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Ideally, a Mahalo page should contain relevant, accurate and verifiable information on a topic, and that's what I'm trying to achieve with the ones I manage. The SRPs certainly ought to be concise, I can agree with you on that one, and intriguing bits of info are very important, too, something that would prompt a reader to look for more.
Considering the esoteric nature of my subject matter - aliens, UFOs, alien abductions - the importance of accuracy and verifiability cannot be emphasized enough. Still, getting people intrigued is not necessarily an easy one neither - on the face of it, mine may just as well be yet another UFO page, there are hundreds of thousands of them out there.
My target audience, then, are not just the people who have already heard about aliens and UFOs - who didn't? - but the people who have a gut feeling that there is a substance to all the talk, but they can't quite pin it down, so to speak. To those people I hope to give some insight into, and a snapshot of factual information on the subject of UFOs and positive knowledge gathered through bona fide research. I try to support what I say there by citing credible sources, scientific and technical studies, and actual documents released by various governmental and non-governmental agencies.
The UFO/ alien pages I manage are meant to educate. If one in hundred visitors goes as far as to actually read some of the books I recommend there, I would consider my project a big success! One in thousand is perhaps more realistic...
Tags: srp, education, ufo
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philipy
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I agree with you about the purpose of Mahalo (find quick information fast). However, I view the site as a great way to improve and improvise on my writing style.
Source(s):
http://www.writermag.com
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I tend to think of the two different users who may potentially visit the page. First would be the user looking for the best possible links.. which is what the Top 7 is for, the best pages on the web on that given topic. The 2nd type of user is the one looking for much more information, like if a fan of David Attenborough is looking for extensive information the Mahalo page has dozens of categorized links, timeline of his books and documentaries, his greatest videos and much much more.
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Source(s):
http://www.mahalo.com/banks
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And then I also think of them as a source for more indepth information through the links, videos, etc. Some topics are so extensive that great links are a necessity; for others, it's video. For example, the one I just put up yesterday on Literal Videos is really all about the videos. There have been a handful of articles published on them, but it's not so much what's been written about them as the videos themselves.
I have to say that out of the thousands of ones out there, the system did a great job of simply pulling down the best ones. One thing that ruins an otherwise good one is if the vocals are poor-quality, even if the new lyrics are hilarious. The best ones sound like the original artist is singing the lyrics, and Mahalo's system found many of them.
That's the "what are they for".
Who are they for? People new to that topic, as well as those wanting to explore more.
Content for newbies would be the Guide Notes and Fast Facts, as well as the top couple of links. I want to put the most concise info at the top. The images can be very important, too.
Content for those seeking more would be not only those (because it always helps to know the basic facts) but especially the links further down the list; and depending on the subject, videos and ads. Someone may come to the page seeking a source for "x".
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Answered Question
M$1
June 16, 2009 01:23 AM
What is the point of your Mahalo page? (Seriously... what audience and needs does it serve...)
Prompted by the start of the page of the day contest, I would like to ask:
What is the point of a Mahalo page? And in particular, what is the point of your own pages?
- What are they for?
- Who are they for?
- How does their content reflect their audience and purpose?
What I personally look for from a Mahalo page is concise information, great links to resources, and maybe a few snippets to intrigue me.
Rarely do I want or expect a Mahalo page to have in-depth information.
For my own pages what I'm aiming for is three types of people, and three types of questions:
a) Someone who's barely heard of the subject, and wants a quick answer to the question: "What the heck is X?"
b) Someone that knows very well what X is, and wants to know: "What are the best sites about X?"
c) Someone who knows plenty about X, and wants to see at a glance: "Any big news about X?"
How I deal with that is... the Guide note explains what the thing is, and maybe very briefly mentions the last big news about the topic. The Top 7 points to a more detailed explanation of the topic, one or two big new stories about it, and great sites for learning more about important aspects of the subject.
An automated newsfeed and/or automated Twitter feed is high up, usually just after the Top 7, so any hot news will show up, even if I'm not around to update the page.
Maybe I'll develop them further as I have time, but generally I think with Mahalo pages less is more, and I don't want too much clutter.
I'm sure there are some very different philosopies out there though, and it'll be interesting to hear them.
What is the point of a Mahalo page? And in particular, what is the point of your own pages?
- What are they for?
- Who are they for?
- How does their content reflect their audience and purpose?
What I personally look for from a Mahalo page is concise information, great links to resources, and maybe a few snippets to intrigue me.
Rarely do I want or expect a Mahalo page to have in-depth information.
For my own pages what I'm aiming for is three types of people, and three types of questions:
a) Someone who's barely heard of the subject, and wants a quick answer to the question: "What the heck is X?"
b) Someone that knows very well what X is, and wants to know: "What are the best sites about X?"
c) Someone who knows plenty about X, and wants to see at a glance: "Any big news about X?"
How I deal with that is... the Guide note explains what the thing is, and maybe very briefly mentions the last big news about the topic. The Top 7 points to a more detailed explanation of the topic, one or two big new stories about it, and great sites for learning more about important aspects of the subject.
An automated newsfeed and/or automated Twitter feed is high up, usually just after the Top 7, so any hot news will show up, even if I'm not around to update the page.
Maybe I'll develop them further as I have time, but generally I think with Mahalo pages less is more, and I don't want too much clutter.
I'm sure there are some very different philosopies out there though, and it'll be interesting to hear them.
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Best Answer Chosen by Asker
| June 17, 2009 10:22 PM |
Considering the esoteric nature of my subject matter - aliens, UFOs, alien abductions - the importance of accuracy and verifiability cannot be emphasized enough. Still, getting people intrigued is not necessarily an easy one neither - on the face of it, mine may just as well be yet another UFO page, there are hundreds of thousands of them out there.
My target audience, then, are not just the people who have already heard about aliens and UFOs - who didn't? - but the people who have a gut feeling that there is a substance to all the talk, but they can't quite pin it down, so to speak. To those people I hope to give some insight into, and a snapshot of factual information on the subject of UFOs and positive knowledge gathered through bona fide research. I try to support what I say there by citing credible sources, scientific and technical studies, and actual documents released by various governmental and non-governmental agencies.
The UFO/ alien pages I manage are meant to educate. If one in hundred visitors goes as far as to actually read some of the books I recommend there, I would consider my project a big success! One in thousand is perhaps more realistic...
| Asker's Rating: |
• A fine and intriguing answer.
Tags: srp, education, ufo
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Helpful: philipy, buddawiggi, dannyjohnson, jeffhoard
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philipy
June 18, 2009 12:47 AM
A most excellent answer!
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Other Answers (5)
June 16, 2009 02:03 AM
My page about Propagating Plumeria Cuttings is a How To page. My page about Plumeria is a celebration of that tree. My page about Smashwords is an attempt to let would be writers find a place where they can publish their work on the net. Ditto for Manybooks and Feedbooks. My page about "Surviving the Fog" ? Well, it just seems logical that I would make a page about my book.
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June 17, 2009 12:28 AM
It seems like you have varied pages, and varied things you're doing with them!
I notice that not many people are hyper-linking to their pages in their answers. If you'd linked to your book I surely would've clicked to go take a look. :)
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I notice that not many people are hyper-linking to their pages in their answers. If you'd linked to your book I surely would've clicked to go take a look. :)
June 17, 2009 02:10 AM
That is a good point. I don't remember what the rules are about that. It would be easier for most people download it at smashwords, or feedbooks, but I guess that I could have mentioned;
http://sites.google.com/site/stansfreeebooks/Home/surviving-the-fog
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http://sites.google.com/site/stansfreeebooks/Home/surviving-the-fog
June 17, 2009 06:11 PM
I had a quick look. Very nice work, certainly looks like something worthy of being published.
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June 16, 2009 03:11 AM
I use Mahalo to perfect my writing skills. This site was recently introduced in an article from this months "The Writer" magazine. I agree with you about the purpose of Mahalo (find quick information fast). However, I view the site as a great way to improve and improvise on my writing style.
Source(s):
http://www.writermag.com
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June 16, 2009 03:44 AM
That's great, you'll certainly be able to perfect writing by doing guide notes on Mahalo. Welcome aboard
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June 16, 2009 03:54 AM
When I build pages, I look at them as Archives, collections of the best information on the given topic. I tend to think of the two different users who may potentially visit the page. First would be the user looking for the best possible links.. which is what the Top 7 is for, the best pages on the web on that given topic. The 2nd type of user is the one looking for much more information, like if a fan of David Attenborough is looking for extensive information the Mahalo page has dozens of categorized links, timeline of his books and documentaries, his greatest videos and much much more.
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June 17, 2009 12:25 AM
By archive, does that mean it is links to the best information, or does it contain the best information right there in your own content?
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June 16, 2009 04:10 AM
My web page, "Banks" is to track the Derivatives exposure and risk.
Source(s):
http://www.mahalo.com/banks
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June 17, 2009 12:25 AM
Interesting. Maybe in that case it should be called "Bank Risk Exposure" or something like that?
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June 17, 2009 02:43 PM
I'll probably change the title to a question. I've noticed keywords have low view counts.
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June 17, 2009 06:13 PM
The problem is if someone Googles "banks" there'll probably be a thousand links ahead of your page. If someone googles "Bank Risk Exposure" or "How to evaluate bank risk exposure" you'll be higher up. But there will less people googling the more specific topic, so it's a trade off.
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June 16, 2009 12:50 PM
I think of my pages as a way to both introduce someone to the topic: they do an internet search, see the Mahalo page as a high-up, non wikipedia page and click. And then I also think of them as a source for more indepth information through the links, videos, etc. Some topics are so extensive that great links are a necessity; for others, it's video. For example, the one I just put up yesterday on Literal Videos is really all about the videos. There have been a handful of articles published on them, but it's not so much what's been written about them as the videos themselves.
I have to say that out of the thousands of ones out there, the system did a great job of simply pulling down the best ones. One thing that ruins an otherwise good one is if the vocals are poor-quality, even if the new lyrics are hilarious. The best ones sound like the original artist is singing the lyrics, and Mahalo's system found many of them.
That's the "what are they for".
Who are they for? People new to that topic, as well as those wanting to explore more.
Content for newbies would be the Guide Notes and Fast Facts, as well as the top couple of links. I want to put the most concise info at the top. The images can be very important, too.
Content for those seeking more would be not only those (because it always helps to know the basic facts) but especially the links further down the list; and depending on the subject, videos and ads. Someone may come to the page seeking a source for "x".
Permalink | Report
Reply
June 17, 2009 12:22 AM
It would be interesting if we could find out what people actually look at.
I tend to only look at the top part, and maybe scroll through the rest quickly.
I'm wondering if I write much lower down the page whether anyone will actually read it.
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I tend to only look at the top part, and maybe scroll through the rest quickly.
I'm wondering if I write much lower down the page whether anyone will actually read it.
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