Ecommerce SEO Guidelines

As an e-commerce business owner, you probably already know how important search engine optimization (SEO) is for your website. The more visible your website is in search engine results, the more likely you are to attract potential customers and increase sales. But, with so many factors to consider when it comes to SEO, it can be difficult to know where to start.

In this article, we will discuss five essential principles that can help you optimize your e-commerce website for search engines.

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1. Have Product Pages

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​The first principle is to have product pages. This may seem obvious, but it’s important to make sure that each of your products has its own dedicated page on your website. Each product page should include a unique title, description, and image.

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When creating product pages, it’s important to keep in mind the keywords that potential customers are likely to use when searching for your products. Incorporating these keywords into your product titles, descriptions, and other content can help your website rank higher in search engine results.

In addition, make sure your product pages include relevant information that will help potential customers make informed purchasing decisions. This may include product specifications, reviews from other customers, and any other details that are important for your particular products.

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After the above is accomplished, add relevant schema markup to your product pages. That extra markup in search results (review stars, bullet points, price, sale etc.) is very attention grabbing and will help increase your CTR on the Google search results pages.

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2. Category or Grid Pages with a Collection of Products

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Another important principle is to create category or grid pages with listed products. These pages can help potential customers navigate your website and find the products they are looking for more easily.

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When creating these pages, it’s important to keep in mind the same SEO principles that apply to product pages. Each category or grid page should have a unique title and description, and should incorporate relevant keywords to help it rank higher in search engine results.

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In addition, make sure that each product listed on these pages links to its corresponding product page. 

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3. SEO Meta Data

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​SEO meta data refers to the information that search engines use to understand the content of your website. This includes page titles, descriptions, and other meta tags that can help search engines categorize your website.

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When creating meta data for your e-commerce website, it’s important to include relevant keywords that potential customers are likely to use when searching for your products. This can help your website rank higher in search engine results and attract more potential customers.

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Don’t chase the highest search volume when choosing keywords - product relevancy and good conversion  is way more important than droves of free organic traffic that does not buy anything or worse - buys and returns because the pages were somehow misleading.

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Lastly, make sure that there are no two page titles or descriptions that are identical or relatively similar. Each page should be unique and so should be its title and description.

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4. Content that Describes Products and Helps Website Conversion

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​When it comes to e-commerce SEO, content is king. High-quality, informative content can help attract potential customers to your website, answer their questions and help alleviate any concerns, and ultimately lead to more sales.

Use relevant keywords that are targeting the right intent searches.

Supplement with lots of images and videos of your product in action. Add all relevant product specifications, dimensions and any details about how the product is made. 

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E-commerce websites should make use of user-generated content (UGC) to help drive conversions. This can include product reviews, customer testimonials, and social media mentions. UGC provides social proof that can help to build trust with potential customers and encourage them to make a purchase. Customer reviews are a key success variable here. There is rarely a customer these days that will buy anything of substantial value without reading the reviews first, especially the bad ones. Make sure you address the bad reviews and list all of the good ones.

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Invest in product photography and a good quality video or animation. Images should be clear, high-resolution, and show the product from multiple angles. Videos can be particularly effective in demonstrating the features and benefits of a product, and can also help to build trust with potential customers. If your product needs to be assembled, has key features that are not apparent - show it in a video. Include a photo for every color, every swatch, fabric and material. Don’t make your users guess what they are buying. And for SEO purposes - add alt tags to all of those images and videos. Good for accessibility and good for SEO.

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Finally, make sure that your content is optimized for conversion. This means making sure that it’s easy for potential customers to find and purchase your products. This may include clear calls to action, making sure that your website is easy to navigate, and other tactics that can help improve your website’s conversion rate.

 

5. Website Accessibility Guidelines

 

In addition to creating high-quality product content, e-commerce websites should also ensure that they follow accessibility guidelines. Accessibility refers to the design of websites, tools, and technologies that are usable by people with disabilities. Making a website accessible can help ensure that all users, regardless of ability, can access and use the website effectively.

 

There are a number of guidelines and standards that e-commerce websites can follow to ensure that they are accessible to users with disabilities. These include the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards for Accessible Design.

 

Some key elements of accessible web design include:

 

• Providing alternative text for images and other non-text content, which can be read by screen readers for users who are blind or have low vision.

• Using clear and simple language to ensure that content is easy to understand for users with cognitive disabilities.

• Ensuring that all functionality is accessible using a keyboard, as some users may not be able to use a mouse.

• Providing captions and transcripts for audio and video content to ensure that it is accessible to users who are deaf or hard of hearing.

• Ensuring that the website is navigable using assistive technologies such as screen readers and voice recognition software.

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By following accessibility guidelines, e-commerce websites can ensure that they are inclusive and accessible to all users, regardless of their abilities.

 

Accomplishing the above points also means accomplishing it for the Googlebot and how it evaluates websites. What goes around comes around - in good ranking.

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If you still have questions or need help implementing the above and more e-commerce SEO guidelines, contact us right now: