Any brand that relies on its website to create revenue needs to make SEO one of its top priorities as showing up in the SERPs when a consumer is looking for solutions is the best way to generate sales.
Ecommerce and SEO, however, are fiercely competitive. That means you need to have a clear, executable strategy.
No matter if you are boutique ecommerce store that specializes in baby products or a digital retail behemoth, here are 4 tips for driving traffic through search engine optimization.
1. Deep Keyword Research
Keyword research is the foundation of SEO as it informs you about what consumers are searching for in terms of wording and topics.
There are various tools you can use to uncover this info. One of the most popular is Google’s Keyword Tool, however, this is geared toward PPC advertisers.
Other powerful, more comprehensive research platforms include SEMrush and the Moz Keyword Explorer.
Be sure to also reach out directly to your audience to get more intimate data with customer surveys and compile common questions from your customer service department to uncover their interests and the language they utilize.
2. On-Site Optimization
Each page of a website has plenty of SEO opportunities for ecommerce retailers to leverage:
- URLs: These should reflect the content and include essential keywords.
- Title Tags: Always communicate the page’s content and showcase important terms.
- Headings: Content headings should display targeted keywords and make content more consumable.
- Image Titles and Tags: These need to point to the image’s content and include important phrases.
- Meta Descriptions: Doesn’t impact SEO, but helps readers determine if they will click your link.
3. Detailed Product Pages
Ecommerce product pages should include detailed descriptions; not just for consumers, but for search engines. It is important to take the time to craft informative, keyword rich (but not stuffed) explanations that inform users and bots about the product and its features.
This not only increases your chances of rising in the SERPs, but in generating sales as well.
4. High-Quality Content
Content is the backbone of all SEO efforts; and this is where your keyword research really comes in handy as it should inform your content strategy and point to topics people want to read about.
The reason that content is critical, even for ecommerce brands, is that:
- Publishing new content tells Google that your website is current and brings it search bots to crawl and index pages.
- It provides brands with the opportunity to utilize a sizable number of keywords and long-tail phrases. This is important as long-tail keywords are easier to rank for over more general phrases.
This part of the process is time-consuming but completely worth it; if done right. Be sure to implement step two’s strategies here as well. Above all, make sure the content is comprehensive, directly answers questions, and is valuable to your audience.
Ecommerce SEO is a challenging, but necessary, endeavor. If you seek to increase your brand’s authority and visibility in the search pages, begin by applying these steps, and then take a deeper dive into the world of search engine optimization.
Happy selling!
