The document discusses optimizing websites for search engines and users. It defines website optimization as making a site as fully functional and effective as possible by focusing on search engine optimization, user experience, conversions, acquisitions and customer satisfaction. The document outlines best practices for optimization, including understanding searchers and search engine goals. It recommends optimizing for cognitive fluency through simple designs, relevant content and formatting. Key aspects of optimization in practice are highlighted, like using clear calls to action and buyer persona language. The document stresses that optimization is an ongoing process and quality over chasing individual ranking factors.

1. OPTIMIZING
YOUR WEBSITE.
Inbound Certification Class #2

2. #INBOUND

3. 1 Website optimization and inbound marketing
2 How to optimize a website: best practices
3 What website optimization in execution looks like
4 Key takeaways and resources
AGENDA

4. WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION
& INBOUND MARKETING.1

6. What is website
optimization?

7. What is optimization?

8. DEFINITION OF
OPTIMIZATION
An act, process, or methodology of making something as fully perfect,
functional or effective as possible.

9. But, a quick Google search will help you to see,
website optimization means something different.

10. It focuses on “search engine optimization” or “SEO”
as synonyms for website optimization.

11. BUT, THAT’S NOT THE FULL TRUTH.
The industry’s standards are still antiquated.

12. People still think “website optimization” means
ranking at the top of a search engine.

13. However, that’s only
one small piece of the puzzle.

14. • Search engine ranking
• User experience
• Lead conversions
• Customer acquisitions
• Customer delight
TYPES OF WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION

16. OPTIMIZE A WEBSITE:
BEST PRACTICES.2

17. Optimize websites for
searchers and search engines.

18. More information
about searchers.
1 Searchers are people.
2 They buy your product or services.
3 They’re searching to accomplish
something, know something or to
navigate to something.

19. More information
about search engines.
1 Search engines crawl content to
understand the purpose.
2 Googlebot is Google’s spider. But
there are people too.
3 They index content based on the
perceived purpose of the content.
4 Uses lots of ranking factors in
indexing.

20. Google has over
200 different factors
that go into the
ranking algorithm.

21. Google has over
200 different factors
that go into the
ranking algorithm.
The goal is to deliver
the best results
possible.

22. Focus on searchers
and search engines will
be happy, too.

23. TYPES OF WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION

24. Semi-fictional representations of your ideal customer based on real data
and some select educated speculation about customer demographics,
behavior patterns, motivations, and goals.
BUYER PERSONAS

25. Semi-fictional representations of your ideal customer based on real data
and some select educated speculation about customer demographics,
behavior patterns, motivations, and goals.
BUYER PERSONAS
ARE SEARCHERS

26. HOW TO OPTIMIZE YOUR WEBSITE
Have a goal in mind for what you’d like to accomplish
with your website.
Make it easy to understand and crawl.

27. HOW TO OPTIMIZE YOUR WEBSITE
Have a goal in mind for what you’d like to accomplish
with your website.
Make it easy to understand and crawl.

29. • Search engine ranking
• User experience
• Lead conversions
• Customer acquisitions
• Customer delight
TYPES OF WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION

30. • Search engine ranking
• User experience
• Lead conversions
• Customer acquisitions
• Customer delight
TYPES OF WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION

31. • Search engine ranking
• User experience
• Lead conversions
• Customer acquisitions
• Customer delight
TYPES OF WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION

32. • Search engine ranking
• User experience
• Lead conversions
• Customer acquisitions
• Customer delight
TYPES OF WEBSITE OPTIMIZATION

33. HOW TO OPTIMIZE YOUR WEBSITE
Have a goal in mind for what you’d like to accomplish
with your website.
Make it easy to understand and crawl.

34. HOW TO OPTIMIZE YOUR WEBSITE
Have a goal in mind for what you’d like to accomplish
with your website.
Make it easy to understand and crawl.

35. 3 WAYS MAKE YOUR WEBSITE EASY
TO CRAWL & UNDERSTAND
1 Design
2 Content, Topics/Keywords
3 Formatting of content

36. 3 WAYS MAKE YOUR WEBSITE EASY
TO CRAWL & UNDERSTAND
1 Design
2 Content, Topics/Keywords
3 Formatting of content

37. FOCUS ON:
COGNITIVE
FLUENCY

38. DEFINITION OF
COGNITIVE FLUENCY
“Fluency is the ease of which something is processed.”

39. What website experience do you expect when we say the words
“Saucony running shoes women”

40. What website experience do you expect when we say the words
“Saucony running shoes women”

41. What website experience do you expect when we say the words
“marketing software”

42. What website experience do you expect when we say the words
“marketing software”

43. What website experience do you expect when we say the words
“hvac boston, ma”

44. What website experience do you expect when we say the words
“hvac boston, ma”

45. DESIGN
EXAMPLES
• Great cognitive fluency
• Simple navigation
• Relevant color scheme
• Streamlined next steps
readily available

46. Researchers found that not only will users judge websites as “beautiful” or not within
1/50th – 1/20th of a second, but also that “visually complex” websites are
consistently rated as less beautiful than their simpler counterparts.
SOURCE: GOOGLE, AUGUST 2012,

47. 3 WAYS MAKE YOUR WEBSITE EASY
TO CRAWL & UNDERSTAND
1 Design
2 Content, Topics/Keywords
3 Formatting of content

48. CONTENT TOPIC AND
KEYWORD EXAMPLES
• Relevant content based on users intent
from search query.
• Relevant content to topic of search query.
• Provides value to searcher.

49. REMEMBER:
Use the language of
your buyer personas.

50. 1 Page Title
2 URLs
3 Page Headers
4 Content
5 Meta Description
CONTENT TOPIC
OR KEYWORD
(on-page SEO)

51. 1 Page Title
2 URLs
3 Page Headers
4 Content
5 Meta Description
CONTENT TOPIC
OR KEYWORD
(on-page SEO)

52. 1 Page Title
2 URLs
3 Page Headers
4 Content
5 Meta Description
CONTENT TOPIC
OR KEYWORD
(on-page SEO)

53. 1 Page Title
2 URLs
3 Page Headers
4 Content
5 Meta Description
CONTENT TOPIC
OR KEYWORD
(on-page SEO)

54. CONTENT TOPIC
OR KEYWORD
(on-page SEO)
1 Page Title
2 URLs
3 Page Headers
4 Content
5 Meta Description

55. 1 Page Title
2 URLs
3 Page Headers
4 Content
5 Meta Description
CONTENT TOPIC
OR KEYWORD
(on-page SEO)

56. 1 Page Title
2 URLs
3 Page Headers
4 Content
5 Meta Description
CONTENT TOPIC
OR KEYWORD
(on-page SEO)

57. 1 Page Title
2 URLs
3 Page Headers
4 Content
5 Meta Description
CONTENT TOPIC
OR KEYWORD
(on-page SEO)

58. 3 WAYS MAKE YOUR WEBSITE EASY
TO CRAWL & UNDERSTAND
1 Design
2 Content, Topics/Keywords
3 Formatting of content

59. CONTENT
FORMATTING EXAMPLES
• Font hierarchy (subheads with
different colors, sizes or font styles)
• Include pictures
• Short sentences & paragraphs
• Bullets
• Bolding, italics & hyperlinked content

60. CONTENT
FORMATTING EXAMPLES
• Font hierarchy (subheads with
different colors, sizes or font styles)
• Include pictures
• Short sentences & paragraphs
• Bullets
• Bolding, italics & hyperlinked content

61. 3 WAYS MAKE YOUR WEBSITE EASY
TO CRAWL & UNDERSTAND
1 Design
2 Content, Topics/Keywords
3 Formatting of content

62. HOW TO OPTIMIZE YOUR WEBSITE
Have a goal in mind for what you’d like to accomplish
with your website.
Make it easy to understand and crawl.

63. Websites should not be static,
they should evolve.

64. WHAT WEBSITE
OPTIMIZATION IN
EXECUTION LOOKS LIKE.3

65. What do you think this website did well to optimize the homepage?

66. Simple design
Good cognitive
fluency
Similar language
to buyer personas
Great use of
headers, images,
videos, etc.
Visible & logical
next steps
Noteworthy optimization notes:

67. What do you think this website did well to optimize the homepage?

68. Simple design
Easy-to-digest
formatting
Great usage of
buyer persona’s
language
Clear, streamlined
next steps
Relevant,
helpful content
Noteworthy optimization notes:

69. What do you think this website did well to optimize the homepage?

70. Relevant, helpful
content
Easy-to-digest
formatting
Clear, streamlined
next steps
Social sharing
options
Great length to fully
cover the topic
Noteworthy optimization notes:

71. What do you think this website did well to optimize the homepage?

72. Clear, streamlined
next steps
Relevant, helpful
content
Simple design
Easy-to-digest
formatting
Great usage of
buyer persona’s
language
Noteworthy optimization notes:

73. Don’t obsess over ranking
factors, do the right thing
(and your visitors will come).

74. KEY TAKEAWAYS
AND RESOURCES.4

75. KEY TAKEAWAYS
1 Website optimization is more than just search
engine optimization.
2 Websites should attract, convert, close and delight.
3 Make your pages easy to understand and crawl to satisfy search
engines and searchers.
4 Quality content that satisfies your users will always rank at the top
of search engines.
5 Websites are always not static, they should always be evolving.

76. 1 Learn SEO from the Experts [eBook]
2 Search quality guidelines from Google [blog post]
3 Easy explanations to learn SEO – based on Matt Cutts’
webmaster videos [video series]
RESOURCES