Usability in a Search-driven World

You Can’t Go Home Again: Usability in a Search-driven World Dr. Peter J. Meyers • February 24, 2009

Usability in a Search-driven World:
I. Evolution of The Visitor Path
II. Analyzing Midstream Visitors
III. Creating Midstream Usability
IV. Driving Midstream Traffic
Overview

I. You Can’t Go Home Again
The Evolution of the Home-page
Section I

1. Word-of-Mouth  Home Page
The Good Old Days

2. Search  Home Page
The Google Days

Searchers Get Savvy

4. Search  Refine  Product  Refine…
The Ugly Truth

1. You’re Losing Customers
To the competition
To cumulative frustration
2. Search Saves You Steps
Bypass internal search
Pre-qualify buyers
3. The UX Begins At Google
Search behavior reveals visitor intent
This process is controllable
Why Should You Care?

II. What Is The Midstream?
Analyzing Midstream Visitors
Section II

Some Metrics to Consider:
1. Entrance Pages
2. Bounce Rate
3. Traffic Sources
4. Keywords (long-tail)
Analyzing Midstream Visitors

Where Did Visitors Land?
Entrance Pages

Did They Land & Leave?
Bounce Rates

Where Did They Come From?
Traffic Sources

What Were They Looking For?
Search Keywords

III. The Good Stuff
Creating Midstream Usability
Section III

What Is Usability? Usability is the science of making technology work for people. The job of website usability is to create sites that help people accomplish their goals.
What Is Midstream Usability?
Midstream usability is the art of orienting and motivating visitors who arrive in the middle of your website.
Midstream Usability

Questions You Need to Answer:
1. “Who are you?” (“What do you do?”)
2. “Where am I?”
3. “Why should I trust you?”
4. “What do I do now?”
Creating Midstream Usability

1. Identity & Branding
Who Are You?

2. Place & Paths
Where Am I?

3. Trust & Assurances
Why Should I Trust You?

4. Calls to Action
What Do I Do Now?

Summary Mantra:
“ Every page is a landing page.”
Midstream Usability

IV. More Good Stuff
Driving Midstream Traffic
Section IV

SEO Strategies & Tactics:
1. Internal Linking
2. Flat Architecture I. Discovery
3. Site Maps (XML)
4. De-dupe Content
5. Promote Deep Links II. Ranking
6. Focus Return Visits
Targeting Deep Links

Build A Spider-friendly Site:
Internal Linking

Shorten Path from A to B:
Flat Architecture

Mimic A Flat Architecture:
<?xml version=“1.0”>
<urlset>
<url> www.yoursite.com </url>
<url> www.yoursite.com/ about </url>
<url> www.yoursite.com/ contact </url>
<url> www.yoursite.com/ product-1 </url>
</urlset>
Site Maps (XML)

Duplication Wastes Link Juice:
www.yoursite.com/product-1
www.yoursite.com/product.php?id=1
www.yoursite.com/product.php?id=1&print=1
www.yoursite.com/product.php?id=1&topic=6&print=1
www.yoursite.com/product-1
www.yoursite.com/product.php?id=1
www.yoursite.com/product.php?id=1&print=1
www.yoursite.com/product.php?id=1&topic=6&print=1
De-dupe Content

1. Send Unique Signals
Use unique page <TITLE>’s
Use unique <META> descriptions
Keep duplicate copy to a minimum
2. De-index Useless Pages
Block with robots.txt
No-follow unimportant links
3. Define Canonical URLs
Create a clean XML site map
301 redirect duplicate pages
Use new tag: <link rel=“canonical”>
De-duping Tactics

1. Link-building Campaigns
Deep links = Targeted content
Segment content to add relevance
2. Pay-Per-Click Campaigns
Deep links are more relevant
Create effective landing pages
3. Social Media
Deep links = More effective link-bait
Create vanity URLs for deep links
Promote Deep Links

Encourage Visitors to Deep Link:
1. Target email, print, bookmark functions
2. Target social media tagging
3. Use unique product names
4. Create unique product IDs
Focus Return Visits

Key Takeaways:
I. The Visitor Path Is Evolving
II. Midstream Visits Tell A Story
III. Every Page Is A Landing Page
IV. Deep Links Build The Midstream
Summary

Q&A
www.usereffect.com
[email_address]
@dr_pete
Thank You!

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Usability in a Search-driven World

by Peter Meyers

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