Starting an online store can be an exciting new venture. You have a unique product and you’re ready to start selling. However, while setting up your e-commerce store is important, making sure it is visible for your potential customers is equally important. SEO or Search engine optimization is the key to driving traffic to your store.
Implementing SEO for your Shopify store can not only improve your website’s visibility, but it can also increase sales and improve customer experience. So, how can you make sure your Shopify store is optimized for search engines? In this blog post, we’ll provide a beginner’s guide to Shopify SEO and show you how to boost your online store’s visibility.
Understanding Shopify SEO
Before we dive right into the nuts and bolts of optimizing your Shopify store for SEO, it is important to understand what SEO means. Search Engine Optimization is the practice of increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search engine results. SEO involves increasing the visibility of your website in search engine results pages (SERPs).
Google and other search engines use algorithms to determine which websites are the most relevant to a user’s search query. The exact algorithm used can differ slightly from search engine to search engine, but there are a few common things that all search engines look for when indexing a website.
Some of the ranking factors that search engines use include the relevance of your content, its freshness, loading speed of your site, user engagement, backlinks, and others. Therefore, it’s essential that you optimize your Shopify store for search engines if you want it to appear prominently in search results.
Optimizing Your Shopify Store for SEO
Now that you understand what SEO is, follow these beginner’s tips to optimize your Shopify store for search engines.
1. Conduct Keyword Research
The first step in optimizing your online store is conducting keyword research. This research will help you understand the terms that your potential customers are using on search engines when looking for products similar to yours.
Keyword research will help give you insights into what topics people are interested in when it comes to your products. You can use tools like Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, or Ahrefs to discover keywords or search terms that your customers use to find your products.
Once you have a list of keywords, you can prioritize your SEO tactics accordingly. Use high-volume and low-competition keywords in your web pages, product descriptions, URLs, and meta tags. Doing this will increase your chances of ranking high in search engine results pages for relevant searches.
2. Optimize Your Page Titles and Meta Descriptions
Your page title and meta description are the first details that search engine users see when your site appears in search listings. Hence, optimizing your title and meta description can enhance the chances of attracting clicks from potential customers.
Your page titles and meta descriptions should include your primary keyword to provide context to the search engines. Additionally, you should keep them short and descriptive to capture users’ attention. Here’s an example of an optimized page title and meta description from the e-commerce site www.nike.com.
Title tag: Nike. Just Do It. Nike.com
Meta Description: Inspiring the world’s athletes, Nike delivers innovative products, experiences and services.
3. Optimize Your Product Pages
Now that you have conducted robust keyword research and optimized your meta tags, it’s time to focus on optimizing individual product pages. The product pages are the most critical pages on your e-commerce store. They showcase the products you offer and provide the details customers need to make an informed purchase.
Here are some best practices for optimizing your product pages:
- Include high-quality product images.
- Add a detailed product description.
- Include user-generated content like reviews and ratings.
- Use keyword-rich product titles and page URLs.
- Ensure that your product tags align with your keywords.
You may like to review Apple’s Airpods Pro page as an example of a product page that is well optimized.
4. Use a Responsive Web Design
Today people use different devices, such as desktops, smartphones, or tablets, to browse the web. Therefore, it’s vital that your Shopify store has a responsive web design to cater to different devices with different screen sizes.
A responsive website design allows your website to adjust to the user’s device, keeping it legible and easily navigable, as well as improving your website’s loading times. A website’s responsiveness is one of the significant factors Google considers when ranking sites for SEO.
You can use tools like Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test to check if your website is mobile responsive. Thoroughly test your Shopify store on different platforms, devices, and screen sizes to ensure that all features work as intended.
5. Build Quality Backlinks
Backlinks are an essential factor that Google and other search engines use to determine the authority and relevance of your website. A backlink is a link from another website that directs to your Shopify store.
Backlinks signal to search engines that other sources consider your website or product pages to be authoritative and trustworthy. So, the higher the number of quality backlinks you have, the better your chances of ranking high in SERPs.
However, it’s essential to understand that not all backlinks are created equal. It would help if you focused on building high-quality backlinks from authoritative websites that are relevant to your niche. You can use tools to check your backlinks like Ahrefs or Majestic to monitor your site’s link profile.
Conclusion
SEO is an ongoing process that requires patience and consistency, especially since your competitors are likely optimizing their Shopify stores, too. Therefore, it’s a continuous effort to keep up with the SEO and keep yourself updated with the latest changes to stay ahead of the competition.
Nevertheless, by following the above tips, you can improve the visibility of your Shopify store and attract more potential customers to it. Implementing these Shopify SEO tips is an excellent first step towards creating an online presence and establishing your brand’s authority in your niche.