In this episode of Design Your Life & Business – The Leaders Podcast, host Jevon Wooden is joined by Astrid Kramer, an SEO & UX consultant, Information Scientist, CEO, and Founder of “Get ‘Em All”, to discuss the importance of strategic SEO and user experience in business growth for digital entrepreneurs.
Who is Astrid Kramer?
Astrid Kramer is a distinctive consulting professional with over 15 years of expertise in search engine optimization (SEO), user experience (UX), and information design. She is recognized for her proficiency in technical and strategic SEO, UX consulting, and test engineering, contributing to the enhancement of websites and software applications. She is a speaker and moderator at renowned events, with an extensive client portfolio that includes collaborations with notable brands across diverse industries.
Understanding the Scope of Strategic SEO
Astrid emphasizes that strategic SEO isn’t just a patch applied to a website but a holistic integration across all facets of a business. From sales to PR, social media, and every connection to the product, SEO permeates every level. As Astrid articulated, “SEO is relevant in every part of your business,” highlighting how critical it is for departments to align, share information, and collaborate from the outset.
“Strategic SEO means that you always take into account all channels that are relevant for your product… It’s not just about building a website and then adding SEO. SEO is relevant in every part of your business.”
The Need for Informed Collaboration
One of the key takeaways from the discussion was the necessity of early and informed collaboration between departments. Astrid’s approach of conducting workshops involving representatives from every department proved instrumental in fostering communication. This cross-departmental dialogue allowed insights from customer service to inform product development and sales strategies, thereby enriching SEO initiatives with invaluable user-centric data.
“I had one client once where I said, ‘OK, I wanna do a workshop with you, but I want to have one person from every department at the table.’ This was awesome because then everybody was talking to each other and you were able to… get the information you need for SEO, so it’s complex. But the better you work together.”
Crafting SEO-Optimized Content
Astrid delineates the layers of creating content for SEO. It starts with crafting exceptional content that resonates with users and search engines alike. The process involves multiple dimensions, from ensuring readability and providing transcripts for multimedia content to technical optimization. She places emphasis on aligning content with the search intent, emphasizing that relevance trumps mere keyword density.
“Content has to be awesome because if it’s not good, nobody wants to read it, nobody will link to it, nobody will share it… But when you have a piece of content that is awesome, then you have to make it readable for a search engine.”
Astrid debunks the myth of focusing solely on high-search-volume keywords. Instead, she advocated for a nuanced approach, considering user intent and specificity. The goal is not just to rank for a keyword but to understand what the user seeks and tailor content accordingly, emphasizing quality over quantity.
“You don’t pick one keyword that is searched 10,000 times per month just because it has a high search volume if it’s not relevant enough… Sometimes you need a lot of semantically relevant keywords to put into the text, sometimes not.”
The Marriage of SEO and User Experience
There is an indispensable link between SEO and UX. Astrid stresses that driving traffic to a site becomes futile if the user experience doesn’t meet expectations. UX isn’t merely about aesthetics but involves meticulous planning, content structuring, and adaptability across devices, often overlooked but critical for effective SEO.
“If you get a lot of traffic on your website but then your website is so annoying that nobody really finds what they want or what they’re searching for, then you did not win. It’s bad for your brand awareness, for your expertise.”
The Role of Social Media in SEO
According to Astrid, “social media is very important…, but not in the first place because of the links.” Her insight goes beyond the typical focus on links, and points out the significance of brand recognition and traffic generation. “It’s more important that you get mentions and that you are recognized and that you bring traffic to your page,” she underlines the multifaceted benefits social media offers beyond mere backlinks.
The Synergy of Strategic SEO and User Experience that Impacts Business Growth
In the realm of SEO dynamics, on-page optimization takes precedence. Astrid’s stand on prioritizing on-page content points to the essence of crafting compelling user experiences. Because of Google’s preference for fresh, relevant, and engaging content, user-centricity and SEO success must always work alongside each other.
“On-page for you is way more important than off-page… Google wants to publish this article in the search engine in the index because it’s new and it’s cool and it’s good.”
Delving into the realm of business scaling, Astrid says, “find your ideal way to communicate.” focusing on communication channels that align with the business’s strengths and audience preferences ensures optimized efforts, while iterative experimentation allows for identifying and investing in what truly works.
The intricate dance between strategic SEO and user experience, offers a roadmap for businesses to navigate the digital landscape, optimize their online presence, and foster sustainable growth.
Ready to unravel these insights further?
