OVERHAULING CONTENT STRATEGY AS PART OF A SITE MIGRATIONBRIONY GUNSON

@brionygunson

WHO AM I?

SEO Account Manager

Resolution Media @ Manning Gottlieb OMD

@brionygunson

TODAY WE ARE GOING TO COVER…

• A methodology that my team and I have used to overhaul client content strategy when handling a site migration.

• Beyond just the usual IA implications, it’s about setting up the site to address user needs whilst also satisfying search intent.

@brionygunson

A TALE OF TWO HALVES – MIGRATING A SITE AND CONTENT STRATEGY

@brionygunsonVO: a lot can potentially go awry with a site migration…

Image sources: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3262/2684820457_a1797af6c7.jpghttp://abetteruserexperience.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/content-strategy-480x432.jpg

IT’S UNDERSTANDABLE THAT CONTENT STRATEGY IS NOT OFTEN THE MAIN FOCUS

@brionygunson

VO: But I want to highlight why it’s actually a great opportunity to investigate content strategy as part of the process, as there’s so much insight gleaned from the research done to ensure that a site migration goes well.

@brionygunson

WHY MIGRATE A SITE?

@brionygunson2008 2015

VO: It could be about:• Updating technology• Visual design and layout• Overhauling content• Upgrade CMS• Change of vendor

Or all of the above!

WHAT IS THE TRADITIONAL ROLE OF AN SEO IN ALL OF THIS?

@brionygunsonImage source: http://giphy.com/search/white-kid-computer-thumbs-up

PREVENTING ORGANIC TRAFFIC LOSS

@brionygunson

Panic stations!! HHGTTG image

TECHNICAL BEST PRACTICE & ON-PAGE REVAMP

@brionygunson

Image of the scrum board & daily rankings graph from BrightEdge

VO: typically look to ensure technical best practice is in place and use this as an opportunity to revamp on-page optimisation, e.g.• 301 redirects from old to new site are in place• The new site can be crawled and indexed by search engines• Preventing duplicate content on the new site• Resolving 404s• Measuring and tracking traffic, rankings, index – meticulously measure pre &

post migrationetc

THE ROLE AND REMIT OF AN SEO CAN BE DICTATED BY A VARIETY OF FACTORS…

@brionygunsonImage source: http://giphy.com/search/white-kid-computer-thumbs-up

A DECISION THAT REQUIRES A LOT OF TIME, MONEY, ENERGY AND EMOTION

@brionygunson

VO: We want our clients to have the best possible product – so what about also looking to increase traffic, engagement, conversion?

Image source: http://www.vebidoo.de/erich+cermak

REALLY, IT’S AN AMAZING OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY GET YOUR HOUSE IN ORDER!

@brionygunson

We should look to build a site that's design, structure and functionality make it compatible with the content needs relevant for our client’s audience.

By doing an extra bit of research, an SEO can contribute a lot more insight and value to the client, whilst ensuring the SEO objectives are met.

Image source: https://southcarolina1670.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/house-after.png?w=676

A TALE OF TWO HALVES – MIGRATING A SITE AND CONTENT STRATEGY

@brionygunsonImage sources: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3262/2684820457_a1797af6c7.jpghttp://abetteruserexperience.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/content-strategy-480x432.jpg

BUT WHAT DO I MEAN BY “CONTENT STRATEGY?”

@brionygunson

In this context, it’s very much about investigating what the website content strategy should be and basing this on consumer needs.

Image source: http://abetteruserexperience.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/content-strategy-480x432.jpg

AND HOW DO WE IDENTIFY THESE CONTENT NEEDS?

@brionygunsonImage source: http://abetteruserexperience.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/content-strategy-480x432.jpg

@brionygunson

CLIENT

CUSTOMERS

COMPETITORS

BY BEEFING UP THE RESEARCH PHASE PRE-MIGRATION

Foundations for website

content strategy

VO: as part of a migration, you will (or certainly should) do quite a lot of research which you can break down into three key areas – client, competitors & customers.

@brionygunson

CLIENT

CUSTOMERS

COMPETITORS

Inputs can include:• Target audience• Auditing owned/earned assets• Previous campaigns• Brand strategy

What does the client want to achieve from this migration?

BY BEEFING UP THE RESEARCH PHASE PRE-MIGRATION

VO: makes sense to ensure you fully understand the client – understanding what it is that they want to achieve with the redesign/overhaul, so you are clear on what you are migrating over and the stakes involved.

@brionygunson

CLIENT

CUSTOMERS

COMPETITORS

BY BEEFING UP THE RESEARCH PHASE PRE-MIGRATION

Inputs can include:• Share of Voice on social• Share of Voice via organic search• Backlink profile• Estimated traffic• Recent campaigns

How can we differentiate ourselves?

VO: similar to client research, we would also look to see who is doing well in this space. Where there is overlap this is where we need to think about how we can differentiate our clients from their competitors.

@brionygunson

CLIENT

CUSTOMERS

COMPETITORS

BY BEEFING UP THE RESEARCH PHASE PRE-MIGRATION

Inputs can include:• Keyword research• Search trends• Survey data• CRM data• Facebook demographic data• PPC demographic data

Is this enough for user needs?VO: Thinking about the crossover: Is the current content doing a good job at targeting those terms? How do we compare to competitors?

@brionygunson

KEYWORDS ONLY TELL PART OF THE USER NEEDS STORY

VO: Rise of “how to” & “why” search queries has opened up a lot more content opportunities for brands – increasing presence of search snippets show the importance Google is giving to answering user needs

@brionygunson

Google keeps

users satis-fied!

Gives them all

they need!

Image source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/pestfoto/7263971706

SOCIAL LISTENING GIVES US ADDITIONAL LAYER OF INSIGHT

@brionygunson

VO: We want to see what convos are happening on social around our clients, their products and their competitors and any relevant topicsSo we want to add this additional layer into the site migration process when understanding clients, competitors & customers.

Image source http://40n2v21d6ogh2vw593p4ksu1.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/SocialMediaSchedulingListening-776x415.jpg

Input keywords in

SLT

Review output for relevancy

Group relevant

content by theme

Input themes into

SLT

Review output for

search queries

Search vol, rank,

content format

METHODOLOGY OF IDENTIFYING THOSE NEEDS VIA SOCIAL LISTENING

@brionygunson

“Train tickets”

“Cost”, “Type”, “Where to buy”, “How to collect”

Search vol 50 rank 38travel guides

“when is the cheapest time to travel by train?”

VO: The scale and depth to which you want to go to is up to you!

@brionygunson

CLIENT

CUSTOMERS

COMPETITORS

WE TAKE THIS INSIGHT AND MAKE A DECISION WITH THE CLIENT ABOUT WHAT WE CAN USE FOR THE MIGRATION

WHEN SHOULD THIS RESEARCH TAKE PLACE?

@brionygunson

Reviewing objectives

Defining IA In build Migration

DaySecond

Release?Reviewing objectives

This presents a big over simplification of a migration process! But, ideally, we want to be starting research 8-10 weeks before any decisions are made about defining site structure – the earlier you can be involved in the site migration process the better.

SO, HOW HAS THIS WORKED FOR US?

@brionygunsonImage source: https://plus.google.com/+RicardoNunoSilva/posts/R9vC5UtU4VK?pid=5796510546364478562&oid=102679111540717383584

PREVENTING ORGANIC TRAFFIC LOSS

@brionygunson

Panic stations!! HHGTTG image

Jun-14 Jul-14 Aug-14 Sep-14 Oct-14 Nov-14 Dec-14 Jan-15 Feb-15 Mar-15 Apr-15 May-15 Jun-15 Jul-150

500,000

1,000,000

1,500,000

2,000,000

2,500,000

3,000,000

PHEW! MIGRATION WENT WELL AND WE GREW TRAFFIC WHILST REDUCING SIZE OF SITE BY 50%

MIGRATION DAY

@brionygunson

SECOND RELEASE

Nat

iona

l Ca

mpa

ign +70,000 organic visits

compared to July 2014

VO: New site launched in August 2014 with new content, CMS, design, layout, structure & we reduced the size of the site by 50%. Post launch, we see a slight drop off in Sept but this is seasonality, & then we start to see a gradual lift up until another release in February 2015 where we launched a content hub based on user needs research. +70,000 visits compared to 2014 when there was a national campaign that same month – with TV, radio, OOH, paid spend – boosting search interest around the brand.

AND RANKINGS FOR CORE TERMS BASED ON USER NEEDS ALSO INCREASED

*144% increase in average rankings in 3 months,

Generic terms from page 4 page 1

*avg. 62,000 search vol @brionygunson

HAPPY CLIENT AND A MUCH TIGHTER RELATIONSHIP

@brionygunson

VO: Much closer relationship with them, still drawing on these insights now AND we really understand their business and we’ve become much more important to them

1. SEOs can do so much more: Site migrations present a great opportunity! Aim to maintain traffic but we can also work towards future proofing the site for content. Make your client visible AND valuable to users.

2. Beef up the research phase: Client, competitor and customer research done as part of a migration provides great insight, which, coupled with social listening, lays the foundations of a website content strategy.

3. Timing: Get involved at an early stage and allocate sufficient time for research AS WELL as getting best practice SEO in place for the migration. That said, the research can still be valuable even if the timing isn’t perfect.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

@brionygunson

THANK YOU

@brionygunson