How Can Data Visualization Improve SEO? Opinion Of The Semalt Experts
SEO relies on a lot of planning and execution of an SEO strategy before we can say we are successfully running an SEO campaign. However, it isn't as simple as that when dealing with clients. And there's a problem, especially when we can keep showing pools of numbers to clients because they hardly understand, and they are mentally exhausting.
This is why data visualization has become such an important tool for SEOs.
Data visualization represents your data (number) in a visual form like graphs or maps so that it can be easily understood with clarity. Without visualization and data to quickly show us trends, patterns, and insights, our chances of collaborating with partners and other departments plummet.
Types of Data Visualization
The idea behind data visualization is to break down complicated data sets into concise and clear messages. Over the years, we've found creative ways to achieve the same result. It started with an Excel spreadsheet; then, we evolved to using charts, graphs, and tables.
Today there are a plethora of other options available to experts. We can create very elaborate data visualizations using:
- Heatmaps
- Infographics
- Data art
- Bubble clouds
- Radial trees
- Bullet graphs
- Animated charts
- Interactive charts
- And more...
How To Choose The Right Visualization Type
Choose a visualization type that best communicates your message effectively.
Here is a quick guide to assist you:
- Identify what message you want to communicate and summarize it in a short sentence.
- Find the data you need to communicate your message and simplify it as well.
- Understand the type of data you have.
- Consider what data visualization method will catch the attention of your audience.
- Consider the information you need to include to make your visualized data interesting and understandable.
Why is Data Visualization Important?
Modern companies use machine learning to generate massive amounts of data which gives them an undue advantage over their competitors. To understand the sheer amount of data they gather, they must sort, filter, and explain it; so they can use it and explain it to their stakeholders and board.
Using data visualization makes it easier for brands to identify patterns and SEO trends. Visualization also makes it easy to pass information among team members and teams. There are many benefits to making data visualization a habit in your business.
Creates an easy way for non-experts to understand
Experts spend years learning and understanding what user numbers mean. Stakeholders, on the other hand, will get a headache if we try to explain data in its raw form, so we use data visualization to express to our stakeholders and clients how and what is happening.
Visualization makes it easy to communicate in a language they understand. This can increase by ins to ideas and transform site traffic into sales, contributing to the business success.
Enable Faster and Easier Communication
Data visualization gets the message across in a quick glance. All businesses are looking to create awareness around their products to the public. With a shrinking attention span, it's becoming harder for marketers to get their audience to read tons of words.
Simplifying messages into visual content makes them easier to present, understand, and memorize. More people will focus on visual content easier than text. Visual representations easily capture the attention of customers; it also makes it easier to persuade potential customers and investors.
Analyze Patterns and Trends
Business industries watch specific patterns and trends to take full advantage of the market. Visualization data summarize complicated and lengthy processes for identifying current and future opportunities.
It is your role as a business owner to make prudent decisions that align with the market situation.
Motivate Team Members
Business success largely depends on how well its individual teams interact with themselves. You need team members to put in the work, so the production process goes on smoothly.
Data visualization can help team members identify and develop innovative ways to improve the overall success of your business. It can show a business's current position and its best direction forward.
The process makes room for easier understanding and can motivate team members to work harder and move the business forward.
Improve Customer Experience
Visualizing data plays a pivotal role in making your customers happier. The data makes it easy to ensure your customers are happy and understand what's going on with your business. This helps businesses make their customers happier, and their requirements are included.
With data visualization, businesses can shape, filter, and disintegrate data on demand with little effort.
Types of Data Visualization
Bar Graphs
A bar graph is a common and simple way to represent numbers. Think back to your school days and science projects. Bar graphs can be horizontal or vertical, with each bar representing a unique data set.
We can use bar graphs to represent any group of numbers you need to compare side-by-side. Bars can be colored differently to represent categories.
Pie Charts
A pie chart is a circle showing 100% of something. The circle is divided into slices or segments to show subcategories or the different parts of a whole using ratios or percentages.
Pie charts are a great way to show how various categories compare to the whole. For example, a pie chart can be used to categorize your audience based on their location, age, language, or shopping preferences.
Tables
Tables may not be as visually appealing, but they can be used as a great way to display information in an easy-to-understand format. Tables allow us to provide multiple data points or categories and make it easy to identify the relationship between data sets.
Using column titles and colors, it is easy to uncluster data. Keeping everything lined up and clear makes it easier for readers to follow.
Infographics
Infographics are probably the most visual way to represent data. It could mean anything from cartoons to simple videos. However, infographics are typically set as a curated collection of icons, charts, graphs, and short text.
They are great for an overview, usually designed with strong headlines and numbers. If you're not sure of how to tell a story or narrative, infographics are your best bet.
The Impact Of Data Visualization on SEO
A large portion of optimizing for search engines has to do with understanding data. Keyword search volume is something we constantly analyze to understand the number of times visitors search for a particular keyword.
SEO data is critical for driving and understanding organic traffic in different online markets. Another key piece of data to monitor is Page Speed. This determines a webpage's readability which is crucial for UX.
Understanding the interplay between the data you gather and its impact on the final sheet of your business is crucial to the success of any website. Data visualization helps you track changes in trends and understand them in a broad view.
Visualizing your data has a significant impact on how it's understood. Luckily for SEOs, there are several visualization tools that present a detailed analysis of any site from the SEO point of view.
Presenting keyword density, page traffic, and more in charts and graphs helps other teams and executives grasp every aspect of an SEO campaign. It is fair to say that data visualization helps elevate your SEO capabilities in several ways. Here are some areas where visualization is most effective.
Competitive analysis
SEOs are always checking what the competition is doing. This analysis helps us understand what our competitor's strengths and weaknesses are. We also learn of new areas or ideas we can adopt or improve.
Backlink Analysis
Visualization helps you create an effective link-building campaign. Creating a visual representation of what pages have the most links easily shows you new link opportunities and which pages have too many links.
Conclusion
Data visualization is a vital contribution to the success of your overall business practice. What makes data visualization essential to our system is its ability to simplify and communicate complicated data sets visually.
Large bulky sums of data take up space and appear unattractive. This makes it difficult to carry everyone along. Converting large amounts of data into infographics, charts, and graphs makes them easier to digest by less tech-savvy and analytical viewers.
Interested in SEO? Check out our other articles on the Semalt blog.