The Ultimate Guide To Using SEO To Grow Your E-Commerce Business
Whether you sell on an online marketplace like Etsy or eBay, or host your own store using Shopify, it’s probably safe to say that you want to hit new revenue milestones and grow your business.
But, how do you make this happen without spending a fortune on paid ads? The answer lies in making yourself more discoverable by optimizing your online store for search engines (aka SEO). Follow these 5 e-commerce SEO tips and you’ll see an uptick in visitors and sales, translating to more money in your account!
1. Finding and using the right keywords will save you
When you search for a product on Google or a platform like Etsy, how many times do you make your purchase from the products on the 2nd or 3rd pages? Maybe a couple of times at most.
So, to get actual results, your products need to show up on the first page – preferably towards the top. And the way to do this is by finding and using the relevant keywords.
Keywords are the phrases that people use to search for things. Like “beds for dogs” or “dog beds.” Use these exact phrases in your titles and product descriptions, and people searching for those terms will find you more easily.
How to find relevant keywords
Go to Google, Amazon, or the platform(s) you’re selling on and enter the product you sell on the search bar. Autocomplete will suggest a list of related keywords, giving you a good place to start.
If you click on a particular listing, you can also take a peek at the tags, categories, and related search items for more relevant keyword options.
Alternatively, you can also use a keyword research tool like Ahrefs or SEMrush to find the keywords that you need to target. Keep in mind, though, that you need a subscription to use these tools, so compare the pricing plans for popular SEO tools before you choose one that fits your needs.
You can use these tools to analyze the keywords your competitors are ranking for. Pick the keywords that have a large search volume and not a lot of competition. Get as specific as possible. For instance, “rectangular foam bathroom mats” instead of just “mats.”
Fine-tuning your listings
Once you find the keywords that are relevant to your brand, you need to use them in your product title, description, tags, categories, and alt text for your photos. Sprinkle them in naturally.
In addition to using the keywords, to make your listings compelling, you should also:
- Take high-quality product photos
- Highlight the benefits of your product in the description
- Add an FAQ section
- Make them accessible for visually impaired users
2. Optimize your store
All e-commerce platforms have site-specific algorithms which prioritize product listings that are helpful to users. This means listings and shop pages that are clear about the product(s) they’re selling and contain all the information that potential customers might need. This process includes keeping your “About” pages, your shop policies, and FAQ sections up-to-date.
Use your “About” page to talk about what you sell, why you sell it, where you source your raw materials from, and how you make your products – all while using the relevant keywords organically.
This is also a great place to highlight any particular values that you follow. Maybe your products are sustainable, or maybe you donate a certain percentage of your profits to charity. This will help potential customers with similar values form a connection with you.
Next up, fill in your shop policies to let customers know about your shipping, cancellations, and returns policy, where you ship to, how long delivery takes, as well as what payment methods you accept.
Finally, make a list of the most common questions that potential buyers might have about your store and/ or products and answer them all!
The more details you give, the better the chance of potential customers making informed decisions about purchasing your products.
3. Take care of your seller performance
Remember how we talked about site-specific e-commerce SEO? Your seller performance plays a huge role in that! The better your performance, the higher your listings appear in the search results.
Case in point: 👇
Notice how all the top results are from Star Sellers?
It makes sense when you think about it, because all platforms want to put their best foot forward. This means highlighting the best sellers. To be one of them, all you need to is offer a great buying experience for your customers by:
- Selling high-quality products
- Responding to any queries quickly
- Offering great customer service
- Taking accountability for any mistakes and fixing them promptly
- Encouraging your customers to leave you a review
Do all of these and you’ll get that coveted “top seller” badge and climb up the ranks!
4. Maintain a blog
This is one of the oldest tricks in the book, and it’s very effective. Even today. Because blogging gives you a chance to tell potential customers about your product in depth and all the ways in which it can solve their problems. In fact, blogging can help you turn even unsuspecting readers into customers. 😉
Let’s say you sell handmade scented candles in a variety of shapes. You write a blog post titled “best holiday gifts for your loved ones” and feature your candles as the top choice. Here, not only are you promoting your product, you’re also helping gift shoppers with ideas!
5. Build backlinks to your store
A backlink is basically when some other website links out to your e-commerce store (or your website/ blog). If that website gets a lot of traffic, there’s a good chance that you’ll see an increase in page visitors, too.
You can go about this in a few different ways:
- By contributing to guest posts on similar websites and subtly promoting your store within the content. Keep in mind, though, that the content you write should be informative and be placed within a relevant website. For instance, if you sell sneakers, you can write guest posts for fitness websites.
- Collaborate with social media influencers and get them to promote your store on their accounts.
- Form partnerships with website owners and secure backlinks.
- Get media outlets to feature your e-commerce store in their articles.
Search algorithms are always changing, so it’s important to conduct audits every few months and revisit these 5 e-commerce SEO tips. Refresh your listings, re-check your keywords, and make sure you always stay on top of the SEO game!
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