web searcher goals and behaviors for library...
TRANSCRIPT
Part4:SearchExperienceOp2miza2on—WebSearcherGoals&BehaviorsforLibrary
Websites
Presentedby
ShariThurow,FounderandSEODirector
OmniMarke<ngInterac<ve
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Aboutme:
• AuthorofSearchEngineVisibility,whichhasbeentranslatedinto5languages.Co-authorofWhenSearchMeetsWebUsability.
• SEOprofessionalsince1995,pioneeringsearch-enginefriendlywebsitedesign.
• Informa<onarchitectsince1990.
• Webdesigner/developersince1995.
• WebsiteusabilityandUXprofessionalsince2002.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
• ASLIBJournalofInforma2onManagementEditorialAdvisoryBoard
• UserExperienceProfessionalsAssocia2on(UXPA)BoardMemberFormerlytheUsabilityProfessionalsAssocia<on
• Informa2onArchitectureIns2tute(IAI)BoardMemberandAdvisoryBoard
SeriesAgenda:
• Part1:OverviewofSearchEngineOp<miza<on(SEO)forLibrarians&Libraries
• Part2:KeywordsandCopywri<ng—HowtoWriteSearch-EngineFriendlyContent&LabelingSystemsforLibraryWebsites
• Part3:SEOAccessibility—HowtoCreateSearch-EngineFriendlyWebsiteArchitecture&Naviga<onSystemsforLibraryWebsites
• Part4:WebSearcherGoals&BehaviorsforLibraryWebsites
• Part5:LinkDevelopment&SocialMediaOp<miza<on(SMO)forLibraryWebsites
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Today’sagenda:
• Quickreview
• Taxonomyofwebsearch– Go– Know– Do
• Mobilequeries• En<tysearch
• Graphicimageop<miza<on
• Websearchenginechallenges
• Tips&recommenda<ons
• Ques<ons&answers
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
QUICKREVIEWWebSearcherGoals&BehaviorsforLibraryWebsites
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Searchengineop<miza<on(SEO)isop<mizingawebsiteforpeoplewhousesearchengines.
SEARCH-ENGINE
FRIENDLY
SEOisapartofuserexperience:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
desirable
useful
valuable
accessible
credible
usable
findablefindable
! Browsing
! Searching
! Asking
4fundamentalbuildingblocksofSEO:
1. Keywords,labels,andcopywri2ngDoyourdigitaldocumentscontainthewordsandphrasesthatyourtargetaudiencetypesintosearchqueries?
2. Accessibility(sitearchitecture&forma\ng)Dosearchengineshaveeasy,user-friendlyaccesstocontentthroughsitearchitecture,naviga<on,pagelayout,formaang,andURLstructure?
3. Linkdevelopment&socialsignalsDoesyourwebsitegetobjec<ve,high-quality,third-partylinkspoin<ngtoit(notonlyyourhomepage)?
4. WebsearcherbehaviorsDoesyourwebsiteaccommodateknownsearchergoalsandbehaviors?
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Off-the-page criteria
LinkDevelopment
&Social
SearcherGoals
Keywords&Labels
Access&InfoScent
Torememberaboutkeywordsandlabels:
• Createaclearandconsistentlabelingsystem.Bothsearchersandtechnologyshouldbeabletocorrectlyinterpretyourlabelingsystem.
• 3typesoflabels:– Document
– Naviga<on– Content
• Placeyourkeywordsprominentlyonyourpages.Don’tmakepeoplescrolltodeterminewhatyourcontentisabout.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Torememberaboutarchitectureandnaviga2on:
• Alibrary’swebsitewilllikelyhaveaninforma<onarchitecturebasedon:– Targetaudience– Commontasks
– Topic/subject– Filetype(video,ebook,etc.)– Time/date
– (Alphabe<cal)
• 5typesofwebsitenaviga<on.– Includecontextualandsupplementalnaviga<on.
– Minimizepogo-s<cking.
• MakesureyourURLsareaccessible.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Typesofwebsitenaviga2on:
Global Utilities
Contextual
Loca
l
Supplemental
Where am I? Need help?
What’s related to this content?
Wha
t’s n
earb
y?
Site map
Torememberaboutsearchergoals:
• Websearchershave3maingoals:
– Go(naviga<onal)– Know(informa<onal)
– Do(transac<onal)
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Broder,A.(2002,September).Ataxonomyofwebsearch.InACMSigirforum(Vol.36,No.2,pp.3-10).ACM.Retrievedat:hhps://www.seman<cscholar.org/paper/A-taxonomy-of-web-search-Broder/38cb9bc50282615e0631d47825c5e0c7f691c3f7/pdf
TAXONOMYOFWEBSEARCHWebSearcherGoals&BehaviorsforLibraryWebsites
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Navigational
(Where can I go?)
Transactional
(What can I do?)
Informational
(What can I learn?)
Naviga2onalintent:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Re-find
Knowncontent/site
Naviga2onalqueries:
• Ifasearcher’sgoalistogotoaspecificwebsiteortoaspecificpagewithinawebsite,thenthekeywordsareconsideredtobenaviga2onal.
• Inotherwords,searchersareusingthewebsearchenginestonavigate(goto)aspecificsite.
• Forawebpage,ifthewebsearcher’sgoalisnaviga<onal,thenthefollowingitemsareimportantforrankingpurposes:
– OverallURLstructure– Filename– Domainname
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Indicatorsofnaviga2onalqueries:
• Por<onsofURLs
• 1or2keywords
• Domainsuffixes(.com)
• Appearanceofsitelinks
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
SITELINKS
Benefitsofgoodlabelsandarchitecture:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
TIP:Testyourlibrarywebsitefornaviga<onalqueries.
Tes2ngyourlibrarysite:
• Forofficialname– Dositelinksappear?– ArethereanysitelinksyouDON’Twanttoappear?
• Forcommonabbrevia<ons(ifused)
• City+publiclibrary
• Withandwithoutadvancedsearchoperators
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Usingadvancedsearchoperators:
Informa2onalintent:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Answertoques<on Quickfact
ListReadreviews
Informa2onalqueries:
• Searcherwantstoreadorknowmoreinforma<onaboutatopic.
• Canbebroadorspecific.
• Quickanswerstoaques<on.
• Goalistolearnsomethingbyreadingorviewingcontentontheweb:– Text– Images
– Audiofiles– Videofiles
• Note:majorityofsearchqueriesareinforma<onalinnature.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Indicatorsofinforma2onalqueries:
• Ques<onwords
• 4ormorekeywords
• Plurals(listintheU.S.)
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Answertoaques2on:
• FAQs
• Reference
• How-tos
• Guides
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
AveragenumberofsearchtermsforonlinesearchqueriesintheUnitedStatesasofJanuary2016:
Bycountry:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
hhp://www.keyworddiscovery.com/keyword-stats.html
Newin2016:
• KnowSimple
– KnowSimplequeriesareforshort,rela<velyfactualsearches.
– Googleintroducedthisnewcategoryforinforma<onalqueriesthatcanbeansweredwithashort(1-2sentence)answerthatisnotcontroversial,i.e.thetypeofanswerthatissuitedforthesedirectanswer-typeresponses.
– Thesealsoincludeimpliedqueries(notinformofaques<on).
• Know
– Queriesthataretoocomplexorhavetoomanypossibleanswers.
– ManycontroversialtopicsareconsideredtobeKnowQueries,becausetherearedifferentopinionsonatopicthatusuallycan’tbeansweredin1–2sentences.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Insearchresults:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
hhps://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/6229325?hl=en
Transac2onalintent:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Watchavideo
Listentomusic
Lookatpictures
Download
Transac2onalqueries:
• Searcherintendstocompleteatransac<on(purchase,download,enroll,playagame,beentertained,etc.)
• Willinteractwiththecontentonthewebpage.
• Note:Manysearchquerieshavemul<pleintents:
– Iwanttodo________________(transac<onal)– AserIsee__________________(informa<onal)
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Indicatorsoftransac2onalqueries:
• Interac<onverbs(apply)
• Ac<vitynouns(videos)
• Fileextensions(.jpg,.mp3)
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Examplesoftransac2onalkeywords:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Interac2onverb: Ac2vitynoun:
• Apply • Applica<on
• Calculate • Calculator
• Subscribe • Subscrip<on
• Register • Registra<on
• Findorlocate • Loca<on(s)
Loca2onfinder:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
hhp://www.chipublib.org/loca<ons/15/
MOBILEQUERIESWebSearcherGoals&BehaviorsforLibraryWebsites
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Formobilequeries:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Quickfact Loca2on PersonalInforma2on
Mobileinforma2onneedsaretriggeredbycontext:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Chua,A.Y.,Balkunje,R.S.,&Goh,D.H.L.(2011,March).TheInfluenceofUser-ContextonMobileInforma<onNeeds.InAdvancedInforma?onNetworkingandApplica?ons(WAINA),2011IEEEWorkshopsofInterna?onalConferenceon(pp.721-726).IEEE.
ENTITYSEARCHWebSearcherGoals&BehaviorsforLibraryWebsites
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Anen2tyis…
• “…athingorconceptthatissingular,unique,well-definedanddis<nguishable,”accordingtoarecentGooglepatent,RankingSearchResultsBasedOnEn?tyMetrics.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Searcherbehaviorvaries:
• Searcherbehaviorsaredifferentfor:– Knownen<<es– Par<allyknownen<<es– Unknownen<<es
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Source:Moore,R.(2013).ANameisWorthaThousandPictures:Referen<alPrac<ceinHumanInterac<onswithInternetSearchEngines.InMobileSpeechandAdvancedNaturalLanguageSolu?ons(pp.259-286).SpringerNewYork.
Knownen2ty:
• Ifsearchersknowthenameofanen<ty,theyusethatname.
• 1/3oftestpar<cipantsusedtheen<tyname.
• 1.4queriesonaverageifknewen<tyname.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Whoisthis?
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Photosource:hhp://commons.wikimedia.org/wikiFile:Cate_Blancheh_face_3.jpg
Searchresults:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
“IwanttogototheNa<onalCancerIns<tutewebsite.”
Searchresults:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
“Iwantinforma<onabouttheEiffelTower.”
Searchresults:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
“IwanttheGailBordenLibrarywebsite.”
Searchresults:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Par2allyknownen2ty:
• Searchersusedatwo-stepapproach:
– Useagenericdescrip<on
– Usedarelatedname
– Lookatgraphicimages
– 18%lookatWikipedia
• Ifthenameoftheen<tyislearned?Thatiswhatsearchersuseinsubsequentqueries.
• 6.7queriesonaverageforpar<allyknownen<<es.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Whatisthis?
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Searchresults:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
CLICK
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
“Wha???”
Searchresults:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
CLICK
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Thisiscalledascimitar:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
“There’samuseuminParisthatisinarailwaysta<onorcar.Idon’tremembertheexactname.”
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
“Wha???”
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
“Okay,maybeI’lltrythewordrailwayinstead.”
“Ooh!Let’strythatfirstone.”
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
“Great!That’swhatit’scalled.”
“Idon’twanttheWikipedialis<ng,though.”
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
CLICK
Inthispar2allyknownen2tyexample:
1. SearcherknewitwasamuseuminParis,butdidnotrememberthename.
2. Thefirstsetofsearchlis<ngsmadenosensetothesearcher.Sohe/shedecidedtomodifythequerywithadifferentword.Thisiscalledqueryreformula2on.
3. Google’sautosugges<ontoolgavethestrongestinforma2onscent.
4. Searchergotthenameofthemuseum,theMuseed’Orsay.
5. Searcherusedthenameofthemuseuminthesubsequentsearch.
6. Searchergotdesiredresults.He/sheclickedonanEnglish-languageversionlis<ngoftheMuseed’Orsaywebsite.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Whenwebsearchershaveadifficult2mefindinginforma2on:
• Formulatemorediversequeries
• Usemoreadvancedsearchoperators
• Spendlonger2meonSERPs(searchengineresultspages)
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Whenhighlyskillfulsearchersstruggletofinddesiredcontent:
• Pahern– Trydifferentqueries– Getfrustrated– Findanotherway(suchasaskingafriendorcolleague)
• Bodylanguage(frustra<onsignals):– Frown– Somestartbi<ngtheirnails
– Manyleanclosertothemonitorasiftomakesurethey'renotmissingsomethingobvious
– Inthink-aloudstudies,stopthinkingaloud
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Unknownen2ty:
• Ifsearchersareunabletodeterminethenameofanen<ty,theygiveup.
• Average9.5queriesbeforetheygaveup.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Tilde(~)search:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
No<cethatmuseums(plural)ishighlightedinsearchlis<ngs.
Louvreisalsohighlighted.
Labelsareextremelyimportanttousers:
• Labelyouren<<esinawaythatmakessensetoyourtargetaudience(users).
• Providecontexttoyouren<<es.
• Don’toverwhelmusers–usabilitycounts!
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Howtoop2mize:
• Ifsearchersdon’tknowwhattocalltheirdesiredcontent,theylookforcues:– Graphicimages
– Relatedkeywords– Wikipediaitems
• Therefore,3thingstodoforen<tyop<miza<on:– Graphicimageop<miza<on
– ReviewWikipediainforma<onabouttheen<<esyouwishtobefoundfor.Whatwords/phrasescanyouaddtocontenttoensurefindability.
– Treateveryaccessiblepageonsiteasapointofentry
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
GRAPHICIMAGEOPTIMIZATIONWebSearcherGoals&BehaviorsforLibraryWebsites
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Websearchengineslookat:
• Titletagofpagewhereimage(s)islocated
• Visiblecontentcopy• Textatthetopofawebpage(Whatiscontentabout?)
• Inandaroundhypertextlinks• Meta-tagcontent
• Alterna<vetext(whenapplicable)• URL(includesdomainandfilenames)
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Fileformat:
• IfthefileisaJPEGorJPG,thensearchenginesusuallyinterpretthefileasaphotographoracomplexgraphicimage.
• Inotherwords:
logo.png
isprobablyagraphicimageofalogo,and
atm-machine.jpg
isprobablyaphotographofanATMmachine.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Canyouiden2fythisgraphicimage?
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
hhp://images.medicinenet.com/images/illustra<ons/heart_ahack.jpg
Wereyouright?
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Alterna2vetext:
• Intheeventthatagraphicimagedoesnotload,alterna<vetextcanappearinitsplace.
• Codeexample<imgsrc=“images/logo.png”width=“100”height=“60”alt=“XYZlogo”/>
• Alterna<vetextisveryimportantforaccessibility.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Imageop2miza2onguidelines:
• Makesureyouformatgraphicimagescorrectly(diagramvs.photo).
• Nameyourgraphicimagesinawaythatmakessensetoyourtargetaudience.Donotletsoswaregeneratefilenames.
• Makesuregraphicimages’URLsarealsoeasytounderstand.
• Usecap<onsandsubheadingstoprovidecontextualcuestoimagesearchenginesaswellassearcherswhenappropriate.
• Ifyouareunabletocreatecap<ons,makesurethepagesthatcontainanimageisop<mizedfortargetedkeywordphrases.
• Providemul<plepointsofaccesstoimages.
• Usabilitycounts!– Minimizedownload<me(compressionanddimensions)– Usealterna<vetext
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
WEBSEARCHENGINECHALLENGESWebSearcherGoals&BehaviorsforLibraryWebsites
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Searchresultsarefarfromperfect.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Challenge#1–Correctlyinterpre2ngsearcherintent:
• Forsometypesofqueries,mostorallsearcherswantthesamething.
• Forotherquerytypes,differentsearcherswantdifferentresultsBUTtheyusethesamekeywordorkeywordphrasephrase.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Whatisthissearcher’sintent?
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Searchmouse
Forlibrarywebsites:
• Alwaysprovidecontext.
• Treateverywebpageasapointofentry.Don’tassumesearcherswillprovidecontext.
• TIP:Use<ldesearches.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
No<cethatmuseums(plural)ishighlightedinsearchlis<ngs.
Louvreisalsohighlighted.
Challenge#2–Naviga2onalvs.informa2onalintent:
• Somekeywordphrasesthatseemtocommunicateinforma<onalintentareactuallyaresultofre-finding(naviga<onalintent).
• Tobeherunderstandkeywordsanduserintent,searchenginesareexploringanumberofitems:
– Lookatsearch/webhistorytoseewhatsearchershavealreadydone– Searchercharacteris<cs(geographicloca<on,language,etc.)– Context
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Forlibrarywebsites:
• Regularlyreviewyoursite-searchandweb-analy<csdata.
– Howareusersfindingyoursiteandcontent?– Isthereinanincreaseinnaviga<onalqueries?– Whatarecommon404(PageNotFound)queries?
– Over<me,arelessandlessusersarrivingatpagesotherthanyourhomepage?
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Challenge#3–Accurateweb/searchhistory:
• ByrecordingwhatpeopleclickoninSERPs,searchenginescanlearnthesitesthatanindividualsearcherfavors.
• Searchhistoryisnotalwaysappropriatetohelpsearchersaccomplishtheirdesiredgoals:
– Searchers’interestschangeover<me
– Peopleworkondifferentcategoriesortaskswithinashort<mespan
– Mul<pleusers/searchersusethesamecomputer
– Onepersonsearchesformanydifferentpeople
– Vanitysearches:SEOprofessionalsandwebsiteownersliketosearchforclientortheirownsites
– Personaliza<on(withwebhistory)canimpedesearchers’desirestodiscovernewtopics(informa<onalintent)
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Challenge#4–Recencyorfreshness:
• Short-terminterestsareoqeninconsistentwithgeneraluserinterests.
• Inotherwords:
– Recenthistory"beherforfreshqueries
– En<rehistory"beherforrecurringqueries
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Forlibrarywebsites:
• Stayfocusedonactualusers.Googleandotherwebsearchengineswillnotalwayscorrectlyinterpretyourcontent.
– Writeaccuratelabels.
– Minimizeduplica<on.
– Allowforeasyaccessibility.– Archiveproperly.
• Remember,websearchengineshavecommercialinterests.
– MarkersofQuality:TheRoleofLibrariansinEverydayLifeInforma2onLiteracy|PeertoPeerReviewhhp://lj.libraryjournal.com/2015/12/academic-libraries/markers-of-quality-the-role-of-librarians-in-everyday-life-informa<on-literacy-peer-to-peer-review/#_
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Minimizeduplica2on–userobots.txt:
• Recommendedforsitesearchresults.
• CreateaURLstructurethatputssitesearchresultsinadirectory:
library.org/search/
• Robots.txtatextfilethatsimplystates:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
User-agent:*Disallow:/search/
Anotheralterna2ve:
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
URLsforyourreference:
• hhps://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/6062596?hl=en
• hhps://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/6080550?hl=en
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Insummary:
• Websearchershave3maingoals:– Go(naviga<onal)– Know(informa<onal)– Do(transac<onal)
• TestyourwebsitetoensureitALWAYSmeetsnaviga<onalgoals.
• Op<mizelabels.
• Implementgraphicimageop<miza<onforunknownandpar<allyknownitemsonyourwebsite.
• Includeahelpsec<ononyoursite.Addresourcesover<me(andincludescreenshots,ifnecessary.)
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
Ques2ons?
Copyright1995-2016.Allrightsreserved.
ShariThurow,FounderandSEODirectorOmniMarke<ngInterac<ve