AMP, which stands for Accelerated Mobile Pages, is a Google project that aims to improve the mobile web experience. By using AMP, your website’s pages will load faster for mobile visitors and will stand out (slightly) more in Google’s search results.

What exactly is AMP?

AMP is an abbreviation for Accelerated Mobile Page. It’s a Google open-source initiative and format designed to improve the mobile web experience. AMP pages are stripped-down versions of pages that are optimized to load quickly on mobile devices.

Why should you care about AMP?

1. Faster-loading pages

AMP helps you serve fast-loading pages to your visitors through optimized code, caching, and Google’s Content Delivery Network (CDN). The higher your conversion rate, the better your rankings will be.

2. Initiating mobile-first index

Google’s announced a mobile-first index. This is likely to occur in 2018. Thus, your desktop website will no longer hold the key to your rankings. Your mobile website will instead handle this. To ensure your success, adopt AMP.

3. A higher SERP priority

Additionally, Google includes AMP websites in the SERP results. In AMP news sites, Google may show a news carousel. The AMP lightning bolt will be displayed for regular web results. As an additional benefit, AMP offers a greater SERP focus on mobile.

How to implement AMP?

To meet the requirements of the AMP standard, you must make your pages available in alternative formats. AMP version of your pages will exist alongside your regular pages. AMP specifications are easy to find and access, but implementation may require resources. Luckily, WordPress AMP-enabled plugins are springing up all over the place, making the implementation considerably simpler.

Before publishing, be sure to implement AMP strictly and validate your AMP pages (opens in a new tab). Use Google’s AMP page testing tool after publishing AMP pages (opens in a new tab). In addition, verify your website in Google Search Console. We will show you the AMP implementation at this location.

AMP best practices

Most preferable: Create an AMP child item for your main URLs. I’ll use https://www.example.com/ice-cream/ as an example. An AMP-formatted URL could be https://www.example.com/ice-cream/amp/. Determine how AMP and non-AMP versions relate. You will have two versions of your pages: a regular (“non-AMP”) version and an AMP-enabled version. Clear relationships with search engines are vital.

Let’s use the example mentioned above. The non-AMP version of the URL, https://www.example.com/ice-cream/, has a reference to the AMP version of the URL:
<link rel=”amphtml” href=”https://www.example.com/ice-cream/amp/” />

On the AMP version there’s a reference back to the non-AMP version:
<link rel=”canonical” href=”https://www.example.com/ice-cream/” />

Add a Google Analytics property for AMP pages

AMP pages should be tracked in a separate Google Analytics property in order to properly compare statistics between non-AMP pages and AMP pages.

Check for AMP errors.

Your AMP pages should work the same as your non-AMP pages. amp pages that don’t return an HTTP status of 200 OK.

AMP’s (limitations)

Limited functionality

AMP implementation guidelines prevent you from offering all of the regular website’s functionality. For very functionality-rich websites such as eCommerce websites, we don’t recommend using AMP.

Giving Google control

The public is concerned about how and when their content appears on Google. Google acts in their own interests, which may be contrary to yours.

Ad-free

Many websites make money from advertisements. AMP currently only supports displaying ads.

AMP is not the panacea

AMP helps websites load faster, but it is not the silver bullet that will make you successful. Loading your content faster won’t help you if your content adds no value. Pagespeed is a minor component of Google’s algorithm, but it won’t magically raise your rankings.

Simple FAQs About AMP

Would you consider implementing AMP?
Should I include my AMP pages in my XML sitemap? Why are traffic and engagement increasing after implementing AMP? I’m intrigued by AMP, should I use it?

It depends. AMP is not the only way to offer users a good mobile experience. Responsive web design delivers a better experience to your mobile users. Caching and using a CDN allows you to serve fast-loading pages to your users. AMP would only allow you to use pre-existing content, while you would retain complete control over the content and features you’re offering to your users.

how to determine if you need it?

• Would your website have a more robust and usable feature set for mobile users? AMP is unlikely to be effective.
• Are you optimized for mobile traffic through responsive web design and page speed optimization? AMP doesn’t benefit you much, and it’s not worth the hassle.
• Will ads keep your website afloat? Since AMP support is limited, you probably shouldn’t implement AMP.
• Are you a content publisher and your organic search traffic is dropping month after month because your competition has adopted AMP? AMP should be implemented on that too.
• Do you have a content-rich website that generates leads? Additionally, you should investigate AMP. AMP increases the prominence of your pages, increasing clicks and traffic.

Are AMP pages included in my XML sitemap?

AMP and non-AMP pages use their own XML sitemap. The rel=”amphtml” is enough to allow Google to find the AMP pages through John Mueller (opens in a new tab).  AMP pages, a website solely made up of AMP pages, will be included in your XML sitemap.

Plugins for WordPress and Joomla

If your website is built with a web engine you can find plenty of free plugins to implement AMP to your website.