{"id":1214,"slug":"mobilegeddon-apr-21-2015-mobile-first-ranking","title":"Mobilegeddon (April 21, 2015) — mobile-friendly pages boosted in *mobile* search results; ranking effect modest but successful as a forcing function for responsive design","kind":"reference","scope":"business","status":"current","audiences":["kevin","smb-owner","candid-team"],"topics":["serp-features","algorithm-updates"],"reference_body":"**Claim:** The \"mobile-friendly update\" — nicknamed **Mobilegeddon** — rolled out **April 21, 2015**, boosting mobile-optimised pages in *mobile* search results (it did not affect desktop). Google pre-announced it in February 2015. Actual ranking impact was milder than the hype — Searchmetrics measured an average shift of **~0.21 positions** for non-mobile-friendly sites — but it succeeded as a forcing function: huge numbers of sites went responsive. Google later moved to mobile-first **indexing** (announced 2018).\n\n**Source:** Google Webmaster Central announcement, February 2015; Searchmetrics post-rollout analysis, 2015.\n\n**Confidence:** Verified.\n\n**Why this matters for Candid:** Cleanest \"adapt or lose\" beat for the SMB narrative — many local businesses ran old desktop-only sites and Mobilegeddon meant a mobile rebuild became table stakes. Drove by user behaviour (mobile had overtaken desktop) as much as by Google.","rationale_body":null,"metadata":null,"links":{"outgoing":[],"incoming":[{"slug":"research-brief-businesses-found-on-web-google-smb-june-2026","title":"Research brief: How businesses got found on the web — a then→now timeline (Google-focused, SMB lens, June 2026)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"recurring-pattern-google-shifts-early-adopters-win-laggards-lose","title":"The recurring pattern: every major Google shift changed what got surfaced; early adapters captured the new surface, laggards lost the old one — and the pattern is repeating now with AI answers","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"}]},"created_at":"2026-06-18T00:10:55.831Z","updated_at":"2026-06-18T00:10:55.831Z"}