Practicing SEO – beginner to beginner!

Recently I designed a static website. The website offers no functional features but provides plenty of information to its target viewers. The client wanted the site to be listed in Google’s search results while searching with a specific keyword. I was reading blogs and online tutorials about SEO so as to improve my search ranking. As both Google and Bing refused to list that site even after several months since the site is hosted, as was working vigorously to do something towards improving the ranking. Now i am quiet happy with search results. All the blogs, books and experts revealed two major facts: (1) SEO has to do very little with technology (2) Content and its description too are the kings.

Though it is evident that the search giants like Google, Bing and yahoo ranks the site on the basis of topic, quality, reliability and many other factors, we can still do some magic with the meta tags. We can’t improve the ranking of the site just with meta tags, but are really simple tools to improve your standings in search engines.

Here I have listed few of the most important aspects of SEO.

1. Keywords in Meta tag – specify the keywords that describe the site and its services better. If you are running a matrimonial services website than say brides, bridegrooms, profiles, photos, horoscopes, US(!), matrimonial, Chennai, sub sect no bar, etc.

2. Descriptions – Precisely describe the contents of that page – make sure you write the right thing.

3. Links – Let they are appropriate and useful. Raise the following question several times to yourself: “Does this link help my target customer find what they are looking for?”. Don’t add that link until you are really convinced that it is necessary.

4. The contents - The best advice is to make the information on your website useful, descriptive, honest, and compelling to your customers. In one word I can say KISS (Keep it simple, stupid).

If you want to know more, you can read some great books, blogs and sites. I would suggest Website Optimization by Andrew B. King book for interesting real world cases.

That's it! Focus on your content and describe it well. Bubyeee!

Usability Engineering – You are not your user!

Recently I read several interesting articles on usability engineering. I was wondering how haplessly I have coded and I am coding few web applications when it comes to usability/user engineering. I need to often remind myself that “I am not my user”.

I have built a few apps so far. During the design/development process, I am constantly worried about adding more functional features to it (according to the requirements of the clients!) rather than envisioning a sound usability model. At times I forget the fact that client is not the user and the intended user may not be happy with the features my client is very happy about.

Usability aspects have always been an afterthought to many app builders and I am no exception to this. I know my product inside out. Right from the inception stage I watch and control the growth of the application. In my application, I use every single form, visit every single link and work with all its functional parts. Since I can see the application grow and prosper through its entire life cycle, my wishes are imprinted or forced upon the it unknowingly.

This blind phenomenon results in poor usability. We tend to thrust the user with functionalities he never asked for. A specific feature that I think is very essential to my app might irritate its user.

The most important thing is to understand the users and their needs. In the urge to fulfill the requirements of the clients and stakeholders, we ignore the usability aspects of a product. You’re not your user. Remember it. Improve the usability!