10 key steps to referencing your store on Google

For an online store, SEO means a lot. It can have a direct impact on traffic and conversion rates. It also enhances the credibility of a website and the brand’s awareness. Considering the level of competition currently present on the internet, SEO can only be a good thing for the website that knows how to leverage it properly. To achieve this, one must apply the correct SEO strategy. This strategy should leverage strong keywords, optimization of product pages and content. It should include processes for both internal and external linking, as well as for local SEO via Google My Business. In this article, we will look at practical tips for on-page and off-page optimization, as well as discuss data analysis and identifying opportunities for improving an SEO strategy.

The importance of SEO for your online store

Knowing that 39% of e-commerce traffic comes from online searches, a business cannot bypass natural SEO to hope to thrive on the internet. SEO, or search engine optimization, encompasses a set of strategies aimed at helping a website that wishes to propel itself into the best search engine results pages (SERPs). It is an approach that allows one to gain better visibility and undeniable advantages at the competition level.

Understanding the advantages of Google SEO

SEO has become a standard for websites, regardless of the product or service being sold. It is one of the best ways to attract people to a website. Therefore, one must implement a solid search engine optimization strategy to harness it effectively.

It is an essential step for those who want to attract more internet users to their website. E-stores will particularly benefit from SEO, as it allows them to achieve more traffic and gain more leads. If SEO is done correctly, it brings more visibility and, ultimately, increases a company’s revenue.

Getting familiar with Google’s algorithm and its operation

When one wishes to reference a site, one cannot overlook the search engine that currently dominates the internet: Google. This search engine uses algorithms for its operation. These algorithms comprise a set of rules used by Google to rank websites in search results. We are talking about a complex system that retrieves page data, strives to understand what users want, and ranks pages based on their relevance and quality. Thus, algorithms are a tool on which Google relies to catalog a page in search results when a user enters a query in the search bar.

Explanation of SEO competition in e-commerce

Every hour, millions of people are conducting web searches. The vast majority do this to find the services or products they need. However, only a tiny fraction will go beyond the first page in their search. The biggest competitors will therefore vie for the best spot on the first page. SEO is an effective way to achieve this. For an e-commerce business, competition is fierce on the web. To attract more customers, internet users must easily find products and services without having to search for hours on Google. Natural SEO allows one to rise above competitors and position oneself efficiently for our product or service niche to be easily discoverable by users.

Developing an effective SEO strategy

Developing an effective SEO strategy means optimizing every facet of your website. Here, one should turn to e-commerce focused SEO. It will bring improvements both on your site (on-page SEO) and outside of it to increase its visibility and awareness (off-page SEO). Both should lead to achieving a high position on the first page of results for the keywords one wishes to rank for.

How to choose the right keywords for your online store?

To find the right keywords, there are important factors to consider. The first is undoubtedly volume. A keyword that is searched many times can increase traffic to your site. But the second factor that must be taken into account is competition. The more searches there are for a keyword, the more competition there is for it.

The best approach is to choose those with few competitors or opt for more specific terms that are generally referred to as long-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords are longer, have less competition, and allow for more qualified traffic. Relevance is also an important element as it determines the keyword related to the product, service, or activity being offered.

Finally, there is intent which indicates what users are trying to find when they perform a search. Is it for information, to find a retailer, or to make a purchase? An e-commerce store will prioritize commercial and transactional search intents.

Importance of Google My Business and good internal/external linking

A good SEO strategy also involves good internal and external linking. Internal linking is part of on-page SEO. It connects pages within the same site. This is intended to facilitate navigation

for users and help search engines better understand our site. External linking, on the other hand, is a very important part of off-page SEO. It involves creating incoming links commonly referred to as backlinks. These come from other sites that will reference ours for various topics. In simple terms, the more a domain name (site) is mentioned on other sites, the more its credibility will increase with Google. Among other things, with its 40,000 queries every second, Google records more than 3 billion every day. Among these, half consist of local searches.

And this is where Google My Business and local SEO find their importance. They are free and allow managing how one appears in online tools such as Google Maps. One can then update their Google business profile information at any time. In other words, we control how our opening hours, phone number, and other attributes appear online and on Google Maps. Potential customers can then contact us more easily, as our information is accessible at all times. To use Google My Business, one must create a business listing and log in. Then, one can go to the Google My Business site and start by clicking on “Manage” and complete the steps for creating the listing.

How to optimize product listings for SEO?

Writing optimized titles and descriptions, proper use of images, and using meta tags are important for optimizing product listings.

How to write optimized titles and descriptions?

A good title should primarily remain natural and contain the targeted keywords. To be displayed correctly in search engine results, the title should be a maximum of 70 characters. The SEO title reflects the elements contained on the page. It can ask a question or answer it and should include the name of the page or business/brand.

To write an optimized description, one must first think about what buyers are looking for and highlight the advantages as well as the features of the product. Here, it is necessary to target the right SEO keywords for each product and place them strategically in the text. Then, one can add calls to action. Finally, a major last detail, each description must be unique.

Importance of images and how to optimize them for SEO

Images help with the good SEO of a webpage. They contribute to achieving a good ranking on Google and lighten the reading for users. There are several methods to optimize images for SEO. The first thing to know is that they should not slow down your site’s loading time. They should therefore be of the right size and contain keywords as well as alternative text. The latter helps search engine spiders to index the content of an image. Don’t forget to make the photos mobile-friendly. Indeed, with Google’s mobile-first indexing, crawlers primarily take into account the mobile version of a site.

Using meta tags for maximum optimization

Meta tags have an impact on how a site will appear directly in search results and how it will be perceived by users. Therefore, they must be well optimized. Indeed, they create the first impression of your web address. The goal here is to entice the reader to click through to your page. As a result, a good meta tag can yield better traffic and engagement for SEO. To achieve this correctly, use relevant keywords that correspond to the content and search intent. Write for users and use a friendly and conversational tone. Here, one should try several styles before knowing what works for your page and audience.

Monitoring and optimizing your store’s SEO

Monitoring and optimizing the SEO of your store involves being able to assess the effectiveness of your SEO strategy, finding its weaknesses, and knowing how to address them. To do this, there are various tools provided by Google itself. Moreover, one must stay updated and be aware of the latest changes that search engines have made to their algorithms.

Using Google Analytics to monitor traffic and identify optimization opportunities

Google Analytics is a powerful and free tool (by default, as there is a premium version called Google Analytics 360) that allows you to track the performance of your website’s campaign. It enables you to monitor traffic and identify optimization opportunities. In this approach, there are several techniques, particularly analyzing trends and data patterns.

This latter involves examining performance reports (organic traffic, bounce rate, average session duration). The analyst can then check for revealing patterns and correlations such as underperforming pages or keywords. They will then compare with competitors to pinpoint gaps in the existing SEO strategy. Once this is done, they can propose optimization opportunities and conduct new tests to see what works and adjust accordingly.

Meaning and importance of Google algorithm updates

Google’s algorithm updates aim to improve the relevance and quality of search results for users. Indeed, the main goal of a search engine is to provide reliable, useful, and accurate information for these users. To achieve this outcome, the search engine continuously optimizes its algorithms so that they find better ways to understand the web content. They will then focus on content quality, user experience, and website security. Moreover, it is important to know that these updates disrupt established SEO strategies.

How to maintain and improve your store’s SEO on Google in the long term?

If one wishes to maintain and improve their store’s SEO in the long term, one must focus on creating relevant and high-quality content. Optimizing user experience must never be sidelined. This includes site response speed, mobile platform support, security, and an easy-to-navigate structure. And as described above, Google frequently updates its algorithms. Therefore, one must stay informed and know how to adapt to provide value to users.

Conclusion

Natural SEO is crucial for an online store to succeed in the long term. As we have seen, there are various proven techniques to attract more qualified traffic from Google. This can range from targeting keywords, carefully optimizing content and metadata, to strategically linking internal/external sources. We also discussed using Google My Business for local visibility. However, an effective SEO strategy does not stop there. It is imperative to regularly monitor data from Google Analytics. One must also be responsive to algorithm updates and continually optimize their online presence. This way, one can maintain and enhance their ranking on Google.