Usability Strategy and Search Engine Optimization
Usability
is already a critical component of successful online ventures but with the
advent of Google Analytics and the implementation of the Jagger algo update,
user-activities and behaviors are going to play an influencing role in search
engine rankings. How people act when they visit a website or document is being
measured and accounted for, even for sites without Google Analytics tracking
codes in the [head] section of the document source-code.
Google
is concerned with how people find information and what they do when they access
a document found in the Google index. Which document in a site they tend to
land on, how long users spend on that document and how much, if any, time does
a user spend exploring information in a domain, are all pertinent to how Google
perceives the relevance of documents listed in the index. As long-term online
marketers know, this is where usability comes into the picture.
According
to local (Victoria-based) website marketing expert, Michael Linehan, a focus on
site usability is simply common sense marketing. Leading visitors towards
goal-orientated outcomes makes as much sense for a functioning website as it
does for a functional building and, to follow through on the analogy, it all
starts with a smart architect.
Michael
knows his stuff, so much so StepForth considers him to be one of our marketing
and site usability gurus. If our assumptions about user-behaviours and the
post-Jagger Google SERPs are correct, Michael’s talents will play an important
role in our overall SEO techniques.
“It’s
all about marketing,” Michael explains (exclaims is probably a better word, ML
is pretty passionate about this stuff), “and marketing is all about envisioning
an effective strategy.” While most people involved in business understand the
concept, surprisingly few actually take the time to implement and follow a
marketing strategy in relation to their websites.
“Website
owners have to prioritize their messages and make their websites easier to use.
It’s a matter of measuring the importance of different parts of their marketing
strategy and their websites.”
Michael
suggests that over 95% of companies he has worked with use opportunistic
marketing tactics with separate strategies being employed out of sync with each
other. A simple example would be the Yellow Pages ad that does not mention the
website URL or a printed brochure that does not include an email address in the
contact information. A more complex example can be found by looking at most
business websites.
“When
a business owner gets a website for their business, they often expect the
designer to know how to market their new website.” said Michael. “That’s just
ludicrous. Website designers already have a difficult and mentally demanding
job. Expecting them to be proficient marketers is like expecting your architect
to act as your real estate agent.”
The patent application outlines
the historic record Google keeps on every document and file in its index. One
of the items mentioned covers user behaviours touching on the following points:
*
how much time an average user spends examining a document,
* the entry and exit paths of users,
* if users store reference to the document in bookmarks,
* how users access the document (via search engine, typing URL, link from other document, or bookmarks),
* an evaluation of search traffic driven by Google and related keywords the document was found under
* the entry and exit paths of users,
* if users store reference to the document in bookmarks,
* how users access the document (via search engine, typing URL, link from other document, or bookmarks),
* an evaluation of search traffic driven by Google and related keywords the document was found under
Each
of those points should lead webmasters to think about how visitors use their
site. Website marketing is not necessarily about search engine placements. It
is about using your website as a marketing tool. In the context of website
marketing, usability is about moving visitors from the entry point to the goal
line and off again to another compellingly relevant website experience.
The
second factor is the evolving needs of website users and their increased
analytic abilities. The Web is almost second nature to most of its users.
People are experienced in the environment and, at least in the case of
work-related web use, know what they want. As it stands today, there are a lot
of websites that no longer live up to user expectations because those
expectations have moved beyond the design of those websites.
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