11 Benefits of SEO for eCommerce Brands

 




Let's start with the obvious: The world of SEO for eCommerce is extremely saturated and fiercely competitive.

Retailers and brands invest huge sums in SEO. This makes it difficult to rank for any kind of product query in almost any market. It is unlikely that any type of short-tail, high-volume product query can be ranked for most people.

It doesn't necessarily mean that it is impossible to achieve, nor does this negate the importance of SEO for businesses selling online. It's all about deploying the right mix of strategic strategies that deliver the best benefits and returns, and ideally, plenty of momentum.

Benefits of SEO for eCommerce Brands

This post goes beyond the basics and demonstrates the many benefits that a solid SEO strategy can bring. We offer creative and unconventional tips to help you rethink your approach to SEO for eCommerce. First, let's talk about the benefits.

1. Begin the Conversation Organically

 

Let's take a look at the details. SEO is, in general, the most powerful marketing method available. (We're not biased or ...)).

It is the ultimate marketing workhorse. It is the most important game-changer. SEO, however, is one of the most challenging channels for eCommerce. It requires patience.

Your products and services are sought-after by search engine users. The best way to get in touch with these users is by using the right message. It's an organic way to build a relationship.

It may not be an easy task ranking for keywords short-tail products that receive 5-figure monthly search. The dynamic of eCommerce SEO is changing. Even small-to-medium-sized players can use creative SEO strategies to generate traction (e.g. You can appear in Featured Snippets and answer boxes, as well as popular products.

The growth potential for your business is endless when you combine product page SEO, eCommerce strategy, and cross-channel advertising efforts. Organic traffic has the highest conversion rates. Not to mention the loyalty and repeat customers. Organic traffic is inherently non-obtrusive, legitimate and growth-enabling.

2. Create Cross-Channel Symbiosis

 

Cross-channel synergy is one of the greatest (if not most fundamental) benefits of SEO in your eCommerce marketing mix. Simply put, what you do in one channel may also apply to other channels.

Consider the content that is popular on social media and click-throughs via email. It also gets traction through SEO. It's a natural order that encourages collaboration and empowers each channel. Rapha, a brand of bougie cycling apparel, stacks email, social media, and SEO.

Rapha's products benefit from a cross-channel promotional strategy

 

They not only push their Brevet series "insulated gilet" (essentially an All-weather Cycling Vest) via email and social media, but they also did the SEO due diligence for the product page.

This symbiosis can be built on tailoring strategies, which are inspired by SEO/keyword search/search trends and seamlessly combine efforts in content marketing as well as SEO, email marketing, social networking, and paid media. 



You can use videos, graphics or photos as well as long-form writings. It is important to combine all relevant channels into one campaign that supports the long-term growth of SEO.

3. Review UGC & Reviews

 

UGC (user-generated contents) can be a great way to increase SEO. Customers are the ones who submit photos and reviews. It can also make your website's most important pages more interesting, authentic, engaging, and fresh.

UGC can be difficult to make the most of, as with any content. It is important to identify the objectives and desired outcomes and to deploy the right system.

Our own Tory Gray wrote a Twitter thread about the topic. It covers everything from security and protecting your brand, to building SEO fields and using UGC imagination.

4. Future-Proof Your Tech Stack

 

The tech stack chosen (or any combination of platforms and programming languages, apps, frameworks, tools etc.) will determine the success or failure of your project. 

When it comes to SEO, the tech stack used to create an eComm store and mobile app can have significant implications (and sometimes limitations).

However, prioritizing SEO or related projects can help you narrow down your choices and build a more sustainable and future-proof tech stack. These are some of the key points to consider:

  • How server ecosystem, databases, storage and storage contribute to page performance and page speed.
  • Programming language knowledge - such as Ruby, Java and Python, Scala and PHP. Also, what makes sense for your site & your staff.
  • Shopify, WooCommerce and BigCommerce are all CMS platforms that offer the best foundation for SEO and other business needs.
  • Integration with third-party services, such as CRMs, email marketing tools, payment gateways and delivery modules. Analytics tools are also available.

Selection of the right eCommerce tech stack is a complex process. Our eCommerce SEO can narrow down options when making major decisions, and it should definitely be a key stakeholder. 

If you are already benefiting from SEO, choosing a platform without taking into account SEO could be a mistake. This is often why teams with newly-platformed sites panic because they haven't considered SEO properly and are unable to get back on track.

It's impossible to set up an eCommerce store from scratch for most companies. The adoption of new technologies can be complicated because they must be compatible with existing systems, have support and resources available, and are scalable.

5. Optimized User Experience

 


The relationship between SEO and UX is one of the most harmonious. The same planning and data that guides SEO can also be used to create better user experiences.

  • You can choose which pages or posts you want to create.
  • Use Information Architecture to organize content
  • How pages are linked and how users navigate your site
  • Layout and content design
  • Optimizing page speed, engagement and conversion
  • Write copy that inspires and grabs attention

Conversions will be higher if seamless experiences are provided. It is not easy. There are many things you need to do to make it happen. You can start by looking into keywords, search trends, competitors, and other areas.

You might find product pages aren’t the most important assets for your SEO strategy. Perhaps your competitive advantage is great photography and in-depth reviews. 

Maybe it's YouTube videos. What about all of these? Do not think one-dimensionally. Take a closer look at all the possibilities for creating better user experiences.

6. Lower Customer Acquisition Costs

 

It's easy to focus on performance metrics such as Conversion Rate or Cost Per Acquisition. However, Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is a more important financial metric. 

CAC is typically calculated over a time period for either monthly, quarterly or annual reporting. It can give different perspectives on what's working and what's not.

Retailers face a never-ending struggle to lower their CAC. CAC is a useful tool for eCommerce marketers to determine where to cut costs and where to spend more money. SEO can help eComm brands reduce CAC by driving organic traffic and sales, thereby balancing expensive investments in social media ads or Google Ads.

Modern SEO is all about providing exceptional content and experiences. Instead of pushing users to click, it's about building deeper relationships with them organically.

Clear messaging, excellent content marketing and compelling USPs can all help to reduce CAC. Investors will be thrilled to hear that your eComm brand has attracted customers through organic SEO, and it does so at a very affordable cost.

7. Increase Brand Awareness

 

Improved search visibility can lead to brand awareness. It takes a strong brand that is memorable and stands out to make it work.

It won't be enough to keep up with the competition. Brands need to create content that is visually striking, unexpected, funny, or punny. It should be so rich and shareable that it can become viral.

Terra Nova is the World's Lightest Tent Infographic.

 


SEO can help increase brand awareness. However, it must be used in conjunction with content marketing and other channels. This means that your best content must resonate across all channels. It also requires you to appear as a featured search snippet or supplementing search in creative ways.

Oh look, Terra Nova's infographic is listed in Google's PAA section!

 

The first stage of a marketing funnel that leads to sales is brand awareness and visibility. SEO is a way to make potential customers find you rather than you pushing your brand onto their faces. A brand's trustworthiness is enhanced by ranking organically, especially in a competitive landscape.

8. Boost Confidence & Trust

 

Imagine a time you heard about a company and decided to research them to see if they had any products or websites. You see an organic listing for their brand name that may be them. However, at first glance you aren't sure.

Let's take an example: You hear about an exotic stoneware brand named XYZero. The ultimate gift for grandma. Search this name and you find a site with a very plain title "XYZero” and text taken from the about page. You immediately question the legitimacy and credibility of the company.

Yes, XYZero really is a stoneware/homeware brand!

 

XYZero" and a well-crafted meta description (retaining some of the existing artistic merit! It would have been easy to find them in our first search. We would have more trust and confidence if we clicked into their website.

This is only one example of how ignoring fundamental SEO and the user experience can seriously undermine consumer confidence when they are actively searching for a brand. 

However, if you show up in organic search results for non-branded queries with compelling listings, it can have the opposite effect and instill trust and confidence in those searching for your product.

9. Turn Product Photos Into Rankable Assets

 

These assets can be used by eCommerce stores who take pride in their photography for many purposes beyond product pages, blog posts and social media. These photos can be found in Google Search via Image Search, or in Google Image Search.

Great product photography can help you stand out

 

Captivating images can boost content across many channels. They can be used as rankable assets and tell stories on social media platforms like Instagram and Pinterest. It is said that a picture is worth a thousand keywords. However, when SEO is in action, a picture can also be worth a thousand ranking.

10. Improve PPC Efficiency

 

PPC advertising is a common option for eCommerce companies that are savvy in their search marketing. There are many benefits to investing in eCommerce SEO best practice.

This is organic. This is not Google Shopping.

 

SEO is one of the best ways to bring value to your PPC advertising account. It improves Quality Score (on PPC and SEO shared landing pages), which gives insight into how your ad quality compares with other advertisers who are competing for the same keywords. Higher scores mean lower cost per click and more flexibility in your advertising budget.

Quality Score is determined by three main factors: Ad relevance, expected CTR, landing page experience, and CTR. The first two are essential for crafting a successful PPC campaign.

However, the second factor can be optimized using several SEO techniques, such as faster load speed and keyword-relevant copy. Quality visual media, clear CTAs, and path to conversion.

Your visibility can be doubled by having a presence in both organic and paid search. Google research shows that sites with strong organic results will have a higher PPC ad conversion rate on the same SERP. Although paid Search and Organic Search might seem like two distinct departments, there are many benefits to working together.

 

11. Get in on the Holiday Trends

 

We get it. Black Friday/CyberMonday sales are often overhyped. A discount may not be enough to attract buyers to your website. It is impossible to deny the rapid rise in sales and search interest in the eCommerce industry.

Kindle shopping (and search) trends.

 

For example, take the Kindle. In the past five years, the search volume has risen steadily during holidays (almost twice as much in December).

These trends are most helpful for scheduling paid media and increasing ad spend. However, they can also help you to get ahead with SEO. You might want to:

  • Upload product feeds for Google Shopping's organic listings
  • Before creating new pages, refresh the content .
  • Use structured data to inform and indicate relevance to search engines.
  • Create a plan for handling out of stock products without losing customers or reducing your SEO.
  • You can index any holiday-specific product, category or landing page early. Or, even better, arrange them to work for you year-over_.
  • Use SEO landing pages for email and social media.
  • Use holiday-specific queries to help guide eCommerce content strategies.
  • You can check for errors or other disruptive mishaps and update the 404 page.

Can you tell I'm into running and biking yet?

 

We've already discussed the many benefits of an eCommerce SEO strategy (including some insights and tips), but let's now look at other tactics that can be used to refine your approach, prioritize your investments and improve your overall approach.

How to Improve Your eCommerce SEO Strategy

 

Let's say you know page titles and meta descriptions. You have all the basics of SEO covered. This is more information to help you improve your SEO strategy.

  • IA is the best way to teach UX and SEO. Keyword research is essential to help guide your SEO strategy. Information architecture focuses more on users' psychology and behaviors and how to organize the content accordingly.
  • Use internal linking to leverage domain authority. You might consider investing more in internal linking for search engine optimization and less time building borderline-sketch links.
  • Maximize tech SEO expertise. Poorly performing websites can cause you to lose traffic. Prioritize SEO for Core Web Vitals/site loading speed, JavaScript Search Engine, responsiveness and canonicalization.
  • Embrace structured data. You have complete control over implementing the correct Schema markup sets to communicate your site's content better to search engines, activate rich-snippets and improve visibility. Structured data can improve search engines' understanding of your site and your products. It also powers rich SERP features, allowing your brand to take up more SERP real property.
  • Invest more in long tails. It might seem obvious, but ranking for long tails with low hanging keywords is 100x easier than for those with high-competitive long tails. Take a look at all the competitors that rank on page one for keywords. Also, take a look at what it will take to get there.
  • Personalization is a must if you want to expand your eCommerce reach internationally. Take advantage of personalization that uses click history, previous searches, language and location information.
  • Audit for duplicate content or cannibalization. eCommerce websites can contain a lot of pages, and often have hundreds of thousands. Even for small online shops, it is smart to check for URLs that contain duplicate content and address (e.g. To avoid cannibalization issues, redirect them or deindex.
  • Create a UGC plan. This area can be a significant asset to your product pages.
  • Fix broken links. This can be a common SEO problem in a large number of eCommerce websites. Schedule site crawls on a regular basis to identify broken links and fix them.
  • Integrate SEO into your social media strategy. Use social media to increase organic SEO content. Although it is not directly related to ranking, engagement can indicate trust in search engines. This is a great way for you to increase visibility and generate repeat, direct traffic. It can also help improve your chances of earning links, which can be a ranking signal.
  • Think about your content strategy. Google favors in-depth, informative content over product pages. Keep creating amazing and inspiring content like blog posts, product reviews videos, and cute graphics. Although this content may not immediately increase sales, it will help you win at eComm SEO.
  • Use SEO-friendly URLs to build for the long-term. If you are creating a gift guide, don't include the year in your URL. This will allow you to update the same page every year and increase your authority.
  • Make sure your eComm website is accessible. If you sell to U.S. customers, Is your website ADA compliant ? You need to ensure that your website provides easy access for people with disabilities.

This includes keyboard-only accessibility, image ALT texts, closed captioning, and video transcripts.

  • You can measure eComm's SEO performance. eComm stores need custom analytics dashboards that facilitate the process of determining KPIs and conversion goals.

There are limited ways to drive qualified traffic into an eCommerce store other than traditional retail marketing channels. These include paid ads, social media and email. Although SEO investment may not bring immediate results, it can lead to long-term, sustainable growth.

You have control over the things you can do (e.g. Keyword selection, content creation and tech SEO are all things you can control. Invest in opportunities you believe are possible with your current resources.

Be realistic if you have just launched an eCommerce website. It is not likely that your SEO strategy will be a success overnight. Keep moving forward and you might see great results in the future if you take small steps now.

Contact us if you need additional guidance in optimizing your eCommerce SEO strategy.

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