In this presentation, digital marketing manager John Leo Weber breaks down how UX fits into the work of search engine optimization, and makes a case for why SEOs should not ignore user experience (UX)

1. The Role of UX in SEO
by john leo weber

2. HOW USER EXPERIENCE WORKS IN SEO
A large portion of what we do as SEOs is strategize to attract
more traffic to a website, whether it be through paid channels
(Google Adwords, Social Advertising) or organic (linkbuilding,
on-page optimization, outreach, etc.) Attracting new traffic is
no easy task since it involves high costs for things like content
development and content promotion, and high time
investment from employees. Because of the high investment
value in these methods (and because they still work,)
linkbuilding and content marketing get most of the attention
from SEOs in the traditional digital agency model.
But, over the past few years, savvy digital marketers have
begun to realize that getting potential customers to a website
only represents the top of the digital funnel. SEO’s are now
increasingly looking at the entire funnel, and spending more
energy and resources on developing user experience (UX)
once a visitor is on the website. In the digital marketing funnel,
between traditional SEO and the conversion, exists UX.
“In the digital marketing funnel,
between traditional SEO and the
conversion, exists UX.”

3. THE UX ALGORITHM
In his 2015 Pubcon Las Vegas keynote speech, Moz’s Rand Fishkin touched on this idea,
calling the current state of SEO a “Two Algorithm World.” Fishkin described how we need
to create SEO friendly websites that perform well in the search engines (algorithm 1) but
we also have to create an online experience that encourages good user behavior
(algorithm 2.) Influencing good user behavior will lead to metrics like longer times on site,
lower bounce rates, more pages per visit, and higher returning visitor counts. While the
goal of “Algorithm 1” work is to attract visitors, the goal of “Algorithm 2” work is to nurture
visitors and turn those visits into conversions. “Algorithm 2” is essentially UX.

4. The function of UX in SEO begins with user friendly web
design. Usability and simplicity are typically the primary goals
in UX driven web design, and can be achieved through:
THE BASICS OF UX IN SEO
• Using logical page layouts.
• Prominently featuring important elements like contact forms and and
links to primary pages.
• Employing fast load speeds.
• Prominently featuring contact information.
• Using CTAs and callout sections to drive traffic to your conversion
pages.
• Ensuring a good experience on all devices and browsers.
• Using A/B testing and heat maps to better understand user behavior.
• Using analytics to find pain points (pages and buttons with low click
throughs, pages with high abandonment, etc.)

5. UX HAPPENS IN 4 SECONDS
In web design and UX, first impression is extremely valuable in keeping bounce rates low, and
turning first time visitors into converted customers. I’ve come up with something called the “4
Second Test” that we use to test out all new websites before we launch them. The idea behind the 4
Second Test is that if your users cannot understand what your website is about within 4 seconds of
opening the page, you risk an increase in bounce rate and a loss of visitors. The further your visitors
have to dig to find what your website is “about,” the higher abandonment rate you will likely see.
Why do we use 4 seconds as the test? Well, The attention span of internet users might surprise you.
According to a Pubcon presentation by Google’s Gary Illyes, the average attention span of a Gen Y
user is 8.0 seconds, and attention span drops to an unbelievable 2.8 seconds for Gen Z. If your
website doesn’t get your message across within those valuable first seconds, you risk losing users
en masse.
SPEED MATTERS
Another important piece of the UX puzzle is
load speed for a website. One study showed
that 32% of consumers will start abandoning
slow sites between one and five seconds,
and that even just a one-second delay in
page load time can result in 11% fewer page
views, 16% decreased customer satisfaction
and 7% lost conversions.

6. WHY UX MATTERS IN SEO
The goals of UX and SEO are ultimately the same:
to drive more conversions, profits, leads, or
income to your client. To ignore the user
experience that comes after the acquisition phase
is to throw qualified leads to the wind, which is
why SEOs need to pay more attention to UX.