22 May 2018

Websites and SEOSARAH HALAWANI

TONIGHT’S PLAN

1/ Business and user needs

2/ The website brief

3/ Web usability

4/ Visual design

5/ SEO

6/ Platforms

workshop

1/Business objectives and

user needs

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What is the businessobjective?

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What is the business objective?To establish my consultancyTo market my productTo sell my custom birthday cardsTo host a conferenceTo build my personal brand

WEBSITE BRIEF /Part 1

Who are your users?

Who are your users?Recruiters, Mums, Dads, CEOs, Car owners, Pet owners, Yogis, Delegates, everyone?If everyone - what is their need?They need to: Buy gifts for their family; improve their wellbeing; change company culture

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Spin off questions…What are their needs?What problem are they trying to solve?What are their expectations?Where are they?Which platforms are they using?How old are they?What is their income bracket?Likes/dislikes?Are they time poorAre they detailed oriented or

WEBSITE BRIEF /Part 2

Business objective

Problem being solved for users

Let’s say…I want establish a yoga business

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Scenario 1

- I’ve done my yoga teacher training course- Developed my own practice- Run a few classes- But I might not have enough experience,

capital or students to establish my own studio yet

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OBJECTIVETo build a relationship with my customers

Possible strategies- Teach at my workplace to

build experience and student base

- Teach at other yoga studios to build brand and experience

- Register with relevant associations

Associations

Understand the existing networks, platforms

and tools

At this stage, would investment in other platforms serve my business objective better?

MindBody app

$125.00/month

Scenario 2- I have found a niche in the market - I have the experience and students- I have done the numbers and have the

capital to invest (pay for a website, rent out a yoga studio, buy assets etc..)

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OBJECTIVETo expand my market and establish a professional business

StrategyInvest in building a website to grow and establish the business as part of my broader business and marketing strategy

Who are your users?e.g. University staff and studentsPeople in local area (MQ, North Ryde, Marsfield)Mums, Dads, young men and womenHealth consciousNeed to take care of their well-being and time outNeed to stay in local area

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WEBSITE BRIEF /Part 2

2/The website brief

What is thewebsite objective?To build the reputation of my yoga studio, attract customers and facilitate bookings

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WEBSITE BRIEF /Part 3

What are the functionsof the website?1. Manage online bookings2. Transact payments for classes3. Collect email addresses for newsletter and promotions

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WEBSITE BRIEF /Part 4

What information do users need from my website?1. Timetable and pricing2. Teacher profiles3. Philosophy and approach4. Contact and location details

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WEBSITE BRIEF /Part 4

What is the tone (branding)of the website?Professional, authentic and approachableOr… playful, fun, serious, minimal, dramatic, light, fresh, easy-going, corporate

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WEBSITE BRIEF /Part 5

What makes a website ‘good’?

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3/Web Usability

Web usability

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USER INTERFACE DESIGNWeb Usability

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Respect conventions(unless there is a clear, logical reason to break them)

Provide information users expect

Put your mostimportant content

‘above the fold’

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Mobile Compatible Mobile Responsive Mobile Optimised Mobile App

Mobile responsive

Content HierarchyIt’s essential to consider how best to structure rich content pages, such as landing pages and the homepage, to ensure users are able to find what they came for to accomplish their desired task.https://gathercontent.com/blog/define-successful-content-hierarchy

Consider how you are inviting and guiding users

through your website

Clear ‘Call to action’

Information Architecture“Information architecture is about helping people understand their surroundings and find what they’re looking for, in the real world as well as online.http://www.uxbooth.com/articles/complete-beginners-guide-to-information-architecture/

Information Architecture

50Wix conference template

Information Architecture

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Buy TicketsRegister?

Speakers Program Could speakers and program be on the same page?

Travel tipsAccommodationGroup these together?

AbstractsAbstract submissionsSponsors

What are the right signpost words for your users?

Card Sorting

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Minimise the number of clicksbut don’t put lots of call to actions or buttons on the one page

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Sitemap pages can be useful for users if you have a lot of content

(and google)

4/Visual design

Layout and hierarchyPRIORITISE THE MESSAGING hellofresh.com.au

Negative space

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LOOK AND FEEL / VISUAL HIERARCHY

Colour and imagerySTICK TO THE COLOUR PALETTE awwwards.com

FontsMAXIMUM OF TWO COMPLEMENTARY FONTS fontpair.co

White space (negative space)

ConsistencyLess is moreStick to a colour palette

5/Search Engine Optimisation

SEO

KeywordsMetatags(metadata)

Referrals (backlinks)Technical

SEO is about understanding what people are searching for online,

the answers they are seeking, the words they’re using, and the type of content they wish to consume

How do I make my website more relevant

&authoritative?

SEO

Keywords(content strategy)

Metadata (metatags)

Referrals (backlinks)Technical

TECHNICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Crawl Can a search engine explore your site?

Index Is it clear which pages the search engine should

index and return?

Mobile Does your site adapt for mobile users?

Speed Fast page load times are a crucial factor in

keeping your visitors happy.

Tech Are you using search engine-friendly tech or

CMS for your website?

Hierarchy How is your content structured on your website?

SEO

Keywords(content strategy)

Metadata (metatags)

Referrals (backlinks)Technical

METATAGSFill out the metatags

properly

Site title | Site description | Page titlesPage descriptions | Blog post titles Headings | Image alt tags

All words matter

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All words matter

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SEO tools

SEO

KeywordsMetadata (metatags)

Referrals (backlinks)Technical

KEYWORDS“keywords are basically the building

blocks of your business”https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2017/08/09/easy-keyword-research-guide

Searcher intent“buy boots for narrow feet”

transactional

“how to rank my website better”informational

“CBA netbank”navigational

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Local SEO“yoga near me”

Build your business authority through citations

NAP (Name; Address; Phone Number)

List your NAP on directories

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Whaddya know… new trend“GOAT YOGA” (KEYWORD RISING BY 250%)

SEO

KeywordsMetadata (metatags)

Referrals (backlinks)Technical

ReferralsLinks to your site (backlinks)

What Google wants to see is authoritative and relatable links

talking about your site.

#1

Search term:“Financial advisor near me”

#3

ReferralsBuild relationships with partners,

suppliers, customers, friends

Evaluate sites that are ranked where you want to be ranked.

What are their keywords?Who is referring them?

Can you compete with them?

Remember to spend your time wisely and think about your marketing strategy and

tactics

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Bing

Platforms

• Lots of templates• Flexible (but there is a risk

of losing consistency)• Once you pick a template,

you cannot change it without rebuilding your website

• Not mobile responsive, but they have a dedicated, advanced mobile editor

• eCommerce

• Fast• Secure• Good onboarding

strategy• Customise

templates• Not a huge range of

templates• Mobile responsive

• 14-day trial. Easy to set up

• Good customer experience

• Attractive free themes

• Third-party app store

• Built-in email marketing tools

• Industry standard• Great SEO scores

• Very professional and minimal

• Fixed layouts• Mobile responsive• Can change

template once you’ve started

• Minimal control of look and feel

Drag and drop web builders

PRICING

Basic $4.50Personal $8.50Standard $12.50

Free (contains ads)

Starter $9 Pro $14Business $28

Personal $16 Business $25

With Store

eCommerce $16.50VIP 24.50

Starter $9 Pro $14Business $28Performance $42

Personal $34Business $52

Basic $29Standard $79Advanced $299

Price/month (annual payment req’d in some circumstances)

Drag and drop web builders

Content Management Systems

Wordpress.comFree - limited featuresPersonal $5Premium $10Business $33

+ heaps more

Questions & Workshop

Thank yousarahhalawani.comsarah.halawani@mgsm.edu.au