5 things to know about 'Mobilegeddon'

LOS ANGELES - Mobilegeddon is here. Are you ready for it?

Here's five things you need to know about Google's new changes to its ranking system for mobile searches:

1. What is it?

Google tweaked its search algorithm Tuesday. Websites that are mobile friendly--and popular--will go to the top of the results. Sites that are deemed not friendly--text that's too small, sites that take long time to load and are graphics heavy and hard to navigate, get less favorable exposure. Desktop search results remain the same.

2. How long before I see an impact?

Google says it will take up to a week for the changes to kick in.

3. Why is this a big deal?

Forrester Research says that just 38% of business websites are currently optimized for mobile--and some 86% of all U.S. smartphone users search via Google. "Businesses must improve the usability of their websites on smartphones and tablets now, or risk being buried among 177 million websites in Google search," the firm notes.

In USA TODAY tests this week, we found many popular websites for brand names like California Pizza Kitchen, M&Ms, Coco's restaurant and Sees Candy failed the Google "Mobile-friendly" test.

4. What is this Google "Mobile Friendly" test?

Google posts the link here to check your website. https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/mobile-friendly/

Additionally, Google states in mobile searches now which sites are "mobile friendly," directly in the listing.

5. So if I haven't gone mobile friendly yet, what do I do?

Update your website, either with your web consultant, online services like Dudamobile, which creates mobile friendly versions of your website for $5 monthly, or via your website host.

"If you're not mobile friendly today, you can take action and Google will notice," says Barry Schwartz, an editor of the SearchEngineLand website. "You'll get your ranking back rather quickly, once you become mobile friendly."

Have questions about Mobilegeddon? Contact me on Twitter @jeffersongraham or on Facebook.