BrightEdge Share15 - S302: Beyond the Algorithm – Advanced SEO & Technical Trajectory - Binti Pawa
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This document summarizes Binti Pawa's presentation on content migrations at BRIGHTEDGE. It discusses Time Inc.'s properties and Binti's background. The bulk of the document outlines Time Inc.'s migration of the InStyle website, including conducting an audit, updating taxonomy and URLs, implementing 301 redirects, and monitoring performance post-launch. Key metrics showed a 25% increase in organic traffic and a 100% increase in organic visibility after the migration. The presentation emphasizes the importance of planning, testing redirects, and tracking metrics before and after a content migration.
BrightEdge Share15 - S302: Beyond the Algorithm – Advanced SEO & Technical Trajectory - Binti Pawa
- 1. The leading industry event by digital marketers for digital marketers powered by BRIGHTEDGE “Surviving the Perfect Storm” of Content Migrations Binti Pawa, Head of SEO for AMG & InStyle
- 2. @brightedge #share15 Time Inc At-a-Glance • Time Inc. is one of the largest media companies in the world reaching more than 130 million people globally each month across multiple platforms • Founded in 1922 by Henry Luce and Briton Hadden in New York City • 95 iconic brands and 50 offices around the world • Nearly half of U.S. adults engage with a Time Inc. brand each month • 81 Million people connect with our brands online every month
- 3. @brightedge #share15 Binti Pawa is a Digital Marketing and Search Engine Optimization veteran with over ten years’ experience in in-house leading performance-driven growth for both start-ups and corporate heavyweights. She is presently the Head of SEO for Time Inc.'s Affluent Media Group, working on such brands as InStyle, Travel + Leisure and Food & Wine, where she is responsible for leading, developing, and integrating SEO and content strategies. Before working in Digital Publishing, she was immersed in Travel as the head of SEO and Social for enterprise brands CheapOair, OneTravel and Travelocity.
- 4. @brightedge #share15 Content Migration – Why Migrate? Every enterprise situation is unique • Maybe consolidating two or more websites • Maybe moving to a new technology platform (CMS) • Maybe redesigning the site • Maybe positioning a new content strategy
- 5. @brightedge #share15 How to migrate with least impact to natural search?
- 6. @brightedge #share15 InStyle Content Migration InStyle is the largest fashion magazine in the US Total brand footprint ~ 23.7MM Source: AAM 1H 2015; GfK MRI Spring 2015; MediaRadar FY 2014
- 7. @brightedge #share15 Traffic Increases over 25% in 6 months How has organic traffic & page views to InStyle increased post migration? Migration Migration Visits Highest * Feb 2015 vs. Aug 2015 Seasonality
- 8. @brightedge #share15 Migration Plan Discovery & Baseline • Identify types of changes • Manage expectations Planning & Implementation • Content Audit • URLs & Redirects Launch & Cleanup • Unplanned Gotcha’s Phase I: CMS Migration Phase II: Sub-domain Consolidation Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3
- 9. @brightedge #share15 Stage 1: Discovery & Baseline
- 10. @brightedge #share15 What was changing for us? • Content & Meta • Taxonomy • URLs • Design functionality • Site Structure
- 11. @brightedge #share15 Baseline Reports • Create reports pre migration: – How is our keywords performing on page 1? – How is our keywords performing on position 1? – How are my top keywords performing by device type? – What is the avg. monthly traffic & conversions pre migration? – What is the avg. monthly engagement? • Run a crawl on the site – Get a list of all the URLs • # of pages indexed in Google/Bing • # of Backlinks • Don’t forget Google Webmaster Tools Data! Understand your current performance
- 12. @brightedge #share15 Stage 2: Planning & Implementation
- 13. @brightedge #share15 Content Audit Determining which pages to migrate is crucial 1. A thorough analysis of the site’s content 2. Identified areas of strength & weakness 3. Eliminated content that was no longer needed 4. Partially hand migrated content – working closely with edit for cleanup purposes Steps Taken: # of pages migrating Content types to migrate Pages that will not migrate Review # of pages indexed TIP: Don’t migrate the site unchanged
- 14. @brightedge #share15 Taxonomy & Structure 1. Manually create or update existing taxonomy with the help of keyword research 2. The taxonomy should dictate your URL structure 3. Your top level taxonomy will most likely become part of your navigation 4. Site hierarchy should dictate your breadcrumb navigation to some degree TIP: Link, Link & Link! Link vertically & horizontally Organize content better
- 15. @brightedge #share15 New Taxonomy Increased Visibility by 439% How has changing the taxonomy improved the rank visibility for InStyle? * BrightEdge Data Cube: Feb 2015 vs. Aug 2015
- 16. @brightedge #share15 URLs TIP: Preserve URLs! … but, don’t be scared if you can not
- 17. @brightedge #share15 301 Redirects What should you do if URLs must change? Scenario 1 1:1 mapping of URLs: (e.g. youroldsite.com/fashion/accessories/green-shoes-456 yournewsite.com/fashion/accessories/green- shoes Scenario 2 Content/Product is discontinued: Option 1: Find a very related page that would be a substitute Option 2: Redirect to the sub-category of the content or product page (e.g. youroldsite.com/fashion/accessories/green-shoes-456 youroldsite.com/fashion/accessories/ Option 3: If the content or product is outdated/discontinued redirect to the parent category (e.g. youroldsite.com/fashion/accessories/green-shoes-456 youroldsite.com/fashion/ Scenario 3 Can’t find an appropriate page? If there is no appropriate page on the site to redirect, then simply do a 404 (page not found)
- 18. @brightedge #share15 Stage 3: Launch & Cleanup
- 19. @brightedge #share15 Post Launch Audit is Extremely Important 1. Verify your redirects are working as expected 2. Run a technical site audit using Screaming Frog, Deep Crawl or BrightEdge ‘site audit’ feature 3. Verify status codes are correct 4. Identify & fix any chain redirects ASAP!
- 20. @brightedge #share15 100% Increase in Total Organic Visibility YOY How has the organic visibility for InStyle improved after the migration? * BrightEdge Data Cube: July 2014 vs. July 2015
- 21. @brightedge #share15 29% Increase in Page 1 Visibility YOY How has the page 1 ranked keywords improved post migration? * BrightEdge : September 2014 vs. Aug 2015
- 22. @brightedge #share15 Learning's along the way DO NOT wait to address bad or no redirects after launch! Migration
- 23. @brightedge #share15 Final Words • Communicate your SEO migration plan & set expectations in advance • Crucial to have a redirect plan to prevent any loss of traffic • Create baseline reports pre migration • Every site is unique, therefore carefully asses changes and plan accordingly with best practices in mind • Site migrations are not as scary as it looks