Shopify SEO Tips
One of the best ways to grow your organic traffic and conversions is by focusing on quick wins. This doesn't mean taking shortcuts to get to the top but rather finding areas where you can make small changes that have a big impact.
Even if your Shopify store is already ranking well, simply maintaining the status quo isn’t an option. The SEO landscape is constantly changing and if you're not keeping up, you will quickly fall behind.
In this article, we explore some of the most effective Shopify SEO tips that you can use to improve your store's visibility and performance in search engines. While there’s no silver bullet when it comes to SEO, following these tips will help you stay ahead of the competition and give you a better chance of success.
10 Quick Wins to Grow Organic Traffic
1. Keyword Mapping Collection & Product Pages
Keyword mapping is the process of matching keywords to specific pages on your website. This is important because it helps search engines understand what your pages are about and how they should be ranked in search results.
Your Shopify store likely has a large number of pages, so it's important to map out which keywords you want to target for each page. To do this:
- Pick up 20-30 pages on your store by revenue: These are your most important pages, and you should be strategic about the keywords you target for these pages.
- Use Google Search Console & Ahrefs to find the best target keywords: Google Search Console and Ahrefs are two great Shopify SEO apps that can help you find the right keywords to target.
- Match your target keywords to specific pages: Once you've identified the best target keywords, it's time to map them to specific pages on your site. You can do this by creating a spreadsheet.
Once you have your keyword map, you can start optimizing your collection and product pages for SEO. This includes using keyword-rich titles, meta descriptions, and product descriptions.
2. Expand Content On Product Pages With FAQs
FAQs go a long way in improving UX (user experience) and also help you rank for more keywords. By adding FAQs to your product pages, you make it easier for customers to find the information they need, so they’re more likely to stick around on your page and purchase from you.
The best way to start is to brainstorm all questions clients ask using Google Search Querries & customer service queries. For instance, most people want to know about product features, shipping & return policy, etc. These would be great topics to cover in your FAQs.
Another great way to come up with FAQ ideas is to look at your competitor's product pages and see what questions they’re answering. This can give you a good starting point for creating your own FAQs.
Don't forget to use a schema generator to add FAQ schema to the product page. A schema is a code that you can add to your website to help search engines understand your content. This is especially important for FAQs because it allows them to be featured in rich snippets. These are the results that appear at the top of the SERP with additional information about the result. When done correctly, they can help you stand out from the competition and increase your click-through rate.
3. Interlink Collections, Products, and Blogs
Our Shopify SEO experts will tell you that interlinking is important for two main reasons:
It helps search engines understand your website structure: By linking to other pages on your site, you are effectively creating a map for search engines to follow. This makes it easier for them to index your site and understand how your content is related.
It improves the user experience: Interlinking helps users navigate your website and find the information they are looking for. This can reduce bounce rates and increase time on site, which are both important ranking factors.
When interlinking, use keyword-rich anchor text. This is the text that is hyperlinked and it should be relevant to the page you're linking to. For example, if you're linking to a product page from a blog post, the anchor text should be something like "(name of product you’re linking to)"
But you don't just get up and start interlinking. You need to strategize for success by following these steps:
- Make a list of keywords and pages stuck on positions 21-30: These are the pages you want to interlink because they need a boost.
- Use a (site:domain.com) and find a keyword inside one of your pages: For example, if you want to target the keyword "male apparels," do a domain search and find it on your blog. Then, you can link to that blog post from other pages on your site.
Add an internal link to the page you want to boost: Once you've found a relevant page to link to, add 2-3 internal links from other pages on your site. Spread them out and use different anchor texts each time
4. Implement Product Schema
Adding schema to your organic results can increase your click-through rate by up to 10%.
If you're not familiar with schema, it's code that you can add to your website to help search engines understand your content. This is especially important for products because it allows them to be featured in rich snippets, improving your click-through rate.
Below is a step-by-step guide on how to add schema to your product pages:
- Do a domain search to see if you already have a product schema: Some review apps automatically add schema to your product pages, so it's worth doing a search to see if you already have it.
- Ask your reviews app to enable product snippets: If you don't have product schema, reach out to your reviews app and ask them to enable it. Once they do, you should see the stars appear in your organic results.
The power of product schema cannot be understated. If you want to give your product pages a boost, implement it now.
5. Set Bing Webmaster Tools
Bing is one of the most overlooked search engines, but it still has a significant market share. In fact, it's estimated that Bing powers 10% of all searches, which is nothing to sneeze at.
The most important reason why you should focus on Bing is not its market share, but its RPV (revenue per visit). Bing has the highest RPV of any search engine, which means that if you can rank on Bing, you're more likely to generate revenue.
Bing Webmaster Tools is a free platform that allows you to submit your Shopify sitemap, view your backlinks, and track your keyword rankings. It is just like setting up Google Search Console, but for Bing.
Here's how to do it:
- Open Bing Webmaster Tools
- Log in with your Google Account
- Import your site from GSC
Once you're logged in, you'll see a dashboard with an overview of your website. From here, you can view your backlinks, sitemaps, and keyword rankings.
Bing Webmaster Tools is a valuable platform that can help you track your progress on Bing and improve your ranking.
6. Optimize Shopify URL Structure
Shopify creates a separate URL for each product inside a collection. This means that if you have a product that is in multiple collections, it will have multiple URLs.
While this might not seem like a big deal, it can actually hurt your SEO because it creates duplicate content. Google doesn’t like duplicate content, and it can result in lower rankings.
It doesn't matter if you have the best Shopify theme for SEO or the most optimized website; if you have duplicate content, your rankings will suffer.
The solution is to prevent Shopify from dynamically creating multiple URLs for each product. Our experts at GoldenWeb will remove a piece of code from theme.liquid file, which is responsible for auto-generating these URLs.
Once this code is removed, Shopify will use the same URL for all collections that a product is in. This will eliminate duplicate content and improve your SEO.
7. Leverage Affiliates and Influencers to Build Links
Link building is one of the most important, and difficult, aspects of SEO. The more high-quality links you have pointing to your site, the higher your rankings will be.
One way to build links is to leverage affiliates and influencers. An affiliate is someone who promotes your products in exchange for a commission. They’re typically bloggers or YouTubers who have an audience that is interested in your products.
An influencer is someone with a large following on social media. They can promote your products to their followers, which results in sales and links.
Here is how to get started with affiliates and influencers:
- Create an affiliate program: The first and most important step is to create an affiliate program. This gives potential affiliates all the information they need to promote your products. Ensure your program is competitive and offers a high commission.
- Create a list of products you want to boost: Once you have an affiliate program, make a list of the products you want to promote. These are typically your best-selling or highest-margin products.
- Reach out to potential affiliates and influencers: The next step is to reach out to potential affiliates and influencers. You can do this by sending them an email or direct message on social media. Ensure they know which products you want them to promote and how much commission they can earn.
By leveraging affiliates and influencers, you can build high-quality links to your site and improve your Shopify SEO.
8. Recapture Broken Backlinks
Before investing in more links, it’s prudent to recapture any broken backlinks that you have. A broken link is a link to a page that no longer exists.
This happens for a number of reasons, such as deleted pages, changed URLs, or 404 errors.
Broken links can hurt your SEO because they result in a "link loss." This is when Google sees that you have a link pointing to a page that does not exist, and it counts it against you.
Here is what you need to do:
- Open Ahrefs or SEMrush to enter your domain.
- Open the "Broken Backlinks" section and export them.
- Create 301 redirects from the 404 pages with backlinks. This tells Google that the link has been moved and will preserve the link equity.
9. Recapture Lost Links
Sometimes, webmasters unintentionally remove links to your site. This can happen when they change the URL of a page, restructure their website, or delete a page entirely.
When this happens, you lose the link equity pointing to your site. Fortunately, you can recapture this link equity by following these steps:
- Open Ahrefs or SemRush and enter your domain.
- Open the "Lost Backlinks Section” and export them.
- Reach out to the webmaster and ask them to reinstate the link.
Some webmasters may ask you to update the content in which the link is placed. This can be time-consuming, but it’s worth the effort to reclaim your links and ensure you have the best sitemap possible.
10. Remove Low-Quality Pages from Google's Index
One way we boost your Shopify SEO at GoldenWeb is by removing low-quality pages from Google's index. These are typically pages with little or no content, thin affiliate pages, or duplicate pages.
Paginated and tagged pages are the most common examples of low-quality pages. Paginated pages are a type of multi-page article that is divided up into separate pages, usually with a "next" or "previous" button at the bottom to help readers navigate.
Google sees paginated pages as a single piece of content, hence indexes them as such. This may result in low-quality pages that don't provide much value appearing in the search results.
Tagged pages are when a product is available in multiple colors or sizes and each size/color has its own URL.
To remove these pages from Google's index:
- Go to Google Search Console and go through all indexed pages.
- Take note of all low-quality pages, such as paginated and tagged pages.
- Ask the experts at GoldenWeb to exclude these pages from the robots.txt file, which Google not to index them.
2 Bonus CRO Tips
Below are two bonus CRO tips that can help improve your Shopify SEO:
Set Up A Time Sensitive Pop-Up
In the past, exit pop-ups were used to try and get visitors to stay on your site. However, with mobile browsing being the dominant force in modern internet habits, they’re now considered annoying and intrusive.
A better way to use pop-ups is to offer a time-sensitive discount or coupon. This entices the visitor to stay on your site and make a purchase.
To set up a time-sensitive pop-up:
- Go to Google Analytics and note down the average session duration.
- Set up a pop-up based on a time trigger.
- Set the pop-up to appear about 5 seconds before visitors exit the page.
Remember, the goal is to get visitors to stay on your site and make a purchase, so make sure the offer is enticing enough.
Add CTAs to Blog Posts
A CTA, or call-to-action, is a button or link that encourages visitors to take action. The most common CTAs are "Buy Now," "Sign Up," or "Learn More."
Most Shopify store owners publish valuable blog content but fail to include a CTA. This is a missed opportunity to convert visitors into customers or capture leads.
Every blog post should have at least one CTA, preferably in the form of a banner or widget. The CTA should be relevant to the blog post and link to a product page, landing page, or another valuable resource. Opt-ins and product embeds are some of the most effective CTAs.
GoldenWeb's Full SEO Audit
These 10 Shopify SEO tips are part of our comprehensive SEO audit. We analyze and implement over 285 quick wins to increase traffic and conversions for Shopify stores. Our goal is to uncover all underlying SEO issues that are holding back your business and provide a roadmap for long-term success.
We offer a free mini SEO audit that will give you an idea of the areas we focus on. But we don't want you to take our word for it. Book it now and see for yourself how we can help you grow your Shopify business.
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