Optimisation is bigger than ever!
Those of us who have been around the digital marketing arena for a while would be forgiven for thinking ‘Optimisation’ is all about Search Engines.
But whilst search is an important part, the discipline of optimisation has become broader, tackling the performance of a website holistically.
In this article I am going to look at the 5 key disciplines of ‘Optimisation’
The Big Five
1. Search Engine Optimisation
2. Speed Optimisation
3. Content Optimisation
4. Customer Journey Optimisation
5. UX Optimisation
1. Search Engine Optimsation
All five optimisation disciplines contribute to good SEO, but one must not forgot the basics. The original set of rules that form the foundation of a good SEO.
1. Intelligently planned keywords and key terms
2. All page titles, tags, descriptions, H1-H3 titles are in order
3. You are registered with Google Search Console and Bing’s Webmaster Tools
4. Link building / citations
2. Speed Optimisation
Google figured out early on that humans are incredible impatient, and therefore a slow site is a bad site.
So not only does the speed affect your search ranking, more importantly it has a seriously negative effect on your visitor’s attitude towards you and your products/service.
This is especially true on mobile devices, where slower connection exacerbates the user’s frustration with load times and bad temper.
Speed testing is quite easy, but fixing it may not be.
Hosting and/or large image sizes are by far the greatest cause of slow loading speed issues.
3. Content Optimisation
Content has been king for a while now, but it is no longer good enough just to write any old rubbish nor plagiarize, with the former giving you no benefit and the latter having potentially negative effects.
To optimise content you need a strategy, a plan, one that both the content and the frequency suits your clients, you and Google.
This is largely common sense. Your clients probably don’t want to read about your cat, nor will they thank you for publishing waffle. They will want interesting, helpful, correctly pitched unique content.
Producing quality content is time consuming, so this is where the principles of opportunity cost are needed. How much time can you / your organisation commit to content writing, and at what point is it better to direct time and effort elsewhere.
The decision on frequency of posting is largely determined by search engine and how regularly your competitors are posting. You just want to post slightly more frequently than them.
4. Optimisation of the Customer Journey
Is it easy for each of your key customer types to find what they are looking for?
This is the hardest thing to perfect.
The first hurdle is probably you. You are too close to your own business to think and behave like a customer.
5. UX Optimisation
Is it a pleasure to travel through your site? Does it look and feel good. Does the brand design and promise match the users’ expectations. Is it obvious where to go and what to do? Is the content pitch at the right level.
The aim here is to maximise conversion rates by tweaking.
As good as Crush is at planning, designing and building websites we have never built the perfect site. No website is ever perfect, but the best websites try.
If you are not A/B split testing your website how can you possibly know if you have got it right.
There are many examples of small changes significantly increasing conversion rates.
What to do Next
1. Audit your Website
2. Audit your Spend
3. Call Crush: 01246 563357
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