Improving the Communication Lines Between SEOs and Website Developers
SEO practitioners and website developers constantly work hand in hand to carry out the design, technical and content specifications of a website. The ultimate weapon that you will have is if you are an SEO practitioner and you know how to develop and design a website also, which is considered a double threat in the industry. But somewhat this is not a common thing that is happening in the industry so it is not unavoidable that as an SEO practitioner, you will also get to work hand in hand with a separate website developer in order to make your website truly competitive.
As with any working relationship that you will have, it is important that you get to communicate well with the person that you are working for so that your project will carry out effectively and without any hassles. Communication is an important thing in a business relationship because you need to convey what your needs are so that the other person can also take note of it and do the appropriate actions required.
But you also have to acknowledge the fact that communication is a two-way process. You can’t just say what you need to get done and think that its the end of your communication process. You also have to know that listening is also the other side of communicating so you also have to listen attentively to what your web developer is trying to say to you.
The main problem between the long-standing rift between web developers and SEO practitioners can somewhat be pointed to the fact that these two roles want two completely different things. A web developer would want to have a seamless design on his website and he would more likely concentrate on the physical aspects of the site whereas an SEO practitioner would also put importance on the design, but more importance will be given to the content of the website. In order to work together effectively, these two parties should try to strike a common ground wherein both their individual needs will be met.
In order to work together seamlessly, here are some tips that you could do so that you will have better communication lines with your web developer.
Decide who’s the boss
Before you go ahead and start on with your collaboration, it is better if you get a chance to sit down with your web developer and decide who will have the last say or the final decision maker when it comes to solving problems and reaching decisions throughout the project. Deciding who will be the boss in your project will ensure proper project implementation plus it will also give you the benefit of minimizing arguments and reaching resolutions.
Formulate a plan
Again, this should be done before you can go ahead and start with your project. Sit down with all the parties involved and have a brainstorming session that will result into a road map of the whole project and a corresponding time line. Establishing a plan before the actual project implementation will make sure that all the things that you are doing are congruent to what you want to happen. If you are having this session or meeting, make sure that all of the ideas thrown on the table are heard.
Based on the plan, pinpoint the essential things that need to be done
Once you have formulated your plan, you have to determine which parts of it are essential and which parts you can be flexible with. For the important parts, you should be able to stick to the agreed plan but you can exercise flexibility on the other parts which are not too important.
If communication issues arise, resolve these issue as soon as possible
The more you leave things hanging and unresolved, the more it will get worse. So you have to make sure that if there are any conflicts arising from the project, you should be able to address these conflicts as soon as possible. You should not be afraid of having conflicts as these are inevitable parts of any business relationship.
If you are working for a client, put their best interest ahead of your own
More often than not, SEO practitioners get to work with web developers as commissioned by their clients. If ever you are in this situation, it is best to think that you are working to meet the needs of your clients and not yourself or the web developer you are working with. If ever problems arise, you need to think of the best solution that you can reach that will work with your client’s best interest.
