Engaging Site and Superior SEO: Are They Mutually Exclusive?

Golden Eggs of Engaging Experiences

I read something recently that said, the “best” content for being found by search engines and editing in the CMS is plain text, wrapped only by the standard tags – paragraphs, unordered lists, H2, H3, H4, etc.

I agree that there is value in text content and standard tags. However, there has to be an engaging experience for the site visitor. Remember, we humans like images, audio, video, things that engage what neuro marketing evangelists call the “old brain”.  Many, if not most,   don’t make logical decisions. Most make emotional decisions that they support with facts, features, benefits, etc. that tell them their emotional decision was the “right” one.

Yes, consumers do utilize natural search to find sites and Google utilizes text content, links, etc. in determining SERP value. However, even Google sees the value of images, video, and other engaging elements in establishing serach return value.

I recently found on http://www.neurosciencemarketing.com a new study from One to One Interactive’s OTOInsights has brought the disparate fields together with a new study, Implications of User Engagement with Search Result Pages. This research examined the effects of “universal” search results (which include images and video results) vs. the traditional text-only SERPs. The findings showed that the universal SERPs were, in fact, more emotionally engaging, creating significant implications for both SEO and SEM practices:

SERPs which include Universal Search results reinforce eyeballs to stay focused on the first page’s top paid and natural search results

Implications:
- The advent of Universal Search demands that companies optimize not only their text, but also their media (images, videos, etc)
- Image and video results may anchor users to stay at the top of the SERP
- Images and videos will begin to impact what users will click on first in a SERP
[From Implications of User Engagement with Search Result Pages (summary).]

The second insight claimed by the researchers is,

The inclusion of Universal Search results increase emotional engagement during interactions with a SERP

Implications:
- Users will get an ‘instant gratification’ from images – perhaps more so from branded images
- Higher engagement with Universal results may stop users from exploring the rest of the SERP

The researchers recorded “biophysical signals” as well as eye and click tracking data (part of the “Quantemo neuromarketing research system”) to analyze. In addition, two written surveys were collected as part of the effort to measure emotional engagement. (More info can be found in the white paper.)

I have also been working with Jim Fortin, founder of Mind Authority to pull the fields of Neuro Persuasion and SEO together and found much of what the One to One study results report to be right on target.

Remember, people buy experiences, not keywords. As we begin to combine good text content, engaging visual and video content, Universal Search, and engaging customer experiences, we will serve our clients and customers better and get much more out of our SERP real estate.