12 Ecommerce SEO Checklist to Boost Organic Traffic

Intro

With businesses being confronted with heightened competition, shifting consumer behaviours, and evolving search engine algorithms, the role of ecommerce SEO has emerged as a pivotal factor in the success and sustainability of ecommerce websites. One thing is clear: the importance of effective SEO strategies for ecommerce cannot be overstated.

From the rise of online shopping to the growing significance of mobile devices in online shopping to the evolving algorithms of search engines, there are several key factors why ecommerce SEO has become increasingly crucial for ecommerce websites in recent years. 

Ecommerce SEO Checklist: Essential Steps to Enhance Your Online Store's Visibility and Traffic

Here's a comprehensive 12-point ecommerce SEO checklist designed to fine-tune your SEO strategy and pinpoint opportunities for boosting traffic:

1. Identify and Target Relevant Keywords

In today's world of ecommerce, mastering search engine optimisation (SEO) is essential for any business aiming to thrive online. And a fundamental aspect of successful ecommerce SEO involves thorough keyword research. In the context of ecommerce, the process of keyword research entails identifying relevant and high-performing keywords that align with your product lineup. 

To begin your keyword research, assess your current search rankings first. You can utilise tools like Google Search Console to gain insights into the keywords driving traffic to your site and where you stand in rankings. Always consider the searcher's intent when selecting keywords so that you can tailor your keyword strategy accordingly to capture users at various stages of the buyer's journey.

Research your competitors and their keyword tactics to identify the keywords they rank for and assess opportunities to compete or differentiate your offerings. Then, compile a list of target keywords based on your research. Make sure the list is feasible, considering your resources and capabilities. Focus on a mix of short-tail and long-tail keywords to address a wide range of search queries. 

2. OptimizeOptimise Your Website's Loading Speed

With 83% of online users expecting websites to load in the blink of an eye – three seconds or less, it comes with no doubt that users expect fast-loading websites. If your site takes too long to load, visitors are likely to abandon it and look for alternatives.

A slow website can lead to higher bounce rates and lower engagement metrics, which can negatively impact your SEO rankings. Hence, search engines like Google prioritise websites that provide a positive user experience, including fast loading times. 

Search engines allocate a certain amount of resources, known as a crawl budget, to crawl and index websites. A slow-loading website consumes more crawl budget as search engine bots spend more time crawling each page. This can result in search engines not fully crawling and indexing all of your website's content, leading to lower visibility in search results. 

In order to ensure website speed for ecommerce SEO, you can start by optimising images and videos to reduce file sizes without compromising quality or utilise browser caching to store frequently accessed resources locally.

Or you can consider removing unnecessary code, comments, and whitespace from HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files to reduce their file sizes. Use tools to regularly monitor your website's performance while paying attention to key metrics such as page load time, time to first byte (TTFB), and server response time.

3. OptimizeOptimised Your Site for Seamless Mobile Browsing

With the increasing usage of mobile devices for online shopping, providing a smooth and enjoyable experience for mobile users is essential. Google often uses the mobile version of websites for indexing and ranking in search results. This means that if your site isn't mobile-friendly, it may not perform well in mobile search results, leading to decreased visibility and traffic.

As mobile users typically have less patience for slow-loading websites, mobile optimisation often involves optimising images, reducing unnecessary code, and employing techniques like lazy loading to improve page speed, which is a significant ranking factor for both desktop and mobile search.

4. Equip Each Webpage with a Compelling Title

As today the competition is fierce and attention spans are short, the importance of distinct and compelling webpage titles cannot be overstated. These titles serve as the gateway to your online store, enticing potential customers to click through and explore what you have to offer.

But their significance goes beyond mere aesthetics; they are a cornerstone of your SEO strategy, directly impacting your search engine rankings and visibility. 

Each webpage on your ecommerce site deserves a unique and concise title, ideally under 70 characters. You can think of it as a catchy headline that both search engines and visitors will see. And to help search engines understand your content and improve your ranking, you must craft unique titles rich in relevant keywords for your homepage, product category pages, and other static pages.

5. Feature Unique Meta Descriptions

A clear and well-organised page structure is essential for every page on your ecommerce website, from your About Us section to individual product listings and category pages. And to ensure that, you must consider creating unique and clear meta descriptions.

The better your meta description, the more you can attract clicks from search results because a well-written description can significantly boost your click-through rate (CTR) and signal to search engines that your content is relevant and valuable.

6. Prevent Unnecessary Pages from Being Indexed

Search engine optimisation (SEO) can be tricky for ecommerce sites with repetitive content from product variations, pagination, and sorting options. When search engines index all these pages, it can dilute your SEO efforts and hinder your website's ranking potential. And it is by streamlining your site and preventing unnecessary pages from being indexed, you ensure search engines prioritise crawling and indexing the most valuable sections, like product and category pages.

Not only do unnecessary pages end up cluttering search engine results, but they can confuse users, leading to a poor user experience. Users may land on irrelevant pages, increasing bounce rates and decreasing engagement metrics, which can negatively impact your site's SEO performance.

7. Incorporate Breadcrumb Navigation

Breadcrumb navigation is crucial for ecommerce SEO as it enhances user experience by providing a clear path for navigation, reducing bounce rates, and improving internal linking structure within the website.

By incorporating breadcrumbs across subpages, ecommerce sites can improve keyword relevance, reinforce category hierarchies, and potentially gain additional site links in search results, ultimately leading to increased visibility and higher rankings in search engine results pages (SERPs).

In addition, breadcrumbs aid in mobile usability, ensuring a seamless browsing experience for users across different devices. Overall, breadcrumb navigation plays a crucial role in optimising ecommerce websites for search engines, driving organic traffic, and ultimately increasing conversions and revenue.

8. Offer Substantial and Valuable Content

Having substantial and valuable content on your ecommerce website is crucial when it comes to SEO. High-quality content attracts organic traffic to your website. When users find your content helpful and informative, they are more likely to engage with it, share it, and return to your site in the future. And this can lead to an increase in organic search traffic over time.

Also, valuable content enhances the overall user experience on your website. When visitors find helpful information, they are more likely to stay longer on your site, browse through your products, and make a purchase. This is what signals to search engines that your website is relevant and valuable to users, which ends up positively impacting your SEO efforts. 

“By providing substantial content that addresses common questions, concerns, or interests of your target audience, you can establish your brand as an authority in your industry”- says Sazzad Hossain, a content marketing professional at WebAlive, a web design and development agency based in Melbourne. This builds trust with potential customers and encourages them to choose your products or services over competitors.

9. Monitor and Improve Your Website's Backlink Profile

As backlinks are a significant ranking factor for search engines like Google, it is no wonder websites with a strong backlink profile tend to rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs). Backlinks from authoritative and relevant websites can drive quality traffic to your ecommerce site while acting as votes of confidence in the eyes of search engines. 

By continually monitoring your backlinks, you can identify which sources are driving the most traffic and focus on building relationships with similar websites to attract more potential customers. Otherwise, search engines regularly update their algorithms to combat spammy and manipulative SEO tactics.

If your website has a high number of low-quality or spammy backlinks, it could be penalised by search engines, leading to a drop-in ranking or even removal from search results altogether. 

10. Regularly Audit Your Website's Internal Linking Structure

Image source: Backlinko

You need to pay attention to your internal linking structure as well. Internal links often help search engine crawlers discover and index pages on a website. So, by ensuring that important pages are linked frequently and properly, you increase the chances of those pages being crawled and indexed by search engines.

Also, internal linking allows you to distribute page authority throughout your website. By strategically linking from high-authority pages to other relevant pages, you can help boost the visibility and ranking potential of those pages.

To audit and update a website's internal linking structure, you can start by conducting a comprehensive inventory of existing internal links using tools like Google Search Console or specialised website auditing software. Analyse the distribution of links across different pages and identify any broken or irrelevant links that need to be removed or redirected. Evaluate the anchor text used in internal links and ensure it is relevant and optimised for target keywords.

11. Feature Customer Review on Your Product Pages

Customer reviews usually contain natural language and keywords that potential customers might use when searching for products online. By including these keywords in customer reviews, product pages become more optimised for search queries, increasing the chances of appearing in relevant search results. Also, search engines value user-generated content as it provides authenticity and social proof. 

Customer reviews are considered user-generated content and can enhance the credibility of a product page, thereby potentially improving its search engine ranking. Positive customer reviews can encourage visitors to spend more time on the product page, leading to increased dwell time.

Research shows that a whopping 80% of consumers are more likely to buy a product after encountering positive reviews. Search engines interpret longer dwell times as a signal of relevance and quality, potentially boosting the page's ranking.

12. Regularly Update and Repurpose Existing Content

Search engines like Google prioritise fresh and relevant content in their search results. Regularly updating existing content signals to search engine algorithms that your website is active and provides up-to-date information, which can positively impact your search engine rankings.

Also, by updating and repurposing existing content, you can target new keywords, answer frequently asked questions, or cover emerging topics, expanding your website's visibility and driving more organic traffic.

Today, users are more likely to engage with content that is current and informative. Updating existing content ensures that visitors to your ecommerce website are presented with accurate and valuable information, leading to a better user experience and potentially higher conversion rates.

Even repurposing existing content can be a cost-effective strategy compared to creating entirely new content from scratch. By leveraging existing assets, you can save time and resources while achieving the SEO goals.

Final words

So, here, ecommerce SEO is basically the art of improving the organic rankings as well as the visibility in search engines of an online store. The mentioned comprehensive ecommerce SEO checklist will definitely equip you with the tools to optimise your online store while driving organic traffic and propelling your business forward. Get ready to watch your website rise in search results and bring in a flood of new visitors!