Do you need to develop your own SEO Strategy but you’re unsure where to start? Do you need to find out what the difference is between on-page SEO and technical SEO? You’ve come to the right place. Below is your simple guide to creating an SEO strategy for your commerce website.

Key Takeaways

• Set Clear Goals: Define what you want to achieve with SEO (e.g., increased organic traffic, higher conversions).

• Keyword Research: Identify the right keywords using both free and premium tools. Avoid overly generic terms.

• Technical SEO Audit: Ensure your website is fast, mobile-friendly, and easy for search engines to crawl. Don’t neglect basic elements like XML sitemaps.

• On-Page SEO: Optimise title tags, meta descriptions, header tags, and image alt text. Avoid keyword stuffing and duplicate content.

• Content Strategy: Create quality, relevant content that meets user intent. Don’t publish low-quality or irrelevant content.

• Off-Page SEO: Build authoritative backlinks through genuine outreach and content sharing. Avoid using black-hat techniques that can harm your reputation.

• Tracking & Analysis: Use tools like Google Analytics and Search Console to monitor your progress. Don’t set and forget; continually review and adjust your strategy.

1. Define Your SEO Goals

Before diving into the technical and creative aspects of SEO, you must define your objectives. Goals act as your roadmap and provide a clear direction for your strategy. Whether your aim is to boost organic traffic, increase online sales, or improve conversion rates, setting specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals is critical.

What to Do:

• Write down specific targets, such as “Increase organic traffic by 20% within six months” or “Boost online sales conversion by 15% over the next quarter.”

• Align your SEO goals with your overall business strategy to ensure consistency.

Common Pitfalls:

• Vague Objectives: Avoid setting general goals like “get more visitors” without clear metrics. This can lead to unfocused efforts and unclear results.

• Ignoring the Business Context: Ensure that your SEO goals complement your business model. For instance, focusing solely on traffic might be counterproductive if your website doesn’t convert visitors into customers.

2. Keyword Research

What is Keyword Research?

Keyword research is the process of discovering the words and phrases that potential customers type into search engines when looking for products or services. For a commerce site, targeting the right keywords ensures your products are visible to the right audience.

What to Do:

• Use tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Google Trends to generate a comprehensive list of potential keywords.

• Develop a spreadsheet to organise keywords by search volume, difficulty, and target URL.

• Develop a keyword mapping document to align keywords to website pages.

Common Pitfalls:

• Overly Competitive Keywords: Avoid targeting extremely competitive keywords without a solid domain authority. Instead, focus on long-tail keywords with lower competition.

• Ignoring User Intent: Keywords should match the user's intent. For example, if a user is searching for “buy red running shoes,” ensure your page is optimised for transactional intent, not just informational.

3. Technical SEO Audit

What is Technical SEO?

Technical SEO focuses on the non-content aspects of your website. This includes site speed, mobile usability, URL structure, and proper indexing by search engines. These factors play a crucial role in how search engines crawl and rank your website. This is important to consider if you’re looking to rely less on ads, and organically grow your website.

What to Do:

• Conduct an audit using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights, Screaming Frog, and the Mobile-Friendly Test.

• Ensure that you have a clean URL structure, a properly configured XML sitemap, and a well-set-up robots.txt file.

• Regularly check for broken links and ensure your website is secure (HTTPS).

Common Pitfalls:

• Neglecting Mobile Users: With mobile devices accounting for a significant portion of web traffic, failing to optimise for mobile can lead to high bounce rates.

• Overcomplicating the Site Structure: A convoluted site architecture can confuse search engines. Avoid overly nested URLs and ensure your structure is logical and user-friendly.

• Ignoring Site Speed: A slow website frustrates users and harms your rankings. Ensure your images are optimised and consider using a Content Delivery Network (CDN).

4. On-Page SEO

What is On-Page SEO?

On-page SEO involves optimising individual web pages to rank higher and earn more relevant traffic. It covers elements that are directly controlled by you, such as content quality, title tags, meta descriptions, header tags, and image alt text.

What to Do:

• Write compelling title tags and meta descriptions that accurately describe the page content and include target keywords.

• Use header tags (H1, H2, etc.) to structure your content, making it easier for both users and search engines to understand the hierarchy.

• Optimise images by including descriptive alt text, which also improves accessibility.

Common Pitfalls:

• Keyword Stuffing: Overusing keywords can lead to penalties from search engines. Aim for natural integration rather than forcing keywords.

• Duplicate Content: Ensure that each page has unique content. Duplicate content can confuse search engines and dilute your SEO efforts.

• Neglecting User Experience: Over-optimising for search engines without considering readability and user engagement can reduce the effectiveness of your SEO strategy.

5. Content Strategy

What is a Content Strategy?

A content strategy is a plan for creating, publishing, and managing content that meets the needs of your audience while aligning with your business goals. It ensures that your website provides valuable, relevant, and consistent content that supports your SEO objectives.

What to Do:

• Start with a content audit to assess what is currently available on your site and how it performs.

• Develop a content plan that aligns with your keyword research and addresses different stages of the buyer's journey. Consider formats such as blog posts, product pages, guides, and customer testimonials.

• Use a content calendar to schedule regular updates and new content releases.

Common Pitfalls:

• Low-Quality Content: Publishing thin or irrelevant content can harm your credibility and rankings. Always aim for depth and relevance.

• Inconsistent Updates: Infrequent or irregular content updates can reduce user engagement and signal to search engines that your site is not actively maintained.

• Ignoring User Intent: Failing to align content with what users are actually searching for can result in high bounce rates and low engagement.

6. Off-Page SEO and Link Building

What is Off-Page SEO?

Off-page SEO involves strategies to boost your site's authority and credibility through external means, primarily via backlinks from other reputable websites. These links serve as endorsements, signalling to search engines that your content is valuable.

What to Do:

• Engage in guest blogging and influencer outreach to acquire high-quality backlinks.

• Share your content on social media platforms to increase visibility and encourage natural linking.

• Ensure your business is listed in relevant local directories and citation sites if applicable.

Common Pitfalls:

• Using Black-Hat Techniques: Avoid buying links or participating in link schemes, as these can lead to severe penalties.

• Ignoring Link Quality: Focus on the quality of links rather than the quantity. A few high-authority links are far more beneficial than numerous low-quality ones.

• Neglecting Relationship Building: Effective link building is about building relationships within your industry. Don’t treat link building as a one-off task; cultivate long-term partnerships.

7. Tracking & Analysis

Importance of Monitoring

Monitoring and analysing your SEO performance is essential to understand what’s working and where improvements are needed. Regular tracking allows you to adjust your strategy based on real-time data and industry trends.

What to Do:

• Set up Google Analytics and Google Search Console to track key metrics such as organic traffic, bounce rate, conversion rate, and keyword rankings.

• Create dashboards that visualise your performance metrics and help you spot trends or issues quickly.

• Regularly review and refine your strategy based on the data collected, making adjustments as necessary.

Common Pitfalls:

• Not Acting on Data: Simply collecting data isn’t enough; you need to analyse and act on it. Ignoring insights can lead to missed opportunities.

• Overlooking Smaller Metrics: While overall traffic is important, don’t neglect metrics like user engagement and page-specific performance, which can offer deeper insights into user behaviour.

• Setting and Forgetting: SEO is an ongoing process. Failing to regularly review your analytics may result in outdated strategies that no longer align with current trends.

Final Thoughts

Creating an effective SEO strategy for a commerce website is a continuous, iterative process that requires clear planning and regular adjustments. By defining clear goals, performing thorough keyword research, auditing your technical setup, optimising on-page elements, developing a robust content strategy, building high-quality backlinks, and diligently tracking your performance, you can significantly improve your site’s visibility and performance.

Avoid common mistakes such as vague objectives, keyword stuffing, neglecting mobile optimisation, and low-quality content. Instead, focus on best practices that support both user experience and search engine guidelines.

Remember, SEO is a marathon, not a sprint, so continual learning and refinement are key.