May27
seo, user experience, usability, experience design
What’s the good in SEO if users quickly drop off?
So, being in the industry that I am in, I have particular long and heated conversations on the constantly changing topic of SEO and its importance in driving traffic for a particular site. We could talk about this all day, discuss all the latest gimmicks and search engine algorithm trickery, but lets take a step back to the bigger picture. Your site has a purpose. Your goal is to maximize that purpose or “convert” (typically defined as a transaction, sales lead, time spent with brand, comment, user participation, etc). So the problem is, you list on the first page for a desired keyword, a user clicks, but still is not converting. Your content is unengaging, you have keyword spam all throughout your content and its lame to read, you are so petrified to used rich media elements or minimize fluff content in order to be easily absorbed, all with the reason that your page ranking may change. I’m sorry to state the obvious…but…(web surfers have a bit of A.D.D.). The quicker the better, the more entertaining or interactive the longer we pay attention to the brand. The brand is no longer a destination but a vehicle. If we can remember the brand, then we will keep coming back to that brand as long as we have had good experiences.
It’s obviously in my creative nature to question everything, especially the overemphasis on this particular topic when it comes to sacrificing the experience of interacting with a brand. Am I stating that SEO has no value, of course not, but whats the point in optimizing your page to a doldrum experience for SEO sake, if users ultimately drops off? So your analytic report for the month states that you had a high amount of traffic to a particular page, but a good majority dropped off. On paper you had great listing results and click-throughs, but your brand experience and conversions frankly sucked.
Its my accrued habit that I never click on the number one returned result for a particular keyword search. Over the years, I’ve found the first results to be gimmicky or not so much of a perfect match to what I am searching for. If the site has solid purpose, well developed and engaging content, then it will naturally rise in ranking for an organic search. With that a higher probability that your growth is long term because of the loyalty. I will provide more support on this topic in future posts! Stay tuned….
TAGS: Monkey, ramble, rants, SEO, Search Engine Optimization, discuss textual priorities, engage, disengage, star trek, scissors, paper, rock, think quick, convert, conversion, charge
Posted by David Martin on May. 27, 2009
