Although UX isn’t a direct ranking factor, it significantly impacts how users interact with your site. A well-designed website delivers a great experience, which aligns with Google’s objectives. Here’s an example. When you grab your phone to search for a raw dog food company that delivers in Austin, Texas, you’re relying on Google to help you find the best option.
Google’s goal is to provide you with what you are looking for, so you click on the first organic result, a company called ‘Raw Food Plus.’ However, when you get to the website, the page takes forever to load. The navigation lacks a clear ‘Products’ or ‘Shop’ page, and after scrolling through the homepage, you still can’t find the raw food options to purchase. Frustrated, you go back to your search results and click on the second website, hoping for a better experience.
Has this happened to you before?
It won’t be long until Google realizes Raw Food Plus is not the most helpful website for users looking for “raw dog food delivery austin texas.”
What Are SEO and UX and How Do They Work Together?
SEO involves various techniques to boost a website’s ranking in search engine results. In contrast, UX refers to a user’s overall experience when navigating and interacting with a website.
UX encompasses every single touchpoint an individual encounters on a website—from the ease of navigation to the clarity of information to the overall design of a website. When users have a positive experience, they’re more likely to return, and frequent visits often lead to purchases.
Google takes note of how users navigate your website and considers this in its search engine rankings. The following are six areas where SEO and UX interplay to create a seamless website experience:
E-E-A-T
E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) is a framework used by search engines to evaluate content quality, and it is closely tied to UX. A website that shows high levels of expertise and authoritativeness often provides clear, well-structured information that is easy to find and enhances user experience. Trustworthiness, achieved through secure connections (ex. https instead of http) and transparency, helps establish user confidence and engagement.
Good UX design, such as intuitive navigation and accessible content, supports these elements by making it easier for users to find and trust the information they need. Consequently, a strong focus on E-E-A-T not only boosts visibility on Google but also ensures an online experience that a user can trust.
To improve a user’s E-E-A-T on your website:
- Create a content design flow that makes it easier to read your on-page copy.
- Build trust by adding positive reviews on multiple pages throughout your site.
- Ensure each webpage has unique and useful content that answers ONE search query.
- Credit content writers by publishing a short biography about the author at the end of blogs to build trustworthiness.
- Use only credible sources.
Time On-Page
When users find a webpage engaging and easy to navigate, they tend to stay longer, signalling to search engines that the content is valuable. This increased time on the page, now a part of the engaged session metric, can boost a site’s ranking, as Google interprets it as a sign of quality. Essentially, the more harmonious the UX and SEO, the longer visitors linger, creating a virtuous cycle that benefits both visibility and user satisfaction.
Use the following SEO and UX best practices to improve a user’s engagement on your site:
- Decrease page load time by ensuring all images, gifs, videos, etc. load quickly.
- Ensure your site is responsive on mobile devices.
- Add internal links to your content.
- Enhance the clarity of your content.
Navigation
When properly executed, your website’s architecture serves a dual purpose. For UX, it provides visitors with a clear, intuitive path through your site. For SEO, it acts as a roadmap for search engines, showcasing all your content and how it’s interconnected. Clear and simple site navigation helps Google bots quickly crawl and index your site while keeping users engaged.
Improve your site navigation by:
- Ensuring your site architecture is simple and easy to navigate (no super menus).
- Choosing a navigation type that follows industry standards.
- Ensuring your website’s navigation is accessible, responsive and doesn’t take up too much space on mobile.
- Using a sticky navigation on desktop computers.
- Utilizing breadcrumb navigation.
Site Speed
Site speed affects both UX and SEO because it directly affects how users interact with your site and how search engines rank it. Site speed is a direct ranking factor and a fast-loading site improves user satisfaction, reduces bounce rates, and boosts conversion rates.
Unoptimized images, hosting location, messy code, and excessive redirects can unintentionally slow down your website. Ensure optimal load times by using a page speed insight tool to assess and improve your site’s speed.
Mobile-Responsiveness
Sites that are not mobile-friendly are missing a huge opportunity to reach a massive demographic of new businesses. Providing people with a user-friendly experience across devices means formatting your navigation, text and image so that they function well on all devices.
With over 60% of searches now happening on mobile, Google predominantly prioritizes the mobile version of a site’s content when indexing, crawling and ranking pages.
To ensure your mobile pages have the same quality content as desktop pages:
- Use a responsive design that automatically adjusts your content to fit any screen size, so it looks great on all devices.
- Make sure the same text, images, and videos are available on both mobile and desktop versions.
- Compress and optimize images and videos to keep them high-quality while speeding up load times on mobile
- Simplify navigation menus for mobile users, ensuring all key content is easily accessible without excessive scrolling or clicks.
- Always double check your site across various mobile devices and browsers to ensure a good UX.
Layout and Design
A well-organized site layout and modern design influence user behaviour and play a part in SEO and CRO. It enhances usability by making site navigation intuitive and content accessible, ultimately guiding the user to the right information and encouraging them to take the desired action.
To improve your site’s design try:
- Using easy-to-digest blocks of content, making it easy for the user to read.
- Use mixed media when possible (a combination of images, videos, gifs etc).
- Use headers on every page to describe what the page is about.
- Use a font that is clear and easy to read.
- Use colour to create flow and contrast.
UX AND SEO in Harmony
SEO and UX can work together to create a seamless user experience, and both are essential for building effective websites. If ‘Raw Food Plus’ had designed their site with the user in mind—ensuring it was trustworthy, easy to navigate, fast-loading, and well-organized—they would have successfully sold the raw dog food.
At Method and Metric both SEO, CRO and UX come standard in all our packages. By aligning our search engine optimization techniques with user-centric design principles, we ensure that your website not only ranks well but also delivers a smooth, engaging experience for visitors. Get in touch with us to learn more!
