W E B W O R K S H O P

Teesside University

October 2018

HELLO

W E A D V I S E W E D E L I V E R W E K E E P T H I N G S U N C O M P L I C AT E D

W O R K I N G W I T H U S

When the challenge requires high-level, strategic thinking, our brains are all yours.

We understand the sector and your audiences, and we can provide

research and insight too.

Sometimes your aims are clear and you just need a safe pair of hands to deliver.

No matter how big the project, we’re here.

We know that digital can be quite daunting for some. So we make

sure that working with us never is.

WHAT WE DO

S E A R C H E N G I N E O P T I M I S A T I O N

( S E O )

C O N V E R S I O N R A T E O P T I M I S A T I O N

( C R O )

U S E R I N T E R F A C E D E S I G N

( U I )

U S E R E X P E R I E N C E ( U X ) D E S I G N

U S E R J O U R N E Y ( U J )A N A L Y S I S

I N F O R M A T I O N A R C H I T E C T U R E

( I A )

C L I E N T S W E ’ V E W O R K E D W I T H

WHAT ’S TRENDING

M O B I L E F I R S T

F O C U S O N C O N T E N T

M I N I M A L I S A T I O N

D A T A - D R I V E N

S P E E D

U S E R E X P E R I E N C E

M A R K E T T R E N D S

YOUR OBJECTIVES

Y O U R O B J E C T I V E S

Collaboration Mobile-first Data driven Focus areas

FOCUS OF TODAY

F O C U S O F T O D A Y – W H A T D O E S G O O D L I K E ?

A good digital strategy is user-centric and does not look at individual areas in isolation of others – they all overlap and combine to create the user experience

So it is important not to neglect any of these areas.

• SEO effects UX

• IA effects UX

• CRO effects UX

UX should be driving everything on the site.

And a good UX should be driving conversions.

USERS

USER EXPERIENCE

CONTEXT CONTENT

SEO

IA

INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE

I N F O R M A T I O N A R C H I T E C T U R E

W H A T D O E S I T M E A N ?

USERS

CONTEXT CONTENT

IA

O U R A P P R O A C H T O I A

Users have four fundamental questions when they arrive at a website:

This means that you have to...

Am I in the right place? ...assure visitors they’re in the right place

Do they have what I am looking for? ... make it easy for visitors to find what they’re looking for (clear navigation, search etc).

Do they have anything better (if this isn’t what I want)? ... make sure visitors know what their options are (links like “See also”, “Related options”).

What do I do now? ...let them take various kinds of action (clear CTAs).

One of the key tasks is to make sure we do a good job at answering these questions – on every page of the website.

• Robust and effective content strategies, page and navigation design, information structures and categorisation

• Intuitive and user-centred site maps, wireframes, user journeys and navigation structures

• The foundations for digital platforms to have the best possible experience with increased task completion, improved conversion rates and maximised customer loyalty

I N F O R M A T I O N A R C H I T E C T U R E

W H A T I T D E L I V E R S

EXERCISE 1

Card Sorting

USER EXPERIENCE DESIGN

• A positive user experience (UX) is essential for website design and the overall operation of a site that delivers on its objectives

• No matter how good something looks, if it doesn’t offer up a good experience, very few users will complete the tasks or actions that you hoped they would.

U S E R E X P E R I E N C E

W H Y I S I T I M P O R T A N T ?

Google loves good UX

When you look closely at some of the algorithms and updates over the last few years this becomes very apparent:

• Mobile First

• Page Layout Algorithm change

• Google ‘Venice’ update – serving more geographically appropriate results based on your location

• Page speed

Google’s goal is ensuring that their index consists of the best results on the Internet, both in terms of relevancy and user experience.

U S E R E X P E R I E N C E

W H Y I S I T I M P O R T A N T ?

O U R A P P R O A C H T O U X D E S I G N

An experience is subjective. However, we use data and insight to minimise the guesswork.

Testing designs to get real user feedback and iterate. We explore how all elements on the page interact to create the best possible UX.

The approach to UX needs to accommodate smaller screen sizes and user behaviour. We’ll design elegant experiences that allow for seamless interactions regardless of device.

EXERCISE 2

4 UP

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMISATION

Search engine optimisation is the art of

making search engines love your website.

The main aim is to get your website ranking as high as possible within relevant search results.

But remember that search engines like Google are always evolving with new algorithm updates.

We need to be prepared for future updates. Remaining static will come back to bite us.

S E O

W H Y I S I T I M P O R T A N T ?

Technical SEO is fundamental to the user experience. It helps visitors navigate freely around your website without any technical or performance hindrance.

Technical SEO is about detecting underlying issues and prioritising the order of resolution.

The results being improved website performance, a better UX and an increase in conversions.

Technical SEO is a finely tuned car. And the content is the driver.

S E O

T H E I M P O R T A N C E O F T E C H N I C A L S E O

Great content optimisation should be invisible.

By taking a broader approach to on-page keyword research, we can capture a larger range of search terms rather than a mere handful.

By studying your niche and most valuable keywords, synonyms and modifiers we can ensure that you start ranking more effectively for directly related search terms.

S E O

O U R A P P R O A C H – O N P A G E

Links are still the main measurement of

website authority for search engines…

...and website authority is a major ranking factor. That’s why successful websites earn links strategically and consistently over time – to get ahead and stay ahead.

We carefully assess the opportunities and help develop links that have legs.

S E O

O U R A P P R O A C H – O F F P A G E

CONVERSION RATE OPTIMISATION

Data-driven design meets user experience

Ideal product if you’re looking to ramp up user experience, gain deeper insights about your audience and remove any obstacles in user journeys to your desired conversion point.

Continual refinement and experimentation uncovers growth opportunities.

By pinpointing exactly how users interact with your site you can begin to fine-tune and personalise each step of their journey.

Mining your website data uncovers valuable insights into user behaviour and shines a light on what we can test.

C R O

W H Y I S I T I M P O R T A N T ?

O U R A P P R O A C H T O C R O

We need to avoid subjectivity when designing landing pages. Designing with data (i.e. A/B or mutlivariate testing) is important in order to validate the decisions we have made and to continuously improve the user experience and the subsequent conversions.

Our CRO process follows this cycle:

RESEARCH & ANALYSIS

HYPOTHESIS FORMATION

RESULTS ROLLOUT & REPETITION

EXPERIMENT PLANNING

TECHNICAL IMPLEMENTATION &

QUALITY ASSURANCE

DESIGN & COPYWRITING

C R O – O U R A P P R O A C H – E X A M P L E H Y P O T H E S E S

1. Changing the carousel to a static image will place more emphasis on our key CTA, thus increasing conversions.

2. Changing the text links to buttons will provide the user more distinct options and drive further traffic to the respective pages.

3. Introducing a more prominent search field will create more course searches from the homepage.

EXERCISE 3

LANDING PAGE HYPOTHESES

C R O E X E R C I S E - C R E A T I N G H Y P O T H E S E S

NEXT STEPS

THANK YOU