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What is Accelerated Mobile Page (AMP)?

5 min to read

AMPs, also known as accelerated mobile pages, are designed for faster page loading on mobile devices. The project is open-source and used by web developers. AMPs are often lighter than their desktop equivalents, though they lack many of its features.

The idea of AMPs originates back to 2015. Back then, mobile penetration was growing rapidly worldwide; as a result, more people were accessing the internet from their smartphones than on a computer. But since desktop pages are often resource-heavy, adapting to mobile usage was vital – a problem that AMPs sought to fix.

AMPs use mobile-first indexing, which is vital for search engine rankings; sites optimized for smartphones normally rank higher. Page speed also impacts search engine rankings, which is another reason why AMPs are so important.

Key Takeaways:
  • Accelerated mobile pages (AMPs) are supposed to speed up loading times on mobile devices
  • Besides loading time and page speed, AMPs can impact SEO rankings and user engagement
  • Use AMPs on pages with a lot of content; PWAs, on the other hand, should be utilized for interactive content
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What is Accelerated Mobile Page (AMP)?

How does AMP benefit businesses and improve user experience? 

AMPs have multiple advantages if implemented correctly; you will need technical expertise to get them right. Their usage can impact businesses and customers in the following ways. 

  • Loading Times: When you start using AMPs, your web pages should load on mobile devices without delay. This is especially vital if parts of your audience have limited attention spans, and even if they don’t, it’s important for the overall user experience. 

  • SEO: Google and other search engines will normally make AMPs a priority in their search results. This can influence search engine visibility and how much traffic you generate.

  • Engagement: AMPs are important for reducing bounce rates and increasing session durations. Both of these are metrics that determine how engaged an audience is with your website.

  • User Experience: AMPs often have more of a streamlined layout because they need to work on mobile devices.You will also need to optimize your content accordingly, meaning that your site should be easier to navigate if someone accesses your site from a smaller screen.

  • Accessibility: AMPs are used for people with disabilities and should be built with accessibility in mind. You should also consider how building AMPs will affect users with slower internet connection speeds. 

How does AMP differ from progressive web apps (PWAs)? 

Progressive web apps, also known as PWAs, are – while both driven by Google – two different aspects designed for differing needs. 

AMPs mainly focus on the initial loading speed, and they have lower levels of general functionality; this makes them excellent for pages with lots of content that require fast rendering, but not so ideal for dynamic apps or interactive content. 

PWAs, on the other hand, have more features than AMPs (but poorer loading times). These include: 

  • Push notifications 

  • App-like interactions 

  • The ability to access content offline 

PWAs are more commonly used for complex user experiences and higher interactivity. They offer more design flexibility, but you also need to consider that they’re difficult to develop and maintain. 

When should businesses consider using both AMP and PWAs? 

While you should use either AMPs or PWAs in many circumstances, there might be some situations in which you need both of them. You should use both AMPs and PWAs whenever both the speed of your content and an app-like experience are equally as important to you. PWAs balance the functionality limitations of AMPs, and AMPs should be used to ensure that pages don’t take a while to load. 

Some businesses that may wish to use AMPs and PWAs together include eCommerce stores and businesses that need a mixture of content and functionality/engagement. News platforms are another example of companies and websites that might use a mixture. 

Before implementing both, you must perform an in-depth analysis and develop a strategy. Look at your target audience, and analyze how they interact with your brand on mobile devices. Doing this is important for ensuring that implementing both is the right approach, and it’s also necessary so you know which content should be optimized. 

Once you know the needs of your audience, look at existing tools you’re already using that can help with AMPs/PWAs.Use these for development and deployment. AMPs could, for example, be used by eCommerce stores to list products.PWAs can then be used so that the user can browse products and manage their shopping carts.

Pro Tip: 
Understand your target audience’s needs, goals, and motivations. Doing this is essential before you even take the first step toward implementing PWAs and AMPs. 

How can businesses measure the impact of AMP on their website performance? 

To measure the impact of AMPs on your website performance, you must monitor the most important metrics (understanding these in the first place is also important. 

Metrics to measure include: 

  • Loading times for pages 

  • User engagement metrics (e.g. how much time a user has spent on your page and their scroll depth) 

You should also implement AMP analytics tools, such as Google Analytics and Adobe Analytics; Hocoos has a Google Analytics integration for single-interface monitoring. Specific AMP analytics tools might also assist you in monitoring your performance. 

Running A/B tests, also known as split tests, are crucial if you want to maximize your AMP performance. You should compare speed against your non-AMPs, and where necessary, it’s vital to make additional changes. 

Pro Tip: 
Set up your tracking in advance. You need to check that you have implemented tracking codes on AMP pages; this is vital if you wish to assess user behavior. 

Conclusion

AMPs were a necessity in the face of rising mobile usage for internet access, and to adapt, you must consider using them to improve the mobile user experience. Utilizing these will impact your SEO, and you should also think about the impact on page speed; ideally, everything should load faster. 

User engagement, visibility, and accessibility are some reasons to consider using AMPs. You should also note where they will fit within the broader context of your business, and if necessary, consider using them with PWAs.

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