Google launched its newest update on April 21st to include “mobile-friendliness” as a ranking signal in mobile search results. As a follow-up to last week’s post about the update, it’s absolutely essential to factor mobile into your social media strategy.

The majority of internet users own a smartphone, and the number of users searching on mobile devices increases each year. If you’re worried about “mobilegeddon,” and you’re still updating your site to make it mobile-friendly, it’s useful to weigh how your social media strategy stands-up to the potential impact.

Even if your site is mobile-friendly, but you’re not sure where to start when it comes to your social strategy for mobile, use these tips to help you reach your objectives.

8 Steps to Conquer Mobilegeddon

1. Review the basics of social media marketing for mobile

Keep the basics in mind and make these the first actions you take:

• Make sure your profile is complete on all of your active social media sites.
• Include easy-to-find social buttons on your site and blog posts so your visitors don’t have to work to share your content.
• Include a Pinterest button on your images and posts, to increase engagement.

• Increase your site’s font size to improve legibility and keep paragraphs short.
• Focus on sharing content on your top-converting and high-engagement social sites.
• Target specific audiences cross-social channels.
• Vary your content across social sites, but make sure it’s aligned with your overall objective and brand message.
• Schedule posts with tools like Hootsuite and Buffer to maximize your time.
• Track engagement and use A/B testing to see which updates receive higher conversion or engagement. One headline might receive a stronger response than another for the same content.
• Set-up a system to consistently track engagement; Rival IQ tracks engagement on both your social sites and your competition’s to help you gain valuable insights and calibrate your strategy.

2. Have clear objectives and keep the end goal in mind

Though the update went into effect last Tuesday, businesses may not feel the impact for a few weeks as Google continues to index sites using the new algorithm.

Whether your site’s mobile-friendly, or you’re still working on it, don’t overwhelm yourself with too many tasks.

In wake of the update, focus on your business’ primary objective(s); if your social media strategy isn’t symmetrical to those objectives, make that a priority while your developer focuses on making your site mobile-friendly.

Make sure the brand message you deliver on social media is directly related to your primary objective: Are you seeking higher conversion rates, increased content engagement or followers?

Understand what your objective is and tailor your strategy to it across each social channel.

If you’re overwhelmed by strategizing on all sites in the first weeks after the update, you can opt to focus on sites where most mobile users go: Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

As you refine your strategy, incorporate additional actions, like the ones below; and always measure and track these adjustments.

3. Consider increasing your budget on paid social media advertising

Facebook and YouTube were the top social media mobile apps downloaded in 2014. YouTube, followed by Facebook, made the top four downloaded mobile apps overall (where the US market accounted for approximately 40% of that amount).

If your business is in jeopardy of losing revenue and profit as a result of this update, allocating resources and re-strategizing in response is a logical step.

In 2015, 78% of users who clicked on mobile ads made a purchase within a few days.

Whether it’s on Facebook, YouTube or Twitter, paid, targeted ads, that are well tracked, can be relatively inexpensive for short campaigns and an effective way to put your business in front of more potential customers.

4. Create rich media ads and posts

Think video production costs for a small to medium business are out of your budget? Think again. It can be a very smart option.

According to Business Insider, in Facebook’s first quarter, over one million SMBs posted ad videos.

Rich media ads allow consumers to have more meaningful, interactive engagement with your brand. If you’re not sure how to do this effectively, there are many tools to get you started.

5. Make (better) friends with Foursquare

Millions of small and medium businesses use Foursquare to drive traffic to their sites and doors. And “location proximity matters to mobile consumers,” according to a 2013 Google/Nielsen Study.

Foursquare founder, CEO Dennis Crowley, views the app as a “personal search engine to mobile users.” Foursquare works on your behalf––particularly for promoted, paid ads––offering your business in search results to mobile users searching for similar, local businesses.

On the heels of Google’s mobile update, make sure your business is claimed or listed on Foursquare to increase your mobile presence. Then, post on Facebook or Twitter so your audience there can connect with you on Foursquare.

6. Take time to build a following on Instagram

According to Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg, mobile users spend about 20 percent of their time on Facebook and Instagram.

Keep in mind Instagram was started specifically for mobile devices.

Instagram is selective, hand-holding and choosy when it comes to advertising, currently only allowing for sponsored ads with their week’s old carousel photo feature.

And even with the drawbridge down for a select few, they’ve not yet included conversion analytics.

But, Instagram, owned by Facebook, reaches 300 million customers and gains deep insight via both Instagram and Facebook on user behavior.

If it makes sense for your brand, creating a presence on Instagram, aligned to match Instagram’s brand mission and feel, puts your business at the forefront of their unfolding advertising strategy––and in front of a large audience.

7. Keep up-to-date on LinkedIn

If your LinkedIn page image needs an update, or you haven’t been active in groups, now is the time to take those actions.

The social site has a reach of over 200 countries and has over 300 million users. For both B2B and B2C businesses, it’s an important networking tool.

Becoming active in groups related to your business and creating and publishing posts on LinkedIn positions your company as a potential thought-leader in your industry and sphere.

8. Get active on Google+

It probably goes unsaid you should have an updated Google+ business page. If you own a new business, it’s also a way for Google to index your site faster, too.

Similar to LinkedIn, carve out time to engage in Google groups and to build connections there.

In 2014, 53 percent of people reported a positive brand interaction on Google+ as opposed to 18 percent who had a negative one; meaning, it’s both a good vehicle to seek out customer feedback and an opportunity to create stronger relationships with customers and clients.

Take Actions, Be Prepared & Succeed

While no one can be sure what the exact fall-out of the update will be in the coming weeks and months, it’s always a good idea to focus on the actions you can control!

This post highlights some of the most basic and best-practice steps you can take, and there are certainly many more.

You may find you need to devote more time and capital to social media strategy, or you may be humming along with the steps you’ve already taken. Tracking your progress and engagement will always be the baseline for how you proceed.

Share what your business is doing to stand-up to the new mobile update!