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.
