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10 questions to our forward-thinking SEO expert

Michele Magnani is a freelance SEO expert living in Pavia. Entirely fascinated by Google, he’s the kind of guy who, based on your search history, will tell you who you are. Michele joined the glueglue team more than one year ago and has been working with us on some great projects ever since. Proud dad and digital communication lover he’s not afraid of predicting the future.

What do you find the most interesting about Google?

Google has the power to guide the user to the World Wide Web. It is undoubtedly the most important search engine. The best in the world. That’s why its positioning is so powerful. Especially if you own any e-commerce – being on the first page means a better ROI (Return on Investment) than if you were on the second or third page. There are the techniques that will help you do that and they’re constantly evolving. It’s so fascinating to watch them change and improve. There’s this saying by Wendy Persall that “Google only loves you when everyone else loves you first”. Making yourself more findable from the others has become fundamental.

It’s all about the link, isn’t it? 

 You would think: a link? It’s so simple to create a link, it takes a second. But you need to remember it’s your business card. And the only way to navigate the Web. If other people link to your website then Google will think that you’re important, that you provide high quality content. It will then bring you to the first page. This is one of many aspects of Google’s functioning, though. A drop in the sea of many other features.

We’re in the era of Google, where a software manages our entire lives. It knows our social media profiles. Knows where we live, where we go out and where we travel. Knows when we stay at home and when we’re out. Being aware of how Google operates and interacts with our data is fundamental. Especially in regards to our future. Because it’ll get even more like this. Unless someone shows up and says STOP. That’s enough. Or, stop, we want to have a competition, we want to have a choice.  

That’s exactly what’s so fascinating about Google – on one hand they way it manages our lives and on the other hand, how we can interact with it. Since it is a Monopoly, we need to understand it. It’s like knowing the laws of your own country. 

Don’t you think it’s a little bit overwhelming?

 Yes, it is. Google has a great power. We’ve come to this point where a search engine can provide and manage your data and information. Your identity so to speak. And if it’s able to do that, it has the power to affect your privacy and as a result, your freedom. With that all in mind, Google’s pretty scary. And that is exactly why we should get to know it. And understand how it works.   

Can you think of any alternatives to Google that may arise?

The alternative for now is the know-how. If people get this know-how they will be aware of what they’re giving out. If you’re not conscious of it, Google will take all this data without your knowing.  

Ok, things got pretty serious. Let’s calm down a bit and talk about SEO. What do you need to remember when working on a SEO strategy?

Putting your client in the center of your project. Some time ago the core focus of the businesses was either a specific product or a service. Now, you need to really focus on the clients and their needs. You have to always bear in mind that at the end of the day, it’s all about the people. If you do that, you can be a good SEO strategist. 

Moreover, you need to be very precise when addressing Google as it doesn’t read the websites the way we do. It reads the coding. So you need to be very precise: Google, this is what we’re doing, this is our product, our service.  

So you need to be explicit and remember to put yourself in the user’s shoes. Or phones.  

Exactly!

Words play an important role in SEO. If you had to choose one word to describe yourself, what would that be? 

 Open-minded. 

Cool.

Do you like it?

I do. I like open-minded people in general.

Me too.

You describe yourself as a full-time dad. Is there something you learned from being a father that helps you in your work? 

Two things. The first one is the importance of the words you say. Because the baby repeats the words after you. So, you really need to choose the right words and it makes you think about the way you formulate your thoughts. 

And then, you also get to be more flexible and organized. Because the needs change very quickly!

What helps you stay focused?

The calm. And the capacity to multitask. People say that women are better than men at multitasking. Well, in the working environment, everyone needs to be multitasking. The reality is that the needs and demands change rapidly,  there’s always many things to do.  You need to have the ability and self-discipline to work on one thing, then pause it, finish the other assignment then go back to the previous task and so on. Plus, the music.

What genre?

Electronic music and blues rock. 

This was a very inspiring talk. Last question for you: what kind of advice would you give to a 20-year-old self?

 Internet is a great tool. It’s a powerful tool. Use it well. 

 

Our replies
to your questions

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Why choose glueglue?

We are a digital product agency with more than 10 years of experience and highly specialized skills in both design and development.
Over time, we have consolidated an agile and effective method to work best with all types of clients: from the start-up that needs some kind of support to the multinational corporation that wants to integrate a team with design and executive agility, our most appreciated peculiarity.
We are positioned in a medium-high market segment and are able to offer excellent value for money. Direct supervision by glueglue's founding partners of each project ensures the highest quality of service and finished product. We are on the top list of the best User Experience and digital product agencies on Clutch, the most widely used database of digital consulting agencies in the world.

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How does glueglue work and what are the areas of expertise?

We always start with a careful analysis of the customer's needs considering not only the product needs but also the medium and long-term business objectives.
As a first step, we often deal with the visual identity, evaluating the positioning by analyzing the competitor and identifying areas for improvement in terms of branding and image.
Then, we move on to the UX/UI area: we study the user experience of your product or service through a UX Review with 3 dedicated professionals to identify the points which it is necessary to act to improve the usability of the site or app examined.
In the following phase, we design the User Journey Map, i.e. the map of all the paths that the user follows, interacting with the product and the brand . Identifying all the contact points is of strategic importance in order to immerse ourselves in situations of real use and understand where value can really be created for the end user and therefore for the product.
We will then move on to the phase of creating the wireframes, with the sharing of an interactive prototype that will define the functionality and structure of each single page and interaction of the product.
Once the wireframes have been consolidated, we will move on to the design phase of the graphic interface, with attention paid to the smallest details in so as to ensure a positive and truly satisfying user experience.
At this point, our developers come into play for the implementation part. We use the most current technologies such as React, Flutter, Gatsby JS, Symfony, Node.JS and others to create products with high standards of quality and stability, working and pixel perfect.

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What distinguishes glueglue from other top design or product agencies?

To offer maximum value, the glueglue team works on a limited number of projects. In this way, our professionals can dedicate an uninterrupted focus to always obtain excellent results.
Each project is managed on the basis of precise deadlines and intermediate meetings with the client. We take care of the unique needs and potential of each product and consequently, each solution created is exclusive and highly customized.
Thanks to the experience of 10+ years in the digital sector, we have developed a successful method to achieve the highest goals in the areas that matter: strategy, design and development.

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Can you do web design?

We work on all types of digital products, from iOS and Android apps to webapps and complex platforms.
Furthermore, part of the team specializes in creating marketing websites, i.e. websites totally focused on promoting the product or services.

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Do you also do branding or should I look for another agency?

Being a full-service agency, we also offer branding services such as naming and logo design. Among the products we create for our customers, the brand guidelines stand out, i.e. the detailed guidelines document for the corporate image. We are totally comfortable working on existing guidelines or in collaboration with a branding agency.

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How much does it cost to entrust you with a digital project?

We like to always be as transparent as possible and we believe that talking openly about the budget is important to understand how to get added value from the partnership for both parties. Given this, since each customer has its own peculiarities and presents different challenges, we do not use a price list, but we invest time to understand the customer's reality well and provide a specific approach and an appropriate price.
Indicatively, the price of user experience and graphical interface design projects can vary in a range between €10,000 and €30,000, depending on various factors such as the client's needs and the complexity of the project.
The cost of the projects in area Branding is positioned between €5,000 and €15,000, always taking into account any possible peculiarities.
As regards the more technical part, the cost for the development of iOS and Android web and mobile apps ranges from €20,000 upwards .
Website development starts from a minimum of €10,000. Our average hourly rate for single consultations is €60 per hour.
If you want to get to know us better, you can schedule 30 minutes free by appointment.

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Do you also work with early stage startups, therefore with limited resources?

Of course, we love startups! Over time we have met many enlightened and highly talented entrepreneurs.
We have invested in some startups, preferring work for equity. Our experience has always been positive, contributing to the achievement of various rounds of investments for a total value of over 30 million Euros.

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