algorithm that rewards sites that are mobile friendly. Since your site will now be mobile friendly, it will rank high. A high ranking doesn’t just mean more readers, it also means more money.
Is AMP for you?
While AMP has the obvious advantage of increasing site speed, it comes with many restrictions. Since the framework doesn’t allow JavaScript and other third-party elements, you won’t be able to have page comments, lead forms, and other elements.
To accommodate the restrictions that come with the framework, you will have to rewrite your site template. You must rewrite your content so that the CSS content is less than 50 KB. You should also address your images where you need to make sure they use the amp-img element. You must also embed the videos using the custom amp-video tag.
When it comes to the article, you must include a special tag that allows search engines to detect the AMP version of your article.
How to get started with AMP
If you’re ready to accept the framework’s restrictions, you should go ahead and set it up on your site. The first thing you need to do is install the AMP WordPress plugin and then activate it. Next, you need to edit the .htaccess file. You should also edit the CSS so that the AMP looks and feels like your site.
conclusion
AMP increases the speed of your site thus increasing your views. It also provides a better user experience. As mentioned above, in order for your site to take advantage of these features, it must follow a strict set of regulations. If you are comfortable with restrictions, you will definitely have a boost in your search results.