The collective preference became that this format provide new, creative and visually wealthy approaches of storytelling mainly designed for mobile.
[pullquote]”AMP story content material ought to be enjoyable and standalone.”[/pullquote]
Breaking with preceding guidance, Google does not intend for this type of AMP content to match your non-cell content material. Instead, this cell-handiest content material should be specific. I accompanied up in this point with a Google rep, who characterized AMP Story content this manner:
AMP tales is all about encouraging new kinds of expression and storytelling, so we anticipate maximum publishers to now not be already publishing this form of content material out on the net currently. AMP testimonies is supposed to facilitate this and make it less complicated.
The rep also delivered that “AMP Story content material should be pleasing and standalone.”
Because Google has historically argued mainly in opposition to creating extraordinary content material for special users, this new “separate however same” stance amazed me. Google further explained:
This does now not run counter to the idea that the writer might also have separate expressions [of] comparable content material posted. Say a writer has an extended-shape evaluation article approximately university admissions information. Then, say they have a partner piece that’s an interactive revel in letting human beings play with the data through charts and different visualizations. It wouldn’t be accurate to call the long-shape piece the canonical for the interactive. They each stand on their personal, even though being associated.
Not ready for prime time
At Search Engine Land and our other sites, we’ve got invested in publishing our content material in AMP layout. We have ensured that the content this is present on our non-AMP pages is also present on our AMP pages. Also, per Google documentation, our AMP pages rel=canonical to our non-AMP pages. All of this is made noticeably smooth through the AMP plugin for our CMS (content management device), WordPress. Google has a giant partnership with the CMS (used by 29 percent of the net) and is making an investment its very own sources in the platform’s improvement.
Though Google is likewise an creator of/contributor to the AMP plugin, when I asked especially approximately help for the AMP Story layout, Google referred me to Automattic/WordPress. I’ve now not yet heard returned from the Automattic rep on their plans for assist. I’ll replace this text with any new facts once I acquire it.
In the absence of plugin assist (for any given CMS), if a publisher wanted to check this new format, it would want to manually create the AMP Story pages, at the side of a separate XML sitemap for Google to move slowly and index — essentially now supporting two separate AMP frameworks. Though the AMP Story documentation and educational are truthful (and be aware, nonetheless experimental), given the low AMP adoption up to now, it’s uncertain whether or not this new format alone, with its extra resources necessities, will create new converts whenever quickly. Our own AMP adoption survey carried out remaining fall confirmed a “lack of development resources” as the primary reason 60 percent of respondents had not implemented the framework.
At the instant, you can see this new layout in action through the usage of this URL on your cellular device, and trying to find one of the development companions (e.G., “The Washington Post”). You’ll be aware from the screen seize under that the AMP Stories show in a “Visual Stories From…” carousel within the SERP above the “Top Stories from…” carousel. It will be thrilling to see how this new layout and content performs in opposition to the “Top Stories” content material — throughout all metrics of engagement.
Mobile-first or cell-best?
Noteworthy from our FAQ on the Google Speed Update coming this July:
… our index will be constructed from cell files
The AMP framework has made massive strides on account that first launching. And while the AMP Story format is truely any other step towards permitting publishers to offer a greater feature-rich revel in for website online traffic, one ought to speculate that it is also a no longer-so-subtle shove to get not just on-the-fence publishers to adopt the framework, however for publishers to undertake AMP as their only publishing format.